Location - Base Leader Office
Meisha's shock turned to silent sobs. Her sleeves grew damp as she clutched Natasha's, her lips quivering as she tried to cry silently albeit to no avail as the tears continued to run down her face. Her hands clutched tightly to the worn out garments of Natasha, like a child holding to the fingers of her parents.
With no hesitation, Natasha knelt on the ground, her hands supporting Meisha's hung down head while guarding it to face her, eyes filled with pity and love.
"Look at me, M. Do you see me as someone willing to abandon my sister? Do you remember what I told you?" Natasha questioned as she kept her gaze on her sister
"Yeah,..I do, Nat" Meisha answered, as she sniffled out her tears and sobs. "You're my precious sister and my family so you don't have to worry about anything. If you're sad, you can lean on me, if you're lonely, I'll always be there when you search. When you need help or you need your older sister, just call me,...anytime" Natasha said as she promised her sister.
She stood from the floor as she stretched her hands, which Meisha accepted and lifted herself from the floor.
"Let's go back, M. We need to find out if my parents are really in the base and where they are" Natasha said as she called out to Meisha and looked towards the direction of the base leader's room, Tern's room.
BASE LEADER'S ROOM
"Why did you guys barge out during the talks? Is there anything I said that was unsatisfactory?" Tern questioned, his gaze fixed on the two young girls who had now returned to where they sat originally.
"I'm sorry, Base leader. My sister has something that she wanted to share with me privately, this is nothing to concern yourself about," Natasha responded, answering the question in a way that would not cause the built relation to have any crack or become under suspicion.
"Okay. Should we continue the talk about finding your missing parents?" Tern asked as he glanced at the now comfortable girls.
"You said that there was a couple who looked like them, uncle. Could you tell me where I can find them? You said they were not available right now," Natasha asked
"Hmm..well, I suppose I should tell you a bit about this couple. They go out each morning, geared up and then they come back to the base in the evening. They have always followed this schedule ever since they arrived. They were so conspicuous so I asked them why they always travelled out of the base each morning and they replied that it was because they were searching for their daughter. They stay at a more secluded part of the base. They usually come back around this time so if you follow the direction I gave you, you should be able to find their tent and if lucky, find them there. Are you okay now, kid?"
"Yes..Thank you…I'm really grateful…" Natasha replied, her voice choked with relief and joy at the thought of the possible reunion with her parents.
"Thank you, uncle. We will repay you if we have the chance" Meisha echoed her own gratitude as they stood from the seat they were in and exited the base leader's tent as Tern waved them out.
"I'll take you to Mum and Dad and then we can really become sisters," Natasha said as she, in excitement, grabs a hold of Meisha's hand and leads her in the direction that Tern had now explained to her in order to meet her parents.
Location - Tern's Given Location
It was a bit of a walk to get to the location that was directed to by Tern. As we approached closer to our destination, we saw a tent alone with an older male and female with graying hairs and wrinkles on their face that told the story of how they had lived. They wore combatant clothes carrying bags which were most likely used to contain the supplies they used for the day. Their eyes were wary and tired but still had determination and hope present in them.
Before Meisha could understand what was going on, Natasha took off from here and started to run in the direction of those two old couples, her voice uneven but she was screaming "Mom, Dad" with as much intensity as she could muster.
Her desperate voice managed to be heard by the two couples who were preparing to enter their hut after dropping down their bags. They both turned their heads in the direction that the voice had originated from.
Meisha who was watching them from a distance caught how the old couples, whose eyes showed clear tiredness became fervently lit with life and happiness as they set their gaze on the girl who was desperately running while calling out their names. And as they recognised who it was, their child, Natasha, they quickly with all their strength ran to meet her halfway and then they embraced each other in a beautiful and warm familiar hug, a hug that only a parent could give to a child, to their child.
A part of her smiled, relieved that Natasha had her family back, while another part withered, the memory of her own parents' betrayal flooding her chest with pain. A past that she was unable to fully move on from.
'How beautiful. Is this what a loving family looks like? Why couldn't my parents hug me this way? Was I wrong?' Meisha mused to herself, the warm sight torturing her by reminding her of the betrayal of her parents and how she was unwanted by her parents.
NATASHA POV
"Mom, Dad. I missed you so much…" I said as I hugged them tightly, hand trembling but forced to clamp tightly onto them. I finally found them, that was the thought that was circulating through my mind as I rested my head back into their warm embrace, not caring about how dirty they looked or the unnatural smell of Xion blood coming from them, remnants of their afternoon exploration.
"My child..my lovely child, how I missed you.." my mum, who with her graying hair, soft brown eyes that held wisdom and love spoke as she hugged me too as she basked in the revelry of relief and joy.
"Oh, my eyes do not deceive me. It really is you, Nat. I'm so sorry that we were not there with you. It's fine if you wish to…blame us" my father, my ever loving and ever caring father said as he joined us, eyes filled with joy but still laced with guilt.
"Don't say something like that, Dad. I know it's not your fault. You had to leave there if you wanted to survive and I was separated to afterall. I am just happy that I was able to find you still alive. That's all that matters, the fact that we are still alive and can meet each other."
"Yeah, hon. Natasha's right," my mother, Nina said as they broke the hug. Pulling me, her daughter closer, she whispered into my ears "Your dad has always been blaming himself ever since the Xion attack that destroyed the base. He said he should have done all he could to make sure you were safe even if he had to die himself," which me filled with gratitude for having such parents like them, especially in such a twisted world like this.
I walked close to my dad, with the stress of living in such a foreign place, running from the Xions, limited food and the burden of providing for his wife while still carrying the guilt of him possibly being the reason for my death. I placed my hands on his, which were more calloused than I remembered.
My parents were never fighters. My dad, in the old base, was a botanist who made sure that there were seeds and fruits for the base while also keeping it clean. The calluses he had before were from walking in the gardens. My mother was a nurse who was highly sought after and was important to the fatality rate in the base especially since they had to deal with more frequent threats of Xion attacks.
That was why I decided to be the fighter so that when they needed one, I would be there to protect them, so for my parents to venture out of the base each day was very out of their skill set and what they were used to all through their life so I am already very happy and satisfied by the fact that they didn't give up on me, so I could never blame him for us separating.
"Dad, I am very grateful. And besides, you still searched for me so you shouldn't beat yourself up over it. Look, your precious daughter has come home after such a long time, are you going to greet her with such a face and mood?" I asked as I looked at him.
The words I said seemed to have touched him as a smile formed on his face and his face brightened. "Of course not. How could I greet my cutie pie with such a face?" he said as he hugged me although he still called me with that embarrassing nickname he gave me when I was still a child.
"Dad, I told you not to call me that! I'm not a child anymore!" I said as I struggled out of the hug, although it was in vain since If I wanted to get out of it, I had to exert a bit more strength which could affect my dad.
"Haha. You can't escape from your parent's grasp, Nat," he boasted. 'Curses, if I didn't want to hurt you, Dad, you wouldn't have gotten away with it!' I thought to myself, surrendering to my father's playful trap. "Stop bullying your child, Luke," my ever reliable mum who has always saved me said as she came to my rescue.
With no choice due to the glare that my mum gave her, my dad had no choice to release me from his unfair trap that he had set for me. "Let's get to the tent and continue our talks there. I wish to know how you survived all this while and how you got to the base" my mum said as she held my hand and was about to lead me to the tent ahead.
"Wait Mum, Dad. There's someone that I want to introduce you to. She's very important and special to me," Natasha called out to them as she looked towards the direction where Meisha was, waiting. Both her parents turned their gaze until it fell on Meisha, who looked like a child who was lost and alone.
"Oh, how important, Nat?" her mother questioned as they now became curious of the little girl that stood a bit away from them. "As important as a sister to me. Her name is Meisha, I met her after being separated from you. She was one of the reasons I was able to find you all and my support through it all," I responded to the question that my mother posed to me with sincerity and truthfulness.
After answering my mum, I called out to Meisha while waving. "Hey, M. Let me introduce you to my parents"
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Her voice, optimistic and a bit more lively than before with more vibrancy, traveled to Meisha's ears from where she stood away, to give Natasha privacy with her family. As the voice she was waiting for, she was hoping and longing for reached her, it seemed to have pulled her out of tune with the world. With her head raised up high and her gaze fixed firmly on her, she took a step, then another, walking towards them without hesitation.
As she walked close to the family, her hand was held by the cheerful Natasha who introduced her to her parents. "Mum, Dad. This is my sister, Meisha. Meisha Niel,". As she was introduced, a surge of emotion rushed into her heart. Yes, she was Natasha's sister and Natasha, her light.
"Hello, sir and lady. I am Meisha Niel, pleased to meet your acquaintance," as she made her introduction, she could hear the sound of her racing heart and she could feel her hands trembling slightly, which she hid by forming a fist.
"Haha, what is with the formal tone? You're Natasah's sister which makes you part of the family too. You don't have to be formal with us, right, honey?" Luke asked his wife which she nodded to show her approval. "I see. Thank you so much for accepting me.I will always be indebted to you" Meisha said as she bowed her head before she was tapped on her shoulder by Natasha who held her hands and led her, following her parents to the tent they had set up.
"This type of discussion is better held somewhere more quiet. Let's go to our tent," Natasha mum said as she smiled at Meisha, her brown eyes holding nothing but deep motherly love, something that even Meisha's real parents were never able to show her.