A/N: back with another!

god i really love Nya's character. i am just so fascinated by her. i'm hoping to give some background to her more dominant traits, like her fear of failure and her stubbornness.

this is rapidly turning into a Nya character study and i'm not gonna do a thing about it !

oOo

The first night is rough.

Nya tries to sleep in her own room, she really does. After all, she's ten now, and that's more than old enough to survive one night without Kai nearby. She's gonna be mature, dangit.

But later on, when the moon is dangling high in the sky, Nya wakes up to the hammering of her own pulse.

Just a dream, just a dream—

The dark doesn't freak her out. No way. That's stupid.

Stop being a baby. Woman up.

So she does, burrowing under the covers. She's past the days of being scared of the dark. That's way behind her now. She's ten!

Nya lasts one more minute.

She rips the blanket off, scrambling out of bed and limping for the door (her foot hasn't healed yet, it still hurts pretty bad). Screw maturity, she's lonely and can't sleep. Being ten is overrated anyways.

Just as her fingers graze the knob, the door swings open, nearly catching the side of her jaw.

Kai is standing in the hall.

"Oh. Hey."

Nya blinks at him in the dark. "Hey."

"You're up."

"You too."

Kai reaches up to scratch the back of his neck. "Ah . . . so, here's the thing." He laughs resignedly. "I, uh, couldn't sleep. The room just felt so big and I—"

"You felt lonely?"

Even in the dark, Kai notices Nya's expression. He must misinterpret it, because he backtracks.

"Never mind, it was stupid," he says, turning to leave. Nya springs to life.

"No!"

Good thing they don't have any neighbors to wake.

Kai stops, alarmed. Nya rocks back and forth on her heels.

"Sorry. I mean—you can go. If you want. I was just—I was . . ."

This would be so much easier if Kai would just read her mind. What kind of ten-year-old can't sleep in her own room? Kai probably thinks she's annoying—

"D'you wanna just, like . . . head to my room? Ya know. It's empty. I'm not used to it yet."

A smile splits across Nya's face. "Yeah. Cool."

"Cool."

Nya trots after Kai until they reach his room. They crawl into bed together, curling up contentedly. Relief spreads through her. Not—not that she needs her brother around to feel safe or happy or anything. Pssh.

. . . Well. Okay, maybe she just prefers his company.

Either way, Nya knows she'll sleep much better now.

oOo

Kai, true to his word, gets the shop running again. Somehow.

He spends every day standing at the forge, sparks flying and hammer swinging. Nya wonders when he learned any of this. She has enough doubts to fill a novel.

But as the days and weeks bleed into months, they actually acquire customers. Not many, but it's enough. For the moment.

Kai won't let Nya do any actual smithing yet, which she has mixed feelings about. It's not like she wanted to in the first place, but now that she's not allowed . . . Nya feels like pounding some metal. Just to prove that she can, thank you very much.

But Kai holds firm, and she lets him have his way.

Instead, Nya works the counter. Their customers are infrequent, but every now and then, someone will wander up to the shop curiously. Nya is determined to fine-tune her people skills.

Today is slow. Her foot hurts, but not badly. She's absently toying with her still-super-short hair, listening to the clang of Kai's metal in the background. Sometimes he emits an irritated grunt or two.

(His skills are questionable, but she hasn't told him that.)

A figure is suddenly approaching the shop. Nya straightens, trying to give herself some height.

"Morning!" she chirps. "Can we help you with anything?"

It's an older man, maybe in his early fifties. His graying hair and warm, brown eyes give him an approachable vibe. He smiles at her.

"Well, maybe you can. Never thought I'd see the day." Slowly, as though in awe, he surveys the shop, lingering on the weather-beaten sign in front. "Hasn't changed a bit."

"Um." Nya falters. The script Kai made her memorize doesn't quite fit the situation.

The man looks at her quizzically. There's a hint of recognition in his expression. "Have your parents returned?"

Something sour and brick-like drops in Nya's stomach. Parents? Returned? Who is this guy?

"I, uh . . . no, sir. They've been gone for years now."

His face falls. "I'm sorry to hear that."

Before he can say anything else, Kai materializes at Nya's side, probably alerted by her prolonged silence. He glares.

"Who are you, exactly?"

The man ducks his head a little, chuckling. "Ah, sorry. Name's Walter Pine. Used to be a regular around here, when your parents were running things."

Some of the suspicion fades from Kai's expression. "You—you knew them? Our parents?"

"Sure did. Ray was a good friend of mine, back in the day. I'm sorry about what happened." Walter's gaze flicks from Nya to Kai and back again. "FSM. You two look just like 'em."

A tinge of pride colors Nya's cheeks. Maybe she likes this guy after all.

"Living with a relative?" Walter asks. His tone is serious now, like there's a right answer to this question.

To his credit, Kai only hesitates for the barest of seconds. "Yeah. Our uncle."

Walter nods, subdued. "I see. Wanted to get the place runnin' again, huh? Your uncle help you out?"

"Sometimes. He's, ah, not around much."

Maybe it's sympathy, or just polite concern, but Walter gives them a little smile and glances around one more time. Nya knows this man doesn't believe Kai, but he doesn't argue either.

"Well, hey, if you two ever need anything, all ya gotta do is ask. I live right over the top of that hill." Walter points across the winding cobblestone road, referencing the patch of green farmland speckled with sheep.

Nya's heart soars. Their closest neighbor is a family friend! Good to know.

"Thanks, Mr. Pine," says Kai.

"Walter," the older man replies, smiling ruefully. "And no problem. Anything for Ray and Mya's kids."

He turns then, heading calmly down the road, hands in his jacket pockets. Kai and Nya share a glance, exchanging silent observations. At least they're not alone out here.

So yeah, sometimes the weeks fly by. Sometimes Nya has a long string of good days all in a row, but she knows better than to assume it'll last. She's spent enough time around Liam to understand a few "good days" don't always mean much.

The troublesome days come sneakily. They pounce when Nya's least expecting them. For instance—

Every week, Kai and Nya have to make the four mile journey into Ignacia for food and material, which wouldn't be so bad if they didn't have to walk. Neither sibling can drive, and they're too young anyway, so they close shop for a day and head down the road.

It's about an hour each way. By the time they get back, Kai just wants to sleep.

Nya thinks it's kind of lame that they have to go together, since it does throw off business for a whole day. Kai won't leave Nya home alone for a day, because dangerous, but he also won't let Nya make the trip alone, because dangerous.

So she's stuck going to town once a week, whether she likes it or not.

Nya hates town. Especially the marketplace. There are just so many people. People with kids. And the kids have parents, and maybe it bothers Nya that other kids get to have parents.

Good for them, she supposes. But that doesn't mean she's not jealous.

It grows rocks in her stomach. It drives her to think about things. Sad things.

If she doesn't think about her parents, Nya can usually pretend she doesn't care. But days like this? They make Nya realize she does, in fact, care.

Nya hates caring, too. She wishes she could be more like Kai, who just grabs her hand and marches right through the crowds, oblivious to the stares they're getting.

And the whispers.

There go Ray and Mya's kids . . .

Aren't they living with their uncle?

Are they lost?

Are they looking for someone?

So sad, what happened to their parents . . .

The whispers make Nya angry. Her family is none of anyone's dang business, so leave her alone, gosh. She and Kai are doing perfectly fine without adults. They don't need any dumb supervision. What's everyone so worried about?

But man it hurts to see other families together. It's a pain that weakens her.

That weakness is one of her greatest fears. Nya loathes it. She likes to feel strong. Weakness gets people in trouble. It's like Kai always said: If they hit you, hit 'em back.

Unfortunately for her, today is one of those pesky aforementioned bad days.

As Kai is tossing apples into a bag, Nya wanders away, drawn by an abrupt raising of voices somewhere. She scans the market, hoping for a sign of what's going on. The noise is coming from—

Over there!

She follows it, ducking behind a stack of barrels. It's the mouth of a corner alleyway, brick walls lining either side. Right in the middle, four boys her own age are surrounding a younger, noticeably skinnier boy.

"What're you gonna do about it, Aiden?" one of them asks.

"He's prob'ly gonna cry," says another.

Nya can't see what's happening from where she's hiding, but from what she hears . . . this sounds like something bad. An adult might be better equipped to handle it . . .

So, naturally, she takes matters into her own hands.

"Hey!" she barks out. But that's all she's got, and now all five kids are looking at her and she doesn't have a follow-up statement.

Where's the wit when she needs it, geez.

"What?" one boy hisses. Now that she's closer, she notices how tall the boys are. Stupid tall people, she hates tall people—

"What's going on?" she asks. The question is directed at the smallest boy, in the middle. Aiden, was it?

Aiden steps forward, encouraged. Clearly he's been crying, though, because his voice still wavers as he says, "I heard them—and I came back here—and . . . they were trying to hurt this cat."

Nya's eyebrows lower as she peeks around Aiden. Sure enough, there's a little orange kitten curled up against the wall, ears flat against its head. It's so small that it could fit in Nya's two hands.

It can't defend itself. And this boy was just trying to help.

Nya feels something sharp and familiar rising in her chest.

She whirls on the taller boys. One of them is holding a small slingshot, and Nya puts the pieces together.

"Why would you do that?" she demands. "What'd this kitten ever do to you, huh?"

One boy scoffs, tossing an amused glance at his friends. They laugh.

"Awfully tough, arn'cha?" he says. "We don't listen to little girls."

Little? Nya will admit she's maybe on the shorter side, fine. But little? That means war.

Her hands curl into fists at her sides.

"Leave 'em alone," she orders, stepping between the cat and the four boys. Aiden shuffles over to stand next to her, which makes her feel a little better. Even though he doesn't look much more intimidating than she does.

"Or what?"

"Yeah, or what?"

Two of the boys shove Nya aside and snag the kitten, letting it dangle by the scruff of its neck. Nya grabs for it.

"Put it down!"

They don't listen. In fact, they only laugh louder as Nya persists, jumping to reach the poor cat. But nothing is working because no one ever listens to her.

"Come an' get your kitty," one boy taunts. "C'mon, shorty, can't you reach?"

"Jump higher next time!"

"Oh—almost had it!"

Their taunts blur into static between Nya's ears. She stops trying and steps back, tears building up as she bites the inside of her cheek.

Why does she have to be so useless? This is impossible. She should've walked away while she still had some dignity. Now the boys are laughing and Aiden is watching, waiting for her to do something.

She tried to do the right thing. And she failed.

Never mind this whole thing.

Nya sees red as she stomps away. The boys hoot and jostle one another.

C'mon Nya, you're better than this. You scared Liam away but you can't even handle some dumb boys?

She's pathetic.

As she hurries for the alley's entrance, Nya wonders what Kai might say about this. His voice rings in her ears.

Seriously? Quitting already? You're not a baby anymore. Get back in there and show 'em who's boss.

"Shut up," Nya mutters to Kai's voice in her head.

Just before leaving the scene behind, something makes Nya pause. She hears the boys shouting and laughing. From the corner of her eye, she sees them tossing the kitten back and forth like a ball.

Rage ignites in its hearth again.

Aiden is doing his best, calling out "Stop!" to no avail.

This feeling is an old friend, Nya thinks. It's hot and sharp and grows in her sternum. She feels like she could just shoot the anger from the palms of her hands.

Her eyes wander to the ground. A broken board is lying close to her feet.

The urge is tempting . . .

Maybe—no. But if I—NO. Just leave, Nya. Just go.

But she stays. Her knees are locked in anticipation.

When Aiden makes a painted grunting sound, Nya turns just in time to see him stumble backwards into a muddy puddle. The other kids laugh.

Because they pushed him.

And Nya hates people that push other people—

Suddenly she's treading forward, board in hand. The tallest boy's back is turned to her, and Nya comes up right behind him.

"Hey," she snaps.

The boy spins toward her and Nya swings.

There's a swift thwack! and then everything erupts into chaos.

The tall boy topples to the ground with a yell. His three friends leap into motion. One drags Nya back and she trips, dropping the wooden weapon. It all happens so fast that she's really only aware of her tailbone hitting the ground.

"Ow!"

The boy's on top of her, pushing her back into the dirt. Nya pushes back, kicking at him.

The other two are helping Tall Boy, who has yet to stand up. Aiden is there, then, knocking over the kid pinning Nya down. She scrambles to her feet, only to be hit hard on the back. Down she goes.

Things escalate into a full-blown brawl, Nya and Aiden against the other four. She can hardly see. There's dust in her eyes and something's definitely bleeding but all she can think is hit them back.

And that's what she does.

Nya puts up the fight of her life. She kicks and shoves and claws and rolls—one time she even lands a punch, though it doesn't help much.

Then Tall Boy throws himself at Nya and she slams down into the mud. His elbow digs into her shoulder.

"You think you're so tough?" he hisses. Nya struggles beneath him.

"Get off—"

"Yeah, just wait til I—

"Hey!"

Every head turns, startled by this new voice. Nya's heart soars—or maybe it plummets. She's not sure.

Because Kai's here.

"Get off her," he commands.

Tall Boy snarls. "You know this runt?"

"That runt is my sister, and I said get off."

Nya gives the boy one last shove and he scrabbles away. He doesn't get far before Kai catches him by the collar of his shirt.

"What's going on?" He casts a threatening glare over the group of boys. They might be older than him, actually, but you'd never know it. When Kai's angry, he seems to grow a foot taller.

When no one offers anything, Nya pipes up.

"They were pickin' on this kid. And this cat." Nya has found the kitten. It mews in her arms.

For the first time since his arrival, Kai gets a good look at her. Nya is caked with mud. It drips from her hair and coats her clothes. There's a bleeding scratch on one arm.

"Are you okay?" Kai asks.

Nya, unaware of how disheveled she looks, nods. "Yeah." Under her breath, "I was taking care of it . . ."

"Next time pick on someone your own size," Kai growls. He drops Tall Boy, and the four boys dart away in a flash.

Aiden reappears, grinning at Nya. "You're so cool."

Kai glares at him, too.

"I'll, uh—see ya around." Then Aiden is gone as well.

Nya is left standing in a puddle, a ball of orange fluff in her arms and Kai at her side. He waits until all the boys are gone, then turns to her.

"No, seriously. Are you okay?"

She frowns. "I'm fine."

"You're bleeding."

"Where?"

She does remember thinking that she might've gotten cut, but she doesn't feel it.

"Your arm."

Nya looks down at it. "Oh."

"What happened?"

Nya recounts the whole fiasco, making sure to skip the part where she almost walked away. Kai doesn't need to know how much of a wuss she was.

At the end of her story, Kai tilts his head back and groans. He sees the discarded plank on the ground.

"Nya . . ."

"What?"

He sighs, like he's debating with himself. Then, "Nothing. Just—be careful, okay? One of these days . . ."

He doesn't finish his sentence. Nya just nods, hoping it will make him overlook the kitten she's still holding.

"You're a regular Tasmanian devil, you know that?"

Nya doesn't know what that means. "Thanks."

"C'mon. We need to head back, before it gets late."

Giving her an I'm watching you look, Kai starts out of the alley, shaking his head. He can be such a mom sometimes. Not that Nya would know, or anything (ha).

She hangs back, cradling the kitten. Eventually Kai notices that she's not following. He peeks back.

"What're you waiting for, a golden invitation?"

Nya shifts uncomfortably. See, the thing is . . . she's holding this kitten, and she thinks it might've fallen asleep, and she doesn't have the heart to set it down.

Kai realizes the issue here.

"Nya . . . we can't keep it."

"But—we can't just leave it here."

Kai opens his mouth to say some more lame, responsible stuff, but Nya rushes over and holds the kitten right in front of his face.

"Look at it!" Nya pleads. "Look how small and cute it is."

"Nya—"

"You're saying you would abandon this poor kitten? On purpose?" She gives him a significant look. "This kitten with no family?"

Kai stutters and Nya knows she has him trapped. And when she gives him her best shiny, begging puppy dog eyes, he doesn't stand a chance.

After a maddening stretch of silence, Kai shakes his head. "Ugh, fine. We'll keep it for a little while, but then you gotta find it a new home. Deal?"

Nya beams, jumping in for a quick hug.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

The kitten stirs quietly in her hands and Nya halts. Gently, she tucks it in the pocket of her jacket and follows Kai back up the winding stone road.

"You're a mess," he says. "We should run you through a car wash."

"Shut up."

The walk home is slower than usual. Her injured foot is still not 100%, and the scuffle hadn't helped any. Nya spends most of the journey in silence.

She can't decide what to feel. Sure, she managed to stand up for Aiden, and she has a new kitten to show for it. But all she can focus on is the boys' mocking laughter. Over and over and over.

She thinks of the anger. The white hot flash before everything sprung into motion. The boiling pit in her stomach.

That laughter . . .

And then in the end, even when she decided to do something about it, Kai had to intervene.

Determination trembles through her fingers. Someday, Nya won't need Kai to step in. Someday, when she's older, she's gonna help people on her own. And the bad guys will be scared of her, not the other way around.