Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Tsukasa had only let the deer live because he now hoped it would fall into one of the traps. He had every intention of taking the beast back to the empire as much needed meat for the rapidly expanding army. But a few kilometers back, the deer happened to wander from the path for a moment; lured off by the sweet smell of nearly over-ripe berries. It then circled back to the path in a half-moon, managing to circumvent a trap by pure dumb luck.

The trap itself was so elegantly laid that Tsukasa briefly entertained the thought that if he’d been running he might not have noticed the finely wound cord pulled taut across the game path. Though he hadn’t touched it to confirm, the shine of the string almost seemed like silk. Well hidden in the brush was the rest of the complicated trap, in three different places stakes had been driven into the soft forest floor. One to the left of the path and the two others lined up on the right. While the left side only held the far end of the cord the right side was far more complicated. Four stakes were driven into the ground with a much thicker rope weaving back and forth between them holding a single bamboo pole in place. This piece of bamboo was bent so tightly Tsukasa was surprised the stress was held off by the other pilon, another piece of bamboo tied to a single stake, a much smaller piece just barely placed inside a rope stake to hold the tense bamboo back, keeping it from snapping to the trail path and impaling whatever animal tripped the wire with a finely sharpened wooden spearhead. 

The delicate work that had to go into the trap, not to mention the cleverness to harvest silk and the mathematical skill that must have been used to calculate the upper limits of the bamboo; it had to be Senku.

And so, Tsukasa was now stalking the deer, curious to see if it would fall into another trap eventually leading a member of the Kingdom of Science out to check only to fall into a trap themselves. Or perhaps, he would find more traps and eventually stumble among an encampment, farther into the woods than he thought they would settle. 

The deer's head jerked up and looked into the distance. Tsukasa didn’t sense anything, no bloodlust or even a breath. The deer also seemed to find nothing, because it continued on its way, meandering somewhat, completely unaware that with Tsukasa nearby it was in its final moments. The deer stopped in a circle of light that broke through the treetops above, its head rising to look into the gentle green-tinted glow and then an arrow whistled briefly and shot through the neck of the great beast.

It was poetically brutal. One short strangled cry and the animal dropped, gasping from its injury. Tsukasa could hear someone approaching from ahead. He could hear the twang of a bowstring, another arrow nocking to put the poor creature out of its misery. Before this loan hunter could finish the job, Tsukasa rushed forward, dragged his knife across the tawny and white throat before him, and then the forest fell into an unnerving silence.

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka was frozen, laying down under a group of saplings at the base of the tree she’d taken her shot from. She’d dropped to the damp forest floor the moment the man had rushed forward. Her stomach hurt from the tension, the man on the path was gigantic, as tall as a young tree, and every exposed piece of skin was tightly framed over muscles. He stood, possessively hovering over the deer—her deer—as he cleaned its blood from his crude stone knife. It had been so long since she’d seen another human the sight of tan skin instead of stone was jarring, it almost didn’t feel real. Her head rushed from the adrenaline, no matter how exciting it was to see a person alive and moving she couldn’t ignore her gut. Her feet were tingling, her heart seemed to be pounding out of time, all of her senses were working at their maximum capacity. A full-blown panic from an overwhelming threat before her. A message to run.

Umeka didn’t move. She barely breathed, trying to force her body to calm down. Though her instincts demanded her to try and escape she knew, logically, that wasn’t the right choice. The deer was a large healthy looking buck and fall was setting in fast. If she lost this deer she’d lose weeks and weeks of dried meat, a pelt for warmth, organs, and bones that could replace worn tools. More worryingly, the way the man stood, long brown hair obscuring his face from view he clearly wasn’t looking for her. This meant he either didn’t care, which the hair standing on her neck indicated was doubtful, or he was waiting. Waiting for her to either come out or to run. And given her fear and the speed he’d fallen on the deer with, she was sure it wouldn’t be a very long chase.

Umeka tried to swallow, rasping her dry throat. Slowly she drew her legs in, getting on her knees and crawling around the back of the tree. She stood, breathing hard, and listened. It was still eerily silent, but she could feel it. A sensation of being looked at, she was sure when she came out from behind the tree her eyes would lock with this mysterious stranger. She pulled her shoulders up tightly and then dropped them back down, trying to shake some tension from her body. Then she nocked a fresh arrow in her bow and quickly stepped from behind the tree.

She was right. As soon as she turned her eyes locked with the man’s own. His eyes were large and brown but they almost looked red in the halo of sunlight. Two jagged black cracks ran diagonally across his surprisingly delicate face, one cutting down his forehead and through his right eye, the other running from the inner corner of his left eye across his nose. She resisted the urge to touch her own, a crack that ran from her hairline to the inner corner of her left eye and then extended from the outer corner down to her jaw and down to the crux of her neck. Some painful stigma from waking up from the stone. 

The man pulled his shoulders back eyebrows raising in surprise, “I haven’t seen you before,” he stated simply, before his eyes darkened again, “tell me, who woke you up?”

Umeka could barely process what he said. She was too distracted by her urge to run, confused by the warmth of his voice and the beauty of his long eyelashes compared to the intense air of danger and the way he subtly adjusted his grip on the knife.

“That’s my deer,” Umeka blurted. She blinked, surprised at herself. The first thing she’d said to another person in eons. The first thing she said to a clearly dangerous person, a man that stood at least thirty centimeters over her, probably more if she got close enough to really judge it.

He laughed. A genuine warm laugh. Obviously amused—offensively amused, Umeka thought. 

Her lips pursed, cheeks puffing slightly, “It’s not funny. I took it down. I was going to kill it you can’t just poach-”

And suddenly he was right in front of her. His large hand gripping her arrow-holding arm at the wrist. She stared at it in shock noticing how swollen his knuckles were. She pressed her lips together firmly to stop their shaking before looking up into his face.

⛮⛮⛮

Tsukasa had a million questions. How had Senku revived someone? Did he have more miracle fluid on hand than he’d thought? Or did he maybe find another cave? If so that would have to be his first objective. If Senku could revive more people, especially if he did so haphazardly, it would quickly become nearly impossible for the perfect society to be maintained. Despite his frustration at her attempt to change the subject, it was amusing. She was surprisingly petulant for a hunter of her skill, even assuming Senku had built the traps. But when she looked up at him, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the fear dancing in her dark amber eyes wasn’t fueled by concern for her compatriots but rather confusion. 

He stared down at her silently, her hands were rough and calloused, her skin was obviously tanned from working outside from how it seemed deeper on the bridge of her nose and the height of her cheeks. The most noticeable feature, however, was her hair. It was deep black and incredibly long, a single strand hung in front of her shoulder decorated with beads, and the rest was in a thick braid down her back stopping mere centimeters from the ground. 

“Let go,” She tried to demand, but there was a slight quiver in her voice. One maybe someone else wouldn’t have noticed.

“Enough of this,” Tsukasa said, surprising himself with his frustration, “Where is Senku? How did he wake you up?”

“I don’t know who that is,” she snapped, tugging her captured arm, “let me go!”

Tsukasa kept a hold of her easily, “There’s no use trying to protect him now. Just tell me where he is and this can all be over.”

“I don’t know where he is,” she huffed, scowling up at him, “because I don’t know who he is!”

Tsukasa leaned down, she was a slight, sinewy woman who appeared strong for her size and age but also as if her body had only received the most baseline nutrition it needed for a long time. The confusion in her eyes deepened, setting off a panic.

“If Senku didn’t wake you up who did?”

“I don’t know what you mean, no one woke me up. I wake up on my own every mor-”

“From. the. stone.”

“...what?” she stopped wiggling. Suddenly her fear and confusion seemed overtaken by curiosity. “What do you mean waking up from the stone? Someone else got you out?”

Tsukasa’s hand suddenly slid from her arm. He stayed close, able to grab her at the slightest movement. But instead of trying to shoot him or run, she stayed as still as he was. Staring back at him.

“...yes,” Tsukasa finally breathed, “Someone else woke me up. But that someone…” He couldn’t believe it. Senku and Taiju had woken up themselves, so it wasn’t impossible. But if he was now meeting a third person who’d woken on their own...how many were there like that?

“...that someone?” she echoed, raising a thin eyebrow.

“Woke up on their own. Like you did,” now it seemed like an obvious fact as impossible it had seemed moments ago.

“That’s right,” She said, seeming to regret it immediately after by the way her eyes briefly widened. 

Tsukasa looked back at the deer, and then at the girl, who’s arrow, while still nocked, was now held very loosely. He moved toward the beast.

“H-hey!” she called, shuffling after him slightly as she pulled the arrow back. But Tsukasa could tell she wouldn’t shoot. He bent down and quickly hauled the limp creature to his shoulders and when he turned he was met with a blank, shocked stare and an arrow once again sitting loose against the bow. She must have figured out there was no use shooting at him, surprisingly wise for someone who’d spent most of their interaction pouting.

“Where do you live?” He asked, adjusting the deer on his shoulders.

“W-what?” she sputtered, sliding one foot back.

“We can take the deer there and break it down. I’ll take half and you can keep half. We can share it evenly. I want to know more about you,” he said simply because it was going to happen one way or another.

“...I killed it!” she yelled, her cheeks puffing up again.

“Technically, I did,” Tsukasa said, stepping in so he loomed over her once more, “And if you don’t want to share it, do you think you could take it from me?”

She looked at him defiantly. Somewhere to his left, he felt a presence, a wave of sudden anger. A predator. The girl must have noticed it too because she pulled a thin wooden whistle from her shirt and blew it sharply before dropping it back around her neck. The noise was high and loud, so high Tsukasa felt like he was only just able to hear it. The presence faded as fast as it appeared. It made sense she wouldn’t be hunting alone, there’s no way she could carry the deer by herself. But he was fine letting the teammate stay hidden for now, he was sure whoever they were he could handle himself.

“No. You know I couldn’t,” she grumbled, turning and heading back toward the tree she’d hidden behind, “Fine we can split it where I stay.”

⛮⛮⛮

The walk wasn’t too long, but Umeka was still so tense and unhappy it felt as though it was taking eons. The man beside her seemed comfortable, in fact, it seemed like he was trying his best to be pleasant even though he’d been all but threatening her mere moments ago. 

“What’s your name?” he asked.

Umeka looked over her shoulder at him, frowning.

He laughed, “What? I need to know what to call you.”

Her frown deepened which made him laugh even harder, “You’ll take me to where you live but don’t want to tell me your name?”

“I’m not taking you to where I live because I want to, remember?” She wished the edge in her voice didn’t sound so childish but she was annoyed, disappointed, and still a little scared.

He was quiet for a moment and Umeka turned back around. “My name is Shishiou Tsukasa,” he said just as Umeka had settled into the quiet of their walk.

She didn’t turn this time, instead choosing to look ahead and slightly to the right of the path where she could see Saiyan. His muzzle had grayed somewhat since she met him, but beyond that, the large dog didn’t look too different. His thick upturned ears twisted as she and Tsukasa walked, his mouth hanging open to show long yellowed teeth. He was a large and fluffy dog by nature but she could tell his patchwork black and tan coat was on end. Earlier she’d almost thought he wasn’t going to heed her whistled command. But now, almost as soon as their eyes met he turned and disappeared into the woods ahead, staying just far enough that he might avoid Tsukasa’s keen senses.

“...still not gonna share your name?” Tsukasa probed.

She groaned loudly, fading it into, “Yamaguchi Umeka.”

“Thank you, Umeka,” he said, seemingly unbothered by her complaining, “I’m sorry if I seemed overly gruff before. It’s just...that man I was talking about he’s very dangerous and I was worried you might be working with him.”

Though she hadn’t known him for very long it was hard to believe there were many people scarier than Tsukasa. If he was afraid of this Senku guy she definitely didn’t want to meet him. She could feel him edge closer, he drew a breath like he was going to try and speak but then he stopped. They were nearing her home now. She glanced over her shoulder at him trying to gauge his expression as they stepped into the clearing and looked forward to her house built high in the trees.

⛮⛮⛮

“...How…?” managed to escape past Tsukasa’s lips before he stopped himself, sinking back into silence to take in Umeka’s home. It was built on stilts and trees it appeared she’d cut flat. Other trees grew around it, ropes tied to stabilize the house. All around the bottom of the house was a garden, some crops still holding on or waiting to be harvested. Under the shadow of her home were stacks of firewood, something that looked like a water collection system, and a chest he assumed must hold her tools. None of this could have been done in the months since he’d been awake, even Senku hadn’t been awake long enough to cultivate that full of a garden. “You’ve...how long have you been awake?” He finally asked.

Umeka paused, squinting across the field to a pack of dogs that were slowly approaching hackles up and bodies gliding low in the grass. She shook her head briefly and they all stopped. Then she turned and looked at him, he smiled gently. He genuinely did feel bad for how he’d behaved. He couldn’t imagine what it must have been like for her, to have woken up alone and been alone for all these years and then be grabbed and questioned by the next waking person she met. She seemed to search his face for a moment, maybe trying to figure out his intentions. He could feel blood from the deer dripping down his back.

“...a long time,” she said, quietly. Her eyebrows furrowing as her gaze dropped to the ground, “it’s been a long time.”

Tsukasa nodded, no wonder she was so defensive of her food. It must be enormously tough to live out here alone. Physical labor aside, having no companions, no one to talk to. It was amazing she was as balanced as she was.

The dogs had drawn closer now. There were seven in total, all large and wolf-like but beyond that their shape and color varied wildly.

“And...who are these?” he looked around the circle, they all seemed distrustful. As though one word from Umeka was all it would take for them to fall on him. Not that he wasn’t confident he could handle it. Umeka must have figured that much out because she didn’t release the dogs. Instead, she waved her hand to them and, reluctantly, they seemed too lax their defensive stances.

“The dogs,” she said, calmly petting the head of a grey female with a black muzzle and black-tipped ears whose orange eyes gazed affectionately into Umeka’s, “and I have worked together for a long time. They’re a family. This is Sailor, she’s the mother.” Umeka scratched the dog affectionately before straightening up to gesture to the others. “The one that was near us earlier is the father; Saiyan,” she said, pointing to the dog with a familiar presence. 

She paused, long enough to draw Tsukasa’s attention, and when he looked at her he saw her staring at him intently. She must have wanted him to confirm he’d noticed the large dog and while he had, he feigned innocence, “Was he?”

Umeka expression flatted, she huffed dismissively and waved her hands towards the dogs, “the long-legged black one with the white chest is Suit. The big fluffy orange one is Sueno, the one with fur like his dad but a build like his mom is Sentai. The long-haired tan and brown one is named Sazae, and that bluish-gray one is Saint.”

Tsukasa blinked, “Are those...all from kid's shows?”

Umeka’s face flushed a light pink scattering over her cheeks and the tips of her ears. Her mouth quivered into a wobbly sort of smile, “Well...I liked them...so...it’s just what I thought of I guess. Come on.”

She avoided looking at him as she marched off under her house where she’d built a frame to clean big game on. Tsukasa stifled a laugh as he followed her, smiling at the gathering redness he could still see on the tips of her ears. He lowered the deer to the ground before carefully lifting it to the top of the frame, watching Umeka’s face as she worked to tie it up. She gathered a knife from her box, a finely polished one that had clearly taken far longer than his jagged tool. When he held his hand out she squinted at him suspiciously, “It’s just the least I could do. You did take it down, after all.”

She rolled her eyes but let him take the knife, and he set about dressing down the deer. Umeka worked beside him quickly; gathering organs into pots to clean later, cutting off sections of muscle, and carefully laying half on a table and wrapping the other half in a nearby skin. She seemed to have calmed down greatly, but maybe she was just focused on her work. Though her fingers were calloused and her fingernails worn short, her fingers were long and deft at the work giving them an air of elegance despite all the labor she must do with them. As Tsukasa continued to steal glances, he felt she was the ideal person to live in the world he wanted to make. She worked hard to provide for herself and the dogs from the land around her. And just as she tended to the plants they tended to her, making use of every part of the animal seemed second nature to her. She seemed at peace with nature and herself and that peace reflected in her face making her seem even more beautiful. The thought surprised Tsukasa and he paused in his work long enough to draw a confused look from Umeka.

“I have a group. A group of people living not far off, I think you would do well with us. More than that I think...we need someone like you. A hunter familiar with the land,” He spoke earnestly, but Umeka’s eyes widened once more in confusion.

“A group? How have so many people woken up and I’ve never met anyone until today?” there was an edge to her voice, a suspicion. 

“I know a way to free people from the stone, I’ve been able to slowly awaken people that could help me, for now. I want to awaken more people later of course, but I can’t do that until we have resources and until Senku is dealt with. I don’t want children or people who can’t fight to be in danger,” it wasn’t a lie, not really, though he thought it best to share the extent of his ideals with her later on. Once she understood she could trust him and that having a group would be better for her.

Umeka frowned into the distance, looking off into the woods, and then to the dogs lounging in the grass nearby, “I-”

One word and Tsukasa could read her answer, “Think about it. I know you have all this built here, and I’m sure if you’ve been alone for a long time the thought of a large group is intimidating but if you joined us you wouldn’t have to work so hard. You could teach my people how you hunt and how you built this garden. Then you would have people to rely on. I’m sure you’ve gotten sick and found it hard to hunt, what happened then?”

Umeka looked up at him, her eyebrows furrowing deeply. She bit her lip, “...I’ll think about it.”

Tsukasa smiled, “I’m glad you’ll consider.” 

With the deer now fully dressed. Tsukasa watched as Umeka began to tie the skins she collected his portions onto a pole for him to carry back. He took a hold of her hand gently before she cold tie the pack closed. Her hand was dwarfed by his own and though he’d initiated the contact Tsukasa paused, looking at their hands for a moment before she drew hers away and set him with another quizzical look, “What is it?”

“Here,” he said, lifting a large portion, “it’s late. Would you mind if we ate this together?”

⛮⛮⛮

She felt like she was losing her mind. Every time she thought they might be close to parting ways he’d found a way to extend it. Maybe it was just a discriminatory fear from how intimidating he’d been before, but, she couldn’t bring herself to trust him. She wondered if she’d feel this way with anyone she’d met. Maybe intense gut-wrenching suspicion was just her reality after years on her own. But her instincts told her that wasn’t the case, that despite his now-gentle voice and the help he was offering there was something she couldn’t trust. 

The sky was a dusty purple and they sat across a fire from each other, Umeka gently turning her portion of the meat Tsukasa had pulled from the pack, “Did you learn all of this through trial and error?”

She frowned a little, unsure of what he meant, “What?”

He seemed surprised, but spoke again, “I mean...did you just keep trying things out until you learned all this?”

“Oh...no,” Umeka said, “My grandparents taught me. I stayed with them a lot as a kid, they lived in a rural area and liked to live in a more traditional way. They raised little animals like ducks and chickens and had a big garden I would help in during the summer. They built most of their structures and tools themselves in the traditional ways, they weaved cloth and wove baskets and all sorts of old school things. So when I stayed with them they taught me so I could help.”

She wasn’t sure why she was sharing so much. She didn’t want to be. But as she spoke about them, she saw the deeply wrinkled tan face of her grandmother and the stark white hair of her grandfather. She’d never found their statues, but that wasn’t a surprise. They lived far outside of Tokyo after all, unlike her and her mother. Suddenly Umeka thought of her mom and her stone form and the way to wake people Tsukasa had mentioned but when she raised her face to ask her breath caught in her throat. For a brief moment, Tsukasa didn’t notice she was looking at him and she saw it. The dark anger on his face as he stared into the fire. 

She didn’t understand. There’s no way Tsukasa knew her grandparents. She hadn’t even shared much about them, and what she had was good. In fact, there was nothing bad to say. By all accounts, they’d been wonderful people, people she deeply missed. He shut his eyes for a moment and when he opened them again his expression was much softer. But Umeka decided not to talk about her family anymore. Her stomach hurt. She wanted to go to bed. She wanted to think over what Tsukasa said to try and figure out why she felt so unsure about him.

He gazed up at the underside of her house. To the middle right there was a latch, the door currently closed but Tsukasa followed the ladder made of wood and rope to where it was secured to the inside of one of the trees; tied off to keep it from flailing in the wind and breaking a rung. “So you climb all the way up? Why a rope ladder?”

“So I can pull it in at night,” Umeka answered, perhaps too short.

Tsukasa’s eyes met her own, “Why? If there’s no one else out there?”

“It makes me feel better. And, obviously, I was wrong. I just didn’t know about you and all the others yet,” She felt strangely defensive of her home now. 

It felt like the inside of her home was the only secret she had left from this man even though she’d only just met him. So when he lightly asked, “Can I see what it’s like?”

She barked out, “No,” too fast and a tense silence settled over them.

Tsukasa’s expression was of genuine surprise; he even looked maybe a little hurt, “I’m sorry if that was too forward,” he said though there was a tenseness to his voice.

Umeka shook her head, feeling embarrassed though she didn’t know why, “No it’s. I think this has just been a lot for me to take in. It’s late you should go back to your camp. Here.”

She was up in a flurry, tying off his packs to the bamboo pole for him to carry. He stood and took it from her when she offered, “I am sorry. I’m just so impressed with you I was curious what it was like in there. I wasn’t thinking about how shocking this must be for you.”

He seemed so sincere and yet, again her instincts set pangs off in her body. Something was wrong or, she forced herself to think, he was simply a man that loomed some forty-five centimeters above her and his physical strength alone was sending her into an animalistic fight or flight. If that was the case it was hardly fair. She just needed time, she needed to think back over the day. She wanted to think more about that intense expression that overcame him when she mentioned her grandparents, and the soft glances she’d noticed him taking while they dressed the buck.

“Yeah,” she found herself saying, “I just…” she trailed off, unsure how to finish her sentence without coming off even ruder.

He seemed to understand. He nodded and took the pole up to his shoulders. He tilted his head towards where the sun had disappeared an hour or so ago, “My group is over there on a cliffside, I’m sure you and your dogs could find it if you wanted.”

She nodded, maybe that was it, maybe it was an offer and she could be done with this. Go back to living as though she was the only person alive like she had been that very morning, “Okay...thanks.”

“I’ll come back by sometime, to check on you and see how you feel about joining us then,” Tsukasa spoke, waiting until she met eyes with him. He spoke gently, kindly in fact, but there was no hint of a question so Umeka couldn’t think of anything to do but nod again.

“Be safe...on your way,” she said, feeling strange and stupid for blurting out such an old-sounding goodbye, but Tsukasa smiled.

“I will, I’m glad we met, Umeka,” he said, and then he walked away from the orange glow of the campfire and off into the woods without looking back.

Umeka collapsed back on to the ground, holding her arms out until Sazae walked over and laid into her. Burying her face into the fine tan fur, Umeka couldn’t say she felt the same.

Chapter Text

With the last of the sweet potatoes pulled from the earth, Umeka sat back on her heels. She wiped her dirty hands on her pant legs enjoying the cool breeze. It was a good harvest, important as potatoes tended to last nice and long. They tasted different than she remembered, a little firmer and less sweet but they were still as filling and in the late winter. Their subtle sweetness was a great treat. 

She turned her head just in time to see Sueno, the glutton of the dogs, opening his big mouth over the basket of tubers, “No! No!”

But he grabbed one and ran off, waving his fluffy tail as he went. Umeka jumped to her feet and chased him. She wouldn’t be eating the saliva-cover thing now but it was a matter of principle. Sueno noticed her chasing him and picked up speed. There was no way she’d catch him, even though she’d long been accustomed to running in her buckskin shoes and he was a very big boned dog he still had two legs on her. He bounded and played, Saiyan looked on disapprovingly and began to get up, surely about to come and check Sueno back into place. 

“Sueno!” Umeka screamed, “You’re the worst! It’s not like I don’t share you can’t just grab things!”

She growled in frustration and tried to speed up as Sueno disappeared into the woods and then he yelped. Umeka felt a chill shoot up her spine but before she could reach the trees none other than Tsukasa walked out holding Sueno by his scruff. Sueno large as he was, was wobbling in the air like a puppy, kicking his legs with the spud still in his mouth. “Why were you yelling at him?” Tsukasa asked, lowering Sueno to the ground but not letting go.

It had been a few weeks since Tsukasa had visited. For a while, he’d come by very regularly, and while she had wondered what was keeping him she wasn’t upset about it. She’d thought maybe he’d given up on bringing her into the fold. “He grabbed that potato. He knows he’s not supposed to steal food,” Umeka frowned at Sueno but at the same time, she didn’t like Tsukasa’s hold on him. Even if it was for her benefit, Sueno wasn’t some wild beast he was her trained pet. “Let him go, it’s not a big deal.”

Tsukasa’s eyebrow quirked slightly at the demand, but he released him. Sure enough, Sueno tried to dart off with his prize, “Hey!” Umeka yelled.

The dog stopped and looked at her and upon seeing her stern expression let the slimy treasure drop to the ground before running off to the other dogs. Umeka sighed and kicked the potato into the treeline for some forest creature to find and enjoy later.

Tsukasa looked surprised, “You aren’t going to keep it? Why not let him have it then?”

Umeka smirked, “You wanna eat a slobber covered sweet potato?”

“Well...no. But if it’s food and if you won’t eat it-”

“You didn’t have many pets growing up did you, Tsukasa?”

He frowned and stayed quiet for a moment. Umeka regretted bringing up his past. Since that strange look had come over his face when she mentioned her grandparents they hadn't talked about either of their histories. Umeka actually didn't know a single thing about his childhood or his life before the stone, “No,” He finally spoke in a hushed tone, “I didn’t.”

“When I was young I’d help with the chickens and ducks. One duck was very brave and insistent for his food in the morning and I thought it was funny when he put his head in the bag and started eating so I didn’t stop him. Then that duck always did that. And then the others started doing it too. But the chickens were too short, so they’d start pecking at the ducks. Eventually, every morning I’d go out to feed them they’d start fighting and pulling at me to get to the food.”

Tsukasa blinked, “That...sounds really awful. And your grandparents didn’t do anything?”

“They did when I asked for help. But they’d seen and they knew it was my own dumb behavior that brought it on, they just wanted me to learn,” she felt a prickle at her neck, defensiveness again, “my point is, food is a training tool to animals. They have to see you as the one in charge of who gets fed when and how and that they may need to do certain things to get it. I don’t mean like a ton of work but, more like, you know, waiting patiently or going to a certain spot. If they think it’s on them to get the food however they can, things will go sideways for you really quick,” she smiles suddenly, an awkward laugh bubbling out as she spoke, “after all most people can't bare-knuckle fight wild animals.”

Tsukasa huffed and looked away and for a moment Umeka thought she saw a warmth pass over his face, but she pushed that thought aside as Tsukasa settled his eyes back on her garden.

⛮⛮⛮

“Umeka,” Tsukasa spoke, still trying to suppress the sudden rush her near-compliment had given him, “I wanted to ask...if you have any vegetables or fruit to spare?”

He avoided her gaze for a moment, he wasn’t proud of asking. He’d failed to visit for the past few weeks because he’d been looking all around the forest, trying to find anything left growing wild but he hadn’t had much success. When he finally looked at her she was staring at her garden, eyebrows knit in concentration. She was biting her lip and fidgeting her hands but her gaze seemed to wander over the baskets of potatoes and the scant few things left on the vine. 

“What do you have?” She asked suddenly, turning to look at him.

“You mean to trade? We-”

“No, I mean...to eat. So I can know what might help you the most,” she spoke with a matter of fact tone as though sacrificing food she’d worked for didn’t bother her at all but then she sighed, “You know I can’t provide enough for a whole group though, right?”

Tsukasa couldn’t help but smile. She truly was pure of heart, there wasn’t a moment of hesitation in her decision only a concern of not having enough, “No I wouldn’t expect you to.”

Her eyes met his for a moment, washed with a confusing emotion Tsukasa couldn’t peg. A look that made his chest feel tight, and then she turned and headed off toward the storage under her house. Tsukasa followed, watching the way her braid swayed after her. She reached the garden and bent down, cutting a pumpkin's vine with a knife she drew from her belt, “I think pumpkins would be the best. They’ll keep for a while as long as you don’t cut them open, you can eat pretty much everything and you could use the rind for bowls...or...I dunno something. Plus you can roast the seeds for a snack.”

Tsukasa watched as she hacked a good portion of the remaining pumpkins free, “That seems like a lot…” he said, feeling sudden guilt.

“Hmm? Oh well,” she laughed, blushing again and smiling awkwardly, “I don’t really like them that much I just eat them cause they’re good for you.” Suddenly she switched to a sing-song voice, “I just like making snacks outta the seeds.”

Tsukasa’s eyes softened as he watched her work, “Thank you, Umeka, I really appreciate it. We all do.”

This seemed to embarrass her more because once again her mouth twisted into an awkward wobbling smile and her ears turned red, “Really. It’s nothing. You can take some honey too. For the seeds. I mean...you can use it for whatever, I just use it on the seeds. For the...snacks.” Her voice tapered off slowly an even more embarrassed look coming over her face.

“Where did you get the honey?” Tsukasa asked, surprised she’d found something so difficult to collect.

She paused seeming to suddenly recover from her embarrassment. She turned towards the jars and stayed there pretending to agonize over which one to give him. Pretending poorly, Tsukasa thought, by the way she hemmed-and-hawed. 

“Umeka?” He asked, moving to stand behind her.

She snatched up a jar of honey quickly and turned, pushing it up into his chest, “it’s not as hard as you’d think to get honey, you’ve just gotta know where to look and be patient. But it’s good for you, right? So you’ll want it?”

“...sure? If...are you certain you want to give it to me?” Tsukasa asked, frowning slightly. Something about this was making him uneasy. Despite her laugher and gentle blush moments ago she suddenly felt far off, well out of his reach.

“Yes, it’s fine,” She said pushing it once more into his chest until his hands surfed up brushing over hers as he took a hold of the jar. 

He watched her circle back to the garden, rolling the pumpkins she’d harvested together, she hummed thoughtfully, “I don’t know how you can carry all this though...hmm…”

“Umeka,” Tsukasa suddenly spoke, his voice low and earnest causing her to turn around immediately, “Let’s go hunting together, I want to help you bring something in. To thank you for all this.”

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka shifted the bow on her shoulder. When Tsukasa had asked her to go hunting she couldn’t think of a good excuse not to, it’s not like she couldn’t use the meat. If nothing else at least hunting necessitated quiet. It gave her time to think. Why did she hide the hives from him? Was she subconsciously afraid he would take them? Though he’d forced her to share the deer from when they met, he hadn’t taken anything since. In fact, his first few visits after, he’d brought her game fowl and fish. And why had he brought her grandparents up with such an air of judgment? She couldn’t figure out if it was intentional or not, or maybe she was just reading into it. 

Lost in her thoughts, she’d stopped paying full attention to the forest around her. So much so that she didn’t notice the rumbling noise of a creature not far ahead. Tsukasa’s arm suddenly shot out in front of her shoulders stopping her short, “Umeka?”

“Sorry,” she spoke softly, pulling an arrow from her quiver as she leaned around him to look. Despite herself, she gasped. Not far ahead, rubbing its thick furry body against a tree, was a bear. It was huge, probably well over six hundred kilograms. The bear's head was a bright golden color and then the fur faded to brown around its shoulders and black towards its rump. The fur around its neck was long and thick, somewhat like a lion's mane, and the bear was clearly putting on weight for hibernation. Umeka frowned, that meant it was more likely to be grumpy, she thought. Or maybe that was if you woke them. She couldn’t remember but she did remember, “An Ussuri bear…” 

Tsukasa looked back at her, tilting his head, “You think? I thought they lived in Hokkaido.”

“Well...it’s been a long time. Maybe they migrated back down. Or this one did alone,” she said watching the bear meander away from them, “I’ve never seen a bear out here before.”

Tsukasa nodded, and looked after the bear, “I think it’s worth it but...we’ll have to approach carefully.”

Umeka’s jaw dropped, “A bear! We can’t handle a bear like that!”

Tsukasa smiled at her dismissively, “I can but it’ll help if I get around in front of it and you come up behind, okay?”

Umeka thought for a moment, she wasn’t keen on the idea it was dangerous, after all, to take on a bear. In all her time hunting and feeding herself she rarely chose to go after predators almost always sticking to big game herbivores. Not that deer couldn’t be dangerous in their own right, but a bear was on another level. Still, if Tsukasa said he could handle it she was inclined to believe him and the pelt of a bear coupled with the meat could practically keep her through the winter on its own. “Okay,” she finally said, nodding him on.

Tsukasa smiled at her once more, “Don’t let your mind wander again, okay? I won’t be far off.”

She nodded again, a little embarrassed, and Tsukasa was gone.

She walked for a while following the trail of the bear at a distance. Like always Saiyan was following her not far off, he never seemed willing to stay back these days. Maybe it was him that made her unable to trust Tsukasa fully. After all, dogs are supposed to have better senses. Maybe Saiyan knew something he couldn’t communicate so, instead, he always stayed near her to protect her. But then she heard a twig, out of time with her own feet, too far to her left to be Saiyan. She glanced at him, his ears twitching in the direction of the sound, a confirmation that something was approaching. She nocked an arrow, worried the bear was closer than the tracks implied, or worse, that it wasn’t alone. She approached slowly, keeping her knees bent in case she needed to jump into a tree or make a run for it. But the steps didn’t seem heavy enough, and the cadence of them seemed like a two-legged creature. It sounded like a human, but Tsukasa wasn’t so loud, in fact, he barely made any noise when he walked. Creeping closer, Umeka peered around a tree and spotted him.

The young man couldn’t be much older than she was now. He was skinny, with strange spikey hair, the cracks that ran from his forehead to the inside of his eyebrows and down past the inner corners of his eyes made it clear he was yet another person awoken from the stone. He was dressed in a crude deerskin robe, bags hung all around his waist, but it was the writing on his chest that drew her eye. It was messy and a dark rust color. She immediately recognized it as dried blood, and it wrote out some sort of strange math problem, one she must not have gotten to in school yet. She couldn’t think of anyone that would do something so strange except for, “Senku…?”

The man turned to her, one eyebrow raised, and a weird tense smile on his face. He stuck his pinky in his ear and twisted it, “heh, I knew it was a risk to come out here but I didn’t realize Tsukasa’s group was camped so close.”

Umeka blinked. He was being very nonchalant for a man wandering alone in the forest faced with an armed stranger, “They aren’t.”

He blinked at her, “Oh yeah? Then who are you?”

“Yamaguchi Umeka,” she blurted out, shocked with herself and her immediate answer, “You’re Senku, right?”

By the patchy light breaking through the treetops it looked like he was sweating nervously, “How would you know a name like that if you weren’t in Tsukasa’s Empire of Might?”

It was a horribly inappropriate moment but, she snorted. Tsukasa had never called it that to her. And hearing the name now it just sounded so silly. Especially for someone who always seemed so reserved and serious. It seemed to surprise the young man who finally pulled his hand from his head, joining her in a brief comically-malicious laugh, “Hey, I didn’t name it but that doesn’t answer my question.”

She took a deep breath and looked at him squarely. She thought she heard him gulp slightly shifting a foot back, but he kept his face turned to hers staring back at her silently. There was nothing. No sense of danger. No intimidation. Beyond not really saying his name, though to be fair he’d never said he wasn’t Senku, she felt he would tell her anything she asked. 

“Why are you out here?” She said, testing her theory.

“I’m looking for nitic acid, we need it in the fluid Tsukasa used to wake you up. He’s blocking us from the only source we had so...I guess I’m taking a chance looking out here alone.” Again he forced a laugh, which made her give a tiny smile though she tried to hold it back, “Pretty bad idea, huh?”

“So you are Senku.”

“Yeah,” his voice deepened, suddenly serious, “I’m Senku, the guy Tsukasa wants to catch more than anything else.”

“...he’s nearby,” she said, “Tsukasa, we’re hunting together.”

Senku’s eyes widened, “Shit! Are you serious?” he looked around cautiously, a stressed smile breaking on his face. His eyebrows pulled together clearly deep in thought about how he would make out of here. 

“Umeka…!” Tsukasa’s voice suddenly echoed from ahead, just far enough to be out of sight and unable to see them. 

Umeka looked in Tsukasa’s direction and then back to Senku who’s red eyes met hers. He didn’t speak but there was a pleading in them, maybe he was too afraid to speak or too proud. His hands were clenched but shaking, his jaw was tight behind the smile he still had, though it wasn’t a pleasant one, it was interesting that a smile was his response to tension. That didn’t seem like the trait of a fighter or someone with bad intentions. In fact, though she could probably take him down, the thought of taking her as a hostage didn’t seem to occur to him. Maybe he just knew it wouldn’t work but her instincts told her that just wasn’t the way he operated and if she was trusting them about Tsukasa then it was only right to treat Senku the same. At least until she could actually make up her mind. She pulled her dog whistle out of her shirt again and blew a sharp not calling Saiyan over, she leaned to the dog's ear, but held eye contact with Senku, “Take him home. Go quick.”

Saiyan’s eyes shifted between here and Senku, and then he turned and waited. Umeka looked at Senku, who now looked more confused than anything else, “Follow him to my home. Climb the ladder, leave it down, and stay quiet. Okay?”

She couldn’t fully read his expression, his smile didn’t so much fade as soften. His eyes stayed set on hers for a moment before he looked to the dog and nodded.

“Go,” Umeka said shortly and Saiyan shot off, Senku following as best he could. Umeka watched them run through the trees, the sound of twigs snapping making her heart beat faster and faster. The sound was on all sides now, Tsukasa approaching from behind her, and Senku running off toward her home. She couldn’t believe herself. A man Tsukasa had told her was dangerous, moreover, a man Tsukasa clearly didn’t want to trust and she just sent him to her home. She told him to climb into her safe space; the only place she’d managed to keep just for herself since she learned she wasn’t truly alone. It felt like her heart was in her throat, and when Tsukasa’s large hand took hold of her shoulder she jolted and turned around breathing hard.

“...what’s going on?” he asked, eyeing her suspiciously. There was a harshness, a coldness to his stare that felt like a threat. 

“I,” her voice cracked, “Sorry you just scared me, I was watching Saiyan.”

“Why is he leaving?” Of course, Tsukasa knew Saiyan had been with them. 

“He hurt his foot, I’m not sure how but he was walking funny and trying to hide it so I sent him back. I don’t think it’ll be a big deal, he’s just getting older,” she surprised herself with the evenness of her tone, the speed of her answer.

It seemed to be working, Tsukasa nodded though his eyes stayed a little more narrow than was natural, his voice was still slow and edged, “Are you sure you’re okay? You’ve seemed jumpy today…”

“No I’m…” she didn’t know what to say. There was no half-truth to say there. She couldn’t tell him about Senku, or how nervous Tsukasa himself made her, “I think I’m just nervous.”

It wasn’t a lie, so she didn’t know why it made her feel so bad. Maybe she felt bad from how his head tilted at her, his eyes softening, “why are you nervous?”

“I’m...I’ve,” she swallowed hard, “I think I’ve just been alone for a long time so...you and your group make me nervous maybe more than I thought at first. I must have just been thinking about that.”

Umeka was shocked. It was certainly a kind of truth. Maybe one she wasn’t fully ready to say. Certainly, one that left out major information but still more true than she'd expected.

The truth of her statement must have satisfied any lingering suspicious Tsukasa had because he reached out his hand and placed it on top of Umeka’s head, gently smoothing her hair. When she looked up his eyes had softened completely, “I understand, Umeka. But I’m on your side, the world I want to make would be perfect for you. I just want you to meet my group so you can see that. Maybe you can come soon?”

“Yeah,” she breathed, knowing resistance now would be a big back step, “maybe...ah...the bear?”

Tsukasa nodded, “Let’s go get the bear.”

⛮⛮⛮

For the rest of their hunt, Umeka was quiet and focused. None of the confused drifting and thoughtless movements from earlier. Though Tsukasa couldn’t shake the sense that something was very wrong, he felt maybe he’d finally gotten her to believe that he wanted the best for her. He knew it would take a long time to build trust with someone who’d been so self-sufficient for so long. Tsukasa hadn’t gotten a number from her yet, but he thought she must have been young when she was turned to stone. Then she'd broken free, only a child left alone in the stone world and had grown into a young woman by herself. It would explain her occasional pouty behaviors and the words she hadn’t known when he spoke to her.

He led her to where the bear had stopped, a cave. That’s where he’d called out to her from, earlier when she hadn’t responded. It still felt strange that she didn’t call back, even if she was dealing with Saiyan. She had been in a daze earlier but could it have been that intense that she didn’t hear him? Maybe she would be better off coming to stay with his group if her mind would wander in such a serious situation. He’d have to bring it up to her later. 

Umeka was frowning, “A cave is not a fair fighting ground, maybe we should-”

Tsukasa shook his head, “Shoot some arrows into the cave if it feels attacked it should come out and I can handle it from there.”

Her eyebrow shot up suspiciously, “Really?”

He smiled, laughing slightly, “Yes, Umeka. I’ll get you the bear. I owe you.”

“That’s not a good reason-”

“You need it, and you deserve it, for your help,” Tsukasa said, looking into her eyes before turning back to the cave, “Go ahead, I’ll stay by the mouth of the cave.” And with that, he walked forward drawing his stone sword.

He could hear Umeka take a breath and then quickly arrows flew to the left middle and right of the cave. One drew a great roar and the bear rushed out wildly. Before fear could even pass over Umeka’s face, Tsukasa launched himself at the powerful animals and it fell to the forest floor, heavy and lifeless. 

Umeka came up and stood at his elbow looking at the large still-open eyes of the bear. The soft, “wow,” she emitted filled him with a slight pride he hadn’t felt in a long time. 

Tsukasa easily pulled the creature to his shoulders, “Let’s get this to your home.”

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka almost wondered if Senku was even up there. He was dead quiet. There had been no footprints when they came up, even the dogs were all acting calm. A concern she hadn’t even considered until Suit rushed up to greet her.

It took much longer to break the bear down than a deer. Perhaps just because she’d never broken one down before. It had so much to give she found herself tossing meat to the dogs as a thank you for their silence. Tsukasa seemed happy, though she felt he was looking at her more but she brushed it off as a figment of her imagination. A product of her fear that he knew about her secret in the house above them. In the distance the sky rumbled, light flashing as it came down to earth. Umeka stepped out into the field looking at the sky, “it looks like a storm is coming.”

Tsukasa walked up behind her, “And fast.”

He stayed close so she turned to look up at him but before she could make a suggestion Tsukasa spoke again.

“Can I stay here,” he asked, the tone of his voice was innocent. He didn’t look away from her but his eyes surfed over her face rather than staying focused on her own, “just to stay out of the storm, I don’t mean…” his voice trailed off. 

It felt like a lightning bolt had rushed over and shot down through her. Of all the days he’d visited he’d never pressed to go into the house. It had seemed like he understood she’d never want to share that space and that made her fear that he knew. She had no clue how he would, but, why else would he want to go up? She supposed it could just be the storm but if that was the case how bad could her luck suddenly be.

“I’m not…” she spoke, her voice hitching when he furrowed his eyebrows at her sadly, “comfortable…”

“Umeka…” Tsukasa spoke, turning to look at the quickly coming storm before looking at her again, he seemed like he wanted to say something else but he stopped himself. He turned suddenly and looked at the rope and the up to the hatch into the house. Would he run and force his way up? No, that didn’t seem like him but if he did there’s no way she could stop him. 

“I’m sorry…” she mumbled, “I know it’s late and there’s a storm but I just…” she thought of Senku, his tense smile and weirdly comical responses to fear. 

Tsukasa sighed, it was a deep sad sigh. Then he pulled his cloak back on as the rain began to trickle down, “I’ll come back for the pumpkins and honey soon, I’ll be faster without them.”

“I’m sorry,” she repeated, feeling more guilty than she wanted to.

“It’s all right,” he turned again, placing his hand on her head once more drifting it down to just above her ear and pulling it away just before it touched her cheek, “I hope you’ll be more comfortable with me soon, next time...next time come with me and see my group, okay?”

Once again Tsukasa’s question didn’t feel like it was asking. She nodded. His large brown eyes stayed on her face for a while, so long she felt it growing hot on instinct. He smiled slightly, and then he turned and rushed off undeterred by the rain.

Umeka stood under her house, listening to the rain, that was now pouring, falling all around her. The dogs walked in and circled her, curling up by the fire pit. She bent down and lit it for them and sat by it looking into the flames. But despite the fire, she felt cold deep in her body. Slowly her eyes drifted to the hatch that led into her house. She stood, holding the rope, but she didn’t climb for a while. Instead, she thought about Senku. Maybe he was up there hiding and waiting for her. Maybe she’d climb up and find he’s raided the place and her things would be scattered and broken on the floor. Maybe he never made it at all and the dogs just couldn’t inform her of that. All of these thoughts passed through her head but she wouldn’t know until she climbed. The choice was already made, she couldn’t go back now but she could stay for a moment longer listening to the rain and the crackle of the fire.

Chapter Text

It took a long time for Senku to recover from the run. Chasing a wolf-dog would have been ten billion percent impossible if the dog hadn’t been looking back at him, slowing when it noticed how he struggled. Had he not Senku would have been lost in the woods, or, worse, found by Tsukasa and killed. Again. He’d barely had time to take in the sight of Umeka’s home, he’d noticed a garden, large storage bins, and a water filtration system. It was crude, more like an old school survivalist structure than anything else, but the science was sound. He’d stopped to take it in, ignoring how the old dog has circled back and nudge insistently at his hip. She’d tied three strong sticks together at the top making a sort of pyramid shape. Then she tied three different cloths to the sticks, stacked in the middle like a series of hammocks. The smallest, at the top, was filled with grass, the next with sand, and the last with a black substance he had to touch to confirm was charcoal. Below it was a barrel, with a cleverly carved lid, shaped like a trapezoid to keep it more tightly sealed and keep the water safer. It was impressive enough to almost completely distract him from the earlier terror. Then Saiyan had barked, and six more dogs slowly lurked from the woods beyond and Senku had quickly climbed the ladder in a cold sweat.

Though the inside of her home was equally interesting, there wasn’t much of a view to the outside, so instead of looking around, he’d sat down in the corner, still breathing hard from his run and the arduous climb up the rope ladder. He had no choice but to trust that this girl wouldn’t be completely illogical and turn him in after directing him to her house. That wouldn’t keep Tsukasa from noticing him though. Senku had seen his senses at work so he sat still, huddled in the corner by what he assumed was her bedding, stark silent.

Then he heard them, talking under the house amid the wet slapping sounds of organs falling to the ground and the acrid smell of an animal’s blood as they cleaned it. Alone in a stranger’s house, he didn’t have to act brave, he was sweating and his hands were shaking despite how hard he clenched them. He didn’t have a fail-safe this time, if Tsukasa found him it was all over. When Tsukasa had asked to come up Senku felt his gut wrench, but he managed to keep himself from moving. He listened to Umeka turning him away and the rain began to pour outside. 

It had been a while now since Tsukasa had left for his camp. Umeka still didn’t come up into the house. While that was making him somewhat nervous he thought it was probably better to leave her. Let her do whatever she was doing. At the same time, he couldn’t just sit around any longer. His legs were tingling from paresthesia, or ‘pins and needles’ as it was commonly called, from having sat still for so long. He stood, groaning and leaning on the wall as he rocked on his feet. The sensation worsening as it finally left his body. Then he straightened and looking around the cabin. There was a large stone slab with charcoal on it, he imagined she was bringing up still burning pieces to heat the room while she slept. Safer than lighting a fire this high up. 

The floor and walls were made of wood, the spaces between filled with clay, the ceiling was thatched bamboo and hay. In one corner a macrame-looking chair hung from a bamboo pole. On the floor by the chair, there was a pile of half-finished carving projects, arrows and bowls, and combs. There were animal furs and skins neatly folded with bone needles still attached to them by strings. It was hard to believe she could do all this in the time since Tsukasa had gone off on his own. And why wasn’t she with his group? How was she able to boss him around? Senku sat in the chair, swinging gently as he thought.

⛮⛮⛮

It felt impossible to climb the ladder. Umeka wanted to go back to her life weeks ago. When she was alone. When she only had to think about feeding herself and the dogs. When the coming winter was her only concern. Now she was stuck in the middle of some strange standoff. She took a deep breath and slowly released it through her nose. 

“Nothing to be done, hmm?” she said, looking to Sailor whose large eyes were watching Umeka carefully, tapped into her anxiety. “Okay...food. We need to eat,” Umeka mused, wrapping the font strand of her hair around her braid and then loosely looping the braid over her neck like a thick scarf. She hung her stone pot over the fire and tossed in some meat from the bear, spices she’d gathered in the woods, chunks of pumpkin, some bones for flavor, and finally water. Probably enough like soup, she figured. She wondered if Senku would like it. Then felt silly for being concerned about that.

Once it was boiling and smelling surprisingly pleasant she hefted the thick chord it hung on and climbed the ladder with one hand, “Senku, are you there?”

“Yeah,” he said back, opening the hatch and looking at her, “ha, another lioness, huh?”

“Uhm...what?” she asked, continuing the climb as Senku reached out.

“Here, I can take the pot,” he said, his palm open to her.

She paused, unused to the help. Then slowly placed the chord in his hand and watched him lurch forward slightly.

“That’s much heavier than I expected,” he groaned, struggling but managing to get the pot up and into the cabin, resting it on the floor.

“What did you mean lioness?”

“Oh nothing, you just remind me of my friend, she’s also crazy strong,” he had another one of his funny smiles. Not so much friendly and teasing, a kind of boyish charm.

“Oh...I don’t think it’s really that heavy maybe-”

“I’m just a wimp?”

Umeka blinked, blushing slightly at how bluntly he put it, “I-”

He laughed again a sharp, honest laugh, his head back, “Don’t worry I am. I know. I made my peace with that a long time ago.”

She smiled, a little awkward from how easily he teased himself, “I thought you might want to eat, it’s not much but-” she stopped herself, handing him a wooden bowl and spoon. 

He took it with a gentle look in his eyes, “Thanks, and thanks for hiding me. Though...you could have warned me about being a full-on Princess Mononoke, I wasn’t expecting to come up on an entire pack of dogs.”

“Her name is San.”

“Yeah I know but,” He shrugged, sitting on the floor by the pot, “you knew what I meant.”

Umeka sat across from him, spooning soup into each of their bowls, “Sorry I was a little busy keeping you alive.”

“I wanted to ask you about that,” Senku said, his voice suddenly serious, “why did you do that?”

“Did you not want me to?”

“Oh no, I vastly prefer continuing to live I just don’t really get why you preferred that too.”

Umeka thought for a moment, she didn’t seem to have an answer. Honestly was the best policy so she answered, “I just felt like I should. You know in my gut.”

“Doesn’t seem like too much of a reason to betray the leader of your group,” Senku said, blowing on his soup, “Do you not like something he’s doing?”

“I’m not in his group, at least, I don’t think I am,” Umeka answered, holding back on the truth just a touch. Tsukasa knew Senku didn’t wake her up because at the time she had to tell him to keep herself safe. Maybe if she didn’t tell Senku she could learn something. She wanted to quiet her suspicions about Tsukasa but Senku seemed to be equally cagey. It felt like he was trying to poke around and get information without revealing much.

Senku stared at her calmly, his eyebrows furrowed in thought, “I see. So that’s why you live somewhere else. And all this,” he gestured to the house, “you did it by yourself?”

“Yeah.”

“And that’s why he’s trying to win you over so hard. Cause you’ve got an insane amount of useful skills.”

Umeka felt herself blush despite herself, which Senku softly snorted at, “You think he’s trying to win me over?”

“Ha! I know he is. Tsukasa’s not stupid. I’m sure he knows trying to force someone like you to join him wouldn’t work so he’s trying to convince you instead.”

“Why wouldn’t it work?” Umeka asked, she hadn’t thought about that. She wondered how the others had come to join Tsukasa and what they were like. She’d been so focused on avoiding meeting the so-called Empire of Might that she hadn’t considered what they were like.

“Well,” Senku sighed, shifting his weight and gazing at the ceiling, “because you can, clearly, take care of yourself. I mean if you built this by yourself then you don’t need him for shelter or food like I’d bet most of his Empire does. That,” he said lifting his fist and then raising a finger, “makes you valuable,” he raised another, “and harder to tempt.”

“Tempt?”

Senku nodded, “he can’t bring you to his side with resources if you have access to them on your own so you’d either join because you want to or…”

“...because he makes me,” Umeka finished, suddenly feeling cold.

Senku nodded, spooning his soup around in the bowl, he looked like he wanted to say something, but he didn’t. Instead, he continued to eat avoiding her gaze. His eyebrows creased in thought.

⛮⛮⛮

“Senku,” the girl finally spoke. She set her bowl down beside her and leaned forward her eyes intensely focused on him, “how do you know Tsukasa?”

“...I woke him up, my friend and I were in danger and he was right there so, we woke him up to save our own skins, of course now, that’s backfired,” Senku answered. He didn’t want to lie to her. After all, it would be better for him, for the Kingdom of Science, if she sided with them instead but he didn’t want to strong-arm her into it. He wondered if she knew about how Tsukasa would crush statues or about his goal for the world moving forward. Maybe she’d been kept in the dark, it’s what Senku would do in Tsukasa’s position without knowing her opinion on the matter. Senku couldn’t help but smirk a little, Umeka was probably far more of a challenge than she knew. 

“Why does he hate you?”

“Hate me, huh?” He echoed. He couldn’t help but feel a little sad. He had considered Tsukasa a friend, for a time, even if they were ideologically opposed. 

Umeka seemed to notice the shift in his mood, she quickly added, “I mean...he didn’t say that he just...he called you dangerous so I…”

Senku nodded, giving her a small smile trying to comfort her slight panic, “No it’s okay. You’re probably right. We just...we don’t agree. I want to bring back the world we’re from and...Tsukasa doesn’t.”

“He...he said that the world he wanted to make was perfect for me is that...what he meant?”

“Probably,” Senku shrugged, “and he’s probably not totally wrong. Not everyone can build a house or hunt for themselves. Heh, most people from our time probably couldn’t garden. It took a long time for you to do all this, didn’t it? Since you woke up on your own.”

“How did you-”

Senku grinned, “I don’t know much about gardening but I do understand the process behind it. It takes about one hundred days for pumpkins to grow to maturity. That’s just over three months but it’s not like you could have run out to the store for seeds. You must have found them in the wild last season at the latest harvested the seeds and planted them this season. Tsukasa hasn’t even been awake a full year yet so, you had to have woken up first.”

Umeka blinked at him, “Geeze you’re smart.”

Senku sputtered then burst out laughing, “Thanks, I try.”

“I…,” Umeka took a deep breath, she swallowed hard. Senku looked at her, just as he was about to stop her, tell her she didn’t owe him an explanation, she spoke again, “I was eight.”

“....what,” Senku said, his voice flat.

“When that green flash happened, I was eight. I’ve been awake for I think...maybe nine years?”

Senku had to set his bowl down. He couldn’t concentrate on what she’d said and hold it. She had been a literal child in a world like this and she survived? She’d built a home, tamed animals, and grew a garden. He sighed, rubbing the side of his face, “Man yet another OP monster in the Stone World.”

Umeka flustered, her face pink and her cheeks puffed, pouting, “I’m not a monster.”

Senku laughed, “No you definitely are. A totally awesome one but definitely a monster.”

She frowned more, her chest puffing out, “That’s mean!”

Senku laughed harder, bracing an arm over his stomach, “I definitely mean it as a compliment.”

The blush on her face spread, it made sense, she’d been alone for a long time. She probably wasn’t used to compliments or even talking to someone else, she probably didn’t have a huge vocabulary either given the age she’d been, he’d have to keep that in mind.

“Well thanks, I guess but...don’t call me a monster,” she huffed.

“Sure, sure, I won’t. Princess Mononoke it is,” he grinned.

She rolled her eyes, but couldn't suppress her tiny smile, picking up her soup again and continuing to eat. 

They stayed like that for a moment. The only noises in the room were the thumping of the rain above and their wooden spoons scraping on stone bowls. 

Then Umeka took a deep breath and looked up at him, an earnestly worried look on her face, “Do you know what kind of world Tsukasa wants to make?”

Senku paused, meeting her stare, “Yeah. You sure you want to hear it from me?”

She nodded, “I don’t feel like I can trust him and...I don’t know why but maybe if I hear it from you and him I can make up my mind. You know?”

“Yeah,” he sighed, “He...wants a world without weapons. Tsukasa thinks older people are people with power who aren’t thinking of the good of the whole society so...he doesn’t want to revive them. I guess that’s the big difference. He wants to pick and choose who gets to live in the new world and I think we should wake everyone up.”

Umeka went quiet. She pressed her lips together tightly and balled her hands into fists holding the fabric of her pants. Her eyes seemed to tremble, dangerously close to crying. Senku shifted toward her nervously, “Hey it’s...it’s okay.”

She sniffled, rubbing her nose, “No, I know. That makes sense. I mentioned my grandparents to him once and he seemed...mad? So he just doesn’t like them because of their age. That doesn’t make any sense.”

Senku rested his hand on the back of his head, “No. It really doesn’t. Heh. That’s why I’m not gonna let him win.”

She smiled a little, “You could barely lift that stone pot. How are you going to fight him? He killed the bear you’re eating, you know?”

Senku laughed bitterly, “Not shocking at all. But science evens the playing field so my friends and I will just spam that until we get everyone on our side.”

“What do you mean?”

Senku grinned at her again, “I want everyone to join us. I’m not interested in killing people I don’t agree with being a bully. I’d rather just get people on the same team. If we have everyone we can build something awesome. We have a chance now to rebuild all of the awesome things science gave us and avoid making the mistakes our ancestors made before.”

“That sounds nice,” she said, a small smile on her face, “You seem nice.”

It made him nervous. He’d never been good at dealing with compliments like that. He preferred to joke his way around them, “Ha. Hardly. I just selfishly want to get back to my old hobbies.”

Umeka stood, putting their bowls and spoons in the pot and then lifting it and going to the hatch, she took the first few rungs down so only her upper body was visible, “Liar,” she said, grinning as she descended out of view.

⛮⛮⛮

Their conversation hadn’t so much answered questions as replace them with new ones. If Tsukasa wanted to pick and choose who got to live she couldn’t side with him. But if Senku wanted to make the world like it was, would she fit in? She barely remembered what it was like back then and she was just a little kid. But it was the world her grandparents and mom knew so she owed it to them, didn’t she? 

Her head was rushing from these thoughts as she gathered coals for upstairs. She pulled another pile of blankets and skins for Senku. The rain was still pouring and judging by the deep black of the sky it was late at night now. He’d have to go home in the morning. Get away before Tsukasa inevitable came back.

She didn’t know how she’d act around him now. She couldn’t let on that she knew what he wanted. If she did, he’d know she met Senku or at least someone from Senku’s group and that could be dangerous. Senku made it sound like Tsukasa wouldn’t give it up on trying to bring her to his side and if he was right she’d have to leave behind her home. Start over somewhere else but that would mean giving up nearly a decade of work. 

She sighed tossing the fabric over her shoulder and climbing back up the ladder, met at the top with Senku’s outstretched arms, pulling the bedding from her shoulder and into the room, “Afraid of lifting the pot again?” she teased.

“Mm. I thought if I didn’t pick it up you wouldn’t tease me this time,” he smirked.

“Oh sorry,” she laughed. 

“Are you sure it’s okay for me to stay?”

“Yeah, Tsukasa doesn’t come here at night. I’ve never let him come up into my house so even if he did I don’t think he’d just come in. You’d have to be crazy unlucky for him to suddenly do all that in the rain too.”

Senku deadpanned, “Trust me, crazy bad luck isn’t unusual for me.”

Umeka giggled slightly at his expression and shut the hatch. She set a lock and put the stone plate on it. Then she poured the glowing orange coals onto it, “Well if he does decide to pop by he’ll be unlucky too.”

Senku laughed but there were beads of sweat on his forehead, “Brutal.”

She shrugged, “We’d probably both die otherwise, right? If he’d kill you, he’d kill me for helping you.”

“Yes and maybe,” Senku said, straightening out his bedding, “He might let you live, Princess Mononoke.”

“Just call me by my name please.”

“Oh right, San, sorry.”

She laughed surprisingly hard. Hard enough that Senku laughed with her, or maybe at her for being so amused. He’d settled into his bedding but he was still turned to face her. She smiled, her laugh slowly tapering off. 

“Hey...Senku,” Umeka said, laying back in her blankets and turning her head toward him, “Thanks for answering my questions.”

“Sure. Thanks for...keeping me from dying.”

She turned her head again, staring at the ceiling in the ever dimming glow of the fire, “Senku?”

He hummed a sleepy tone from across the room, clearly close to falling asleep.

“Can I show you something tomorrow, before you go home?”

“...Yeah,” he yawned. 

She thought about asking him a million other questions. She realized she didn’t ask enough about him. How he woke up Tsukasa, or who his friend was, or how he was gonna rebuild the world. She sat up, turning toward him but even in the dim glow of the coals, she could see his chest rising and falling slowly. She sighed and laid back down. Maybe tomorrow she could ask him. It didn’t feel like she was going to be able to pull away from this now. She’d have to pick a side. Maybe their trip in the morning would make that easier.

⛮⛮⛮

Senku woke up first, the sun managed to hit his eyes through the cover hanging over the singular window in the cabin. He groaned sitting up, rubbing his eyes. His body ached from the running and climbing of the day before reminding him of the first few weeks in the wild on his own. 

On the other side of the cabin was Umeka, her eyes shut peacefully, lying on her side with the fur she slept under clutched closely to her chest. Her breathing sounded more like gentle sighs. Senku smiled slightly to himself, and carefully got up. He picked up the heavy stone plate and set it aside, slide the lock on the latch, and opened it, climbing down. When he got to the bottom the large orange dog growled, he advanced at him for a heart-pounding moment and then Saiyan snapped at him and he receded. The others all watched from where they were laying, except one. A long brown-haired dog he came and rubbed her body against Senku’s leg, “Hi,” he said, petting her head, “So you’re the friendly one, huh? Do me a favor and make sure I don’t get eaten while I make breakfast.”

He looked to the storage boxes, a small bin held herb and small vegetables, a basket to the side of the box had eggs, all organized neatly. He couldn’t help but smile, “That’ll do.” He pulled a small piece of flint from his bag and lit the fire, setting a flat piece of stone on the frame above it. Once it was hot he cracked an egg, tossed some salt from his bag on it, and threw in the herbs he found in her box. Just as he was finished he heard a loud gasp, then a thump, and suddenly Umeka’s head dropped through the hatch, he gave her a quick wave.

She huffed, “I thought you got nabbed!”

“No nabbing, just hungry,” he called back, grinning a little. 

She climbed down the rope and looked at the plate, a small smile on her face, “Thanks…”

“Who said I was sharing?”

She deadpanned, making him laugh. He slid two eggs into a bowl and passed it to her. She sat, cross-legged on the ground. The large orange dog nosing at the side of her head. 

Senku flopped down in front of her, “What’s that one's name?”

“Oh,” she said, her face turning red, “It’s...uh...Sueno.”

Senku blinked, his expression flattened. He tried to hold back a snicker. “Like...from Doraemon…?”

Her cheeks puffed and she mumbled, “Yes...like that.”

A breathy giggle escaped his mouth before he managed to press his lips together to stop himself, “Because he’s-”

“A jerk, yeah.”

They look at each other and laughed.

“I loved that show, you must have been a teenager why were you still watching it?” She asked.

“Heh, cause I was lame,” he said. He finished the last bite of his food and set the plate down. “Wanna show me what you mentioned last night? I should get back to my friends soon. I’m sure they’re freaking out.”

She nodded, hopping up, “Sazae, come,” she called to the brown dog that had rubbed again Senku’s leg earlier.

Throwing her bow over her shoulder and strapping the quiver to her belt, Umeka headed east out of camp, “We won’t have to go far.”

“That’s great news,” Senku called behind her. 

She smiled over her shoulder at him and walked into the woods. She was quiet. The was a solemnness in the way she moved, like someone approaching a temple. So Senku mirrored her, taking in the woods around them. Giving Umeka the space she seemed to need. They walked through the early morning haze until they came to a small clearing, one that looked man-made to Senku’s eyes. In a spot of sun in the middle of the clearing was a stone woman. It looked like she’d been trying to kneel, the way her knees were bent and her chest was angled, her arms were outstretched. Her head was turned, looking just over her right shoulder, her face stuck in a look of shocked horror. Though of course, her entire person was now the dark blue-gray of the stone, her long straight hair was hanging in a curtain around her head, gently flowing down her back. Her eyes were large, the upturned outer corners made her look kind. The cupid’s bow of her upper lip was pronounced and her cheekbones were high giving her face a sort of heart shape. It was like looking at Umeka cast over in stone. 

Umeka was smiling despite the sad look in her eyes, she brushed leaves from the woman’s head. Then settled back and looked into her face before turned to Senku. “This is my mom.”

Senku nodded, his heart felt heavy. He knew what it was like to lose a parent, but to have her right there at the same time must be beyond painful. He nodded, looking her over. The ground around her was tidy, the underbrush cleaned away. Umeka must have been keeping the area clean, like a shrine to her mother since she found her.

“Could you bring her back, someday?” Umeka asked, her voice quiet. 

“Definitely. We’re not gonna leave anyone stuck in that stone. I ten billion percent promise.”

Umeka’s smile spread, a relieved look spread on her face, “Thank you, Senku.”

He rubbed the back of his neck, “You don’t have to thank me.”

She shook her head, “I do. Now someone else knows mom’s out here and…” She took a slightly shaky breath, “I feel like I can trust you which is nice.”

Senku smiled looking up at the sunlight that shined through the trees above, “You probably just feel like that because you could absolutely body me.”

She laughed, shaking her head.

“So you know that slang? What kind of second-grader were you?”

She laughed harder, her mood lightening and relieving Senku’s tension. “You should go back to your group,” she patted the dog lightly on the head, “Sazae will go with you to help and protect you, ya know if needed.”

Senku raised an eyebrow, “And then she can guide you to us, right?”

“Right,” she smiled.

“Yeah...okay,” he sighed, “I guess I’ll see you around, Princess Mononoke.” He ignored her groan and he headed in the general direction of the village He turned back just before he completely lost view of her in the trees. She’d focused on her mother now and he could see her mouth moving. The sun reflected off a small tear that ran down her cheek, Senku turned quickly to give her privacy. He looked down at the dog that trotted beside him, tongue happily lolling out of her mouth, “Do me a favor and make sure she visits soon, huh?” The dog huffed, forcing her head under his hand and staying there the whole walk back to the village.

Chapter Text

Umeka didn’t stay by her mother much longer after Senku left, just long enough to clear the fallen leaves from her feet and tell her a little about her life lately. Once Sazae returned she’d have a route to Senku, his friends, and the village they apparently lived in. Maybe she would visit. He’d been kind and funny. Most importantly, if there was a way to wake her mother one day she owed it to her to try and get it. 

She thought about her mother and Senku’s strange sense of humor until she reached the edge of the forest. Looking up toward her home she saw a familiar shape, Tsukasa. Her stomach churned. If he’d noticed her yet he didn’t let on so she froze just at the treeline. She’d have to act as though she didn’t know the truth, about Senku, or the world Tsukasa wanted to make which was easy enough to say but once he looked at her with his dark hawk-ish eyes she was afraid she’d break. Afraid he’d find out something that would endanger her, or worse poor Senku who couldn’t lift a stone pot.

Tsukasa’s face turned toward her and he settled back, waiting for her to approach. She breathed deeply and stepped into the clearing. He didn’t meet her in the field or urge her to rush on. Instead, he stood calmly in the dark shadow of her house his eyes low and serious. Once she was in earshot he called, “Where have you been, Umeka?”

“Why?”

“...what?”

“Why do you want to know where I was?” Umeka frowned, prickling at how he’d asked. As though she owed him an explanation.

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion, an apologetic look on his face, “I was just curious where you’d been, that’s all.”

“...Oh,” she swallowed, setting down her bow and unclipping her quiver, “just off for a little hunt.”

“Is that why Sazae isn’t here?”

Umeka was lucky she hadn’t been facing him because her expression would have betrayed her fear. She managed to temper it back into a small smile before she turned to him, “Yeah, she’s off chasing down a small rabbit I didn’t want to bother with. Sometimes they’ll do that, just go off on their own.”

“Ah,” Tsukasa said, leaning his head back slightly and looking down at her, “I haven’t seen that yet then.”

“...Guess not,” Umeka nodded, brushing past him to get a drink of water, anything to break the eye contact he kept holding with her.

“Is everything okay? You’re acting kind of strange. Did my request last night upset you that bad because I really didn’t mean anything by it,” she didn’t turn to face him but there was something in his tone. A chilling clarity just inside the pleasant notes of his voice made it clear he knew the answer to that question. It made her worry he knew something else. Her eyes flashed wide. By the water barrel in a small bucket was the leftover dishes from their breakfast. Two bowls, two spoons. Evidence she hadn’t eaten alone if Tsukasa gave it any thought. She turned, putting her leg in front of the bucket and looking up into his face.

“No, thanks for asking though, I’m okay,” she sighed, holding her arms across her chest to keep them from shaking, “I guess I’m a little on edge today. It happens sometimes when winter is coming.”

He smiled, handsome and easy, but the look in his eyes stayed coldly focused despite his best efforts to disguise the look with friendliness, “Well, I think today is as good a day as any, I think you should visit us.”

Umeka wanted to protest but she remembered, she’d promised she would last night. A last-ditch effort to keep Senku guarded against Tsukasa. She looked down, “Okay.”

Tsukasa’s hand reached out taking hold of her shoulder and waiting there until she looked back at him. He smiled, a genuine gentle smile that suited his beautiful face even though it couldn’t belie the fear that had settled in Umeka, “I’m excited for you to see it. Bring a dog, bring all the dogs, if you want. Whatever will make you feel comfortable there.”

She nodded, “I’ll just bring Saiyan, I don’t want to be too scary.”

He laughed but didn’t say anything else. He just turned to gather the supplies he’d abandoned the day before into a crude bag he’d brought. She watched him, stroking the top of Saiyan’s head to ease her nerves. “I’m ready, are you?”

She blinked, “Yeah, I am.”

“Oh...you don’t want to bring anything?”

“Well...I won’t be staying.”

He frowned and tilted his head at her, “It’s a good ways away, you probably could have gone there and come back if we started in the morning that’s why I came here looking for you. If you don’t want to bring one though I’m sure we can gather something together for you to sleep in-”

“Or I can visit another time.”

He was silent. Staring at her, she could see the muscles in his chest tense, “Umeka-”

“No,” she said, surprising herself with the volume, “I’m going to come back to my home I’m just meeting them, I don’t want to stay there.”

His eyes widened in surprise, his head tilting back briefly before he smiled easily again, forcing a small chuckle, “No...of course. I’m sorry. I keep forgetting how long you’ve been on your own. This is a big step for you anyway. I’ll try harder to remember that just. Please still come today, okay? And if you feel comfortable and want to stay then you can and if not, I’ll walk back here with you.”

She didn’t want him to walk back with her. She didn’t even want to visit. But she knew she’d pushed enough for now. And she desperately wanted to get him away from camp, further from Senku who was probably still traveling with Sazae. She nodded, pulling her bow back to her shoulder and reclipping her quiver, the only things she’d bring with her.

⛮⛮⛮

The silence of their walk was grating on Tsukasa’s nerves. She’d been strange yesterday, so distracted with whatever she had on her mind. Now she seemed angry; like she was being dragged on a family vacation she didn’t want to go on. Every time he looked at her and saw the gloomy expression on her face, the downward turn of her mouth, he felt a pang in his chest. He didn’t know what he could say to comfort her, and he certainly didn’t know what he’d done to make her so angry with him if she even was.

“Is something wrong?”

She busied herself climbing over a log and didn’t look at him, “No, I’m okay.”

And then the silence fell again. Maybe he was reading too far into her actions. It was possible she was just nervous and he was sensitive to it. He wanted her to love the camp and choose to stay there. At the moment there wasn’t much camaraderie among them. There were strong, admirable warriors there but no one like Umeka. No one he wanted to spend his free time talking to. If she joined them then not only would the quality of the camp as a whole be improved by her knowledge but he’d be able to learn more about her. He could share meals with her, see her off to bed and early in the morning as everyone rose with the sun. He’d warned the others to be on their best behavior, advised them at it was in their interest to ensure Umeka joined them. Now he felt like he was the one who misstepped and he wasn’t entirely sure how.

“Are you nervous?”

She raised an eyebrow at him, “A little. I guess.”

“Don’t worry too much about them. I’ll be with you the whole time,” he said, offering a hand to her as she climbed down an embankment. 

She didn’t take it, she merely hopped down, looking back as Saiyan did the same, the dog circling back and taking close to her side, “Don’t worry I haven’t been this way before but, it’s not my first time in the woods.”

He turned, “Right.” He sniffed, the sensation in his chest returning in unalarming but uncomfortable pangs. Feelings he remembered being described in dramas on tv. In all his time in the old world, he’d never had a friend, so, of course, he’d never had a girlfriend. He’d been focused on training, being the strongest so he could win money for his family. So he could save Mirai. But this world was different, he was the strongest here, and there was no money to earn. No family to support. He hadn’t even found their statues despite how hard he searched the face of every little girl hoping to see the soft eyes of his sister. Even if he never found her, he could build a world that would have been kinder to her. A world where he’d have time to build relationships he’d forgone before. He wanted it to be Umeka. He’d realized that weeks ago now and the feeling kept eating away at him. Desperate to be out and known, to be honored. It was getting hard to hide it from her, it drove him to reach for her when he could. It was why he’d touched her for the first time, smoothing her shiny black hair and making his own heart beat fast.

He had every intention of telling her today when she visited but now she was acting strange. She felt colder than she had been when they first met and he realized the awful twisting feeling in his chest might be fear, a feeling he hadn’t felt in a very long time.

“We aren’t far now,” he said, keeping his eyes forward.

“It’s not as far as I expect then,” her voice was even and calm, but there was no glint of happiness in it. No little laugh or melodic tone.

“I think we might throw a little feast since you’re our first visitor,” he said ‘they thought’ but it was already planned. A surprisingly clever suggestion from Minami who had been tempted to help by the concept of Umeka’s more comfortable living arrangements. 

“You don’t need to do that,” she said, her voice quivering with discomfort that made him turn around and look at her. She’d stopped, frowning at him as her hands clutched her bow at her chest.

“It’s nothing huge,” he said, a small laugh in his voice, “there’s not gigantic ‘Welcome Umeka’ banner, just a simple meal all together so you can meet everyone. We had to thank you after all, for the food we’ve gotten from knowing you.”

Her frown lessened slightly, she nodded and continued to walk, but her hands stayed clenched on her bow. He cringed, he didn’t want to make her uncomfortable. He wanted her to feel welcome, to be happy with them. No matter what, she had to join them. He had to do everything he could to make it her choice rather than his. 

⛮⛮⛮

Tsukasa’s group had made their home in the side of a mountain. It reminded her of a honeycomb, many little pods with no connection between them but to go back outside. It didn’t look very warm, or harmonious, or comfortable. The majority of the people milling around were burly adult men, the kind of scary-looking men that always made her hide behind her mother’s leg in the past. She found herself hovering closer to Tsukasa, he was frightening but at least he was familiar. Saiyan moved to the other side of her protectively, so close his fur brushed against her pants leg.

“Is this the girl you were telling us about?” A blonde woman in a dress and horn-like headband asked.

Tsukasa smiled, “Yes this is Yamaguchi Umeka. Umeka, this is Hokutouzai Minami.”

Umeka nodded in greeting, feeling herself shrink in. The woman blinked, tilting her head and furrowing her eyebrow in concern at her which only made her more nervous. Tsukasa’s large hand suddenly pressed on her back, making her straighten and look up at him, “Take your time,” he said, smiling down at her gently. 

When Umeka looked back at Minami she looked strangely hurt, still looking at Tsukasa, but when she caught Umeka looking at her she smiled, “Tsukasa says you’ve got an amazing house and,” she glanced at Saiyan, “he mentioned the puppies too. That’s insane. I would have loved to interview you in the past.”

“Interview me?” Umeka parroted. 

“Oh…” She flushed, “I assumed you remembered me from the past. I was a reporter. I was a good one, did you not watch the news much? Ahhh teenagers, living free, not a care in the world. Tsukasa only knew who I was since I interviewed him before.”

Umeka blinked up at him, “Why?”

He seemed genuinely surprised, and then embarrassed, “I-”

“What! You don’t know who Tsukasa was? The strongest primate high schooler? He was an amazing mixed martial artist, he won tournament after tournament, he had fans all over, beat famous adults. It was a seriously huge deal.” Minami exclaimed, her flattering compliments making Tsukasa glace away uncomfortably.

“I...uhm…” she felt bad, she didn’t really want to share more about her truth to Tsukasa, not when she was so uncertain about even being involved with him but under his clear discomfort with Minami’s compliments, he looked like it hurt his feelings that she didn’t know and her knee jerk response was to explain, “I was a kid. My mom...she didn’t like me watching fighting and stuff and I didn’t watch the news.”

Minami and Tsukasa both stared at her. They looked shocked and confused and Umeka swallowed dryly. Glancing between them, “Uhm...is that okay?”

“Are you being serious right now?” Minami asked, squinting at her and leaning in.

“I’m...not a good liar,” Umeka admitted.

Tsukasa chuckled softly, “I knew you were amazing but that is hard to believe.”

“Tell me about it! A little kid living out here alone? That is exactly the sort of rags to riches story that-”

“Minami, would you mind getting everyone together, I think it’s about time to eat.”

The blonde blinked, she seemed a little affronted at being cut off and sent away but she nodded, not saying anything else as she headed away. Tsukasa passed his load of supplies to someone passing by, pointing to the fire. 

He turned back to her, “Can I show you where I stay?”

Umeka nodded, “Sure.”

He turned, walking toward the mountain face, talking as he went without looking into her eyes, “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me you were so young when you woke up. I had figured you’d probably been awake a while longer than me but even then I was thinking you were a teenager when you woke up.”

“Oh no. I mean. I am. I’m a teenager now,” Umeka floundered, apparently she blabbered when she was nervous, something she’d never had the chance to learn before, “I was...eight.”

Tsukasa turned back to her, eyes briefly wide, “You’re serious.”

“Mhm,” she nodded. The corner of her mouth tugging into an awkward smile.

His eyes returned to normal, softening, “You just keep getting more impressive.”

Umeka squeezed her bow, she was still holding it. She wasn’t sure what to say so she didn’t say anything. Instead looking down at Saiyan who, sensing her, looked up patiently. She smiled, petting his head. 

⛮⛮⛮

Tsukasa watched her for a moment. She was calmly petting the dog and smiling gently. Then he turned back, continuing to walk toward the entrance to his home. He had to keep moving or he might say something and it didn’t feel like the right time.

He let the silence hang, using the time to ponder over her age. It explained a lot about her nervousness. She wasn’t used to being treated as an adult or talking to other adults. She’d matured because she had to in order to manage herself and survive alone in the wilderness, but socially this was more difficult than Tsukasa had originally imagined. In some ways, it set his mind at ease. She wasn’t mad at him, she was just nervous and hadn’t wanted to explain yet. Armed with that knowledge he’d be better able to ensure she liked her visit. He’d just have to be cautious about who could interact with her. He’d be able to keep her safe and help her slowly adjust and, surely, once she’d spent some time talking to others her nervous quiet would melt away and everything would be fine.

Approaching the entrance, he turned back to her, “It isn’t much. Not yet at least. But come on in.”

Umeka walked in, her eyes squinting as she adjusted to the darkness of the cave as opposed to the brightness of outside. Her eyes surfed over his bedding in the back and the small charred sticks he used as a fire. She focused for a long time on the line of weapons he had in the back. Handmade swords and clubs and axes. Then her eyes fell on his chair.

“You...have a throne?” she asked, her voice bitingly doubtful.

“Well...I wouldn’t call it that,” Tsukasa offered.

“Why not?”

He blinked. Looking at her. It was strange how afraid she could seem one moment and how uncomfortably blunt she could be the next. Her eyes seemed unusually stern, set on him harshly. Disappointed, he realized, “Don’t think too much of it, Umeka. It’s just a chair I made for myself to sit in while we plan.”

“Plan what?”

He huffed a short uncomfortable laugh and stepped away from her, “What we have to do for winter. What we have to do about Senku. And how we can do what we must safely.”

Umeka held his gaze, then her eyes moved past him to his chair. She stared at it for a long time as something in her expression changed like she’d made her mind up about something private. She set her shoulders back and turned her face back to Tsukasa, “I want you to tell me what you want to do. If Senku is dangerous...what’s better about the world you want to make?”

He was surprised she asked flat out, but he was glad she was interested, he stepped toward her, hovering close but not so much that he loomed over her in the dim light from the cave entrance, “I’m going to make a world without the power dynamics we grew up with. I’m sure you’d seen it, even if you were little. People didn’t take you seriously because you were a kid. Old people with money and power called all of the shots and, while you hadn’t probably experienced it yet, the decisions they made ensured it would be harder for you to have any wealth or influence. Umeka, in the world we come from, we were all being backed into corners to make more money for people who already had enough. We have a chance to avoid that manipulation and destruction now. Young people don’t expect power or influence over anyone else, that’s who we need to build a new world. People exactly like you, strong, giving people. The kind of person that gives out pumpkins because they know others are hungry.”

Umeka was quiet for a long time, her eyes moving around slowly as she thought, not focusing particularly hard on anything she looked at. When she finally looked up at him his heart sank, her eyebrows were furrowed in concern her mouth pulled into a doubtful frown, “I got bullied by kids who thought they were better than me, you know? In the past. They weren’t nice just because they were young. And...my grandparents were really great and they were old. You can’t just-"

“But we can teach children to be better. They’re just products of their environment. They won’t come to this world trying to build the old one because they don’t understand it well enough to do that. This is an opportunity for real change.”

Umeka’s eyes held his own for a while and then slowly drifted to the chair, still and silent, her hands grasping her bow.

⛮⛮⛮

That was it then. He said it himself. Senku hadn’t misrepresented Tsukasa at all when he told her the plan. While it was nice to know he really wasn’t a liar, she wasn’t sure how she was going to handle Tsukasa. It wasn’t like she could keep him from coming around if he wanted to, even with the dogs he had a whole army there was no way she could fend them off. Maybe he’d just back off if she asked but it was also entirely possible that he’d consider her an enemy and what would happen then?

“Here, Umeka,” Tsukasa said, holding out the leg of some bird. 

“Thanks,” she nodded, taking it and biting off a small bit. 

Everyone was gathered around different fires eating. It was loud with so many different conversations happening but everyone did seem to be having a good time. Tsukasa had invited Minami and two others, a white-haired man with narrow eyes named Hyoga and a girl all in pink named Homura. They weren’t talking much which was making it more awkward. 

“The men are very pleased with the honey, Umeka,” Hyoga commented suddenly, turning candied pumpkin seeds that she’d shown them how to make earlier over in his hand. “Very impressive that you were able to collect it safely.”

She didn’t turn to look at him but Tsukasa’s eyes were on her, waiting, “You just have to be patient. Bees really aren’t very hard to deal with. Or I’ve never thought they were.”

“Umeka’s been pretty secretive about here hives,” Tsukasa suddenly added, looking over the fire to Hyoga, “but I hope she’ll consider teaching us once the winter is over.”

Homura popped some seeds into her mouth, a strangely emotionless expression as she stared at Umeka, “They’re good.”

Umeka nodded, continuing to eat, she didn’t know what to say. He wasn’t wrong, she was being secretive but she didn’t think she owed him an explanation. He didn’t deserve anything more than she wanted to give. The more she thought about it the more annoyed she got but she tried to keep from expressing it.

Minami seemed to feel the tension, “You know they say honey is an anti-bacterial, so we probably shouldn’t eat all of it.”

“Yes, that will be useful,” Hyoga said, casting his eyes down to the seeds in his hand with a strange amused expression when Tsukasa looked at him harshly. Umeka wanted to jump and run and Saiyan’s bristled fur every time Hyoga spoke wasn’t helping. 

“Do you want to stay in my place tonight, Umeka? Then we can start getting yours ready tomorrow,” Minami’s smile was gentle. Of everyone there, she seemed to really be genuinely kind. It was the only thing keeping Umeka from making a run for it even though she knew with Tsukasa there it would be unsuccessful. 

“Oh, no thanks, I’m going to go home after this,” Umeka said. Then a silence set in. The others at the fire sat back and looked at each other, except for Tsukasa who was looking at her.

“Why don’t you stay? It’s late and it’s getting cold. We can go get your things tomorrow,” yet again he was smiling. Beautiful and charming, almost sympathetic. Her ears starting ringing.

“Wait...get my things?”

“I think it’s time you join us here. Winters coming so it’s the perfect time for a move since there’s no garden to tend. You can bring all your tools and things and you’ll have your own room so it won’t be much different than now,” his smile softened, “I’ll just have to walk less to see you.”

She swallowed hard. Staring at the food in her hands. He’d made up his mind what was going to happen. Maybe he’d been thinking of her as part of his group since he’d met her. Now he wasn’t going to give her any choice. She thought of the traps she’d build out of stone in the river. Just like the fish, she’d thought everything would be fine if she just kept going and now she had no idea how to get out helplessly stuck but safe until the fisherman came at least. 

The light of the fire was dancing on his eyes making them shine at her, “Umeka?”

“I want to go home,” she said, her voice catching in her throat.

Minami gasped, softly, shifting like she’d try and hug Umeka. Her movement startled Umeka who’s eyes snapped on her so harshly she stopped in her tracks, “S-sorry,” she offered.

“Umeka this is for the best, really,” Tsukasa sighed, “I promise you’ll be happy with us it’ll just take some time to adjust.”

She jumped to her feet. Everyone but Minami twitched, ready to chase her, “I’m going home, Tsukasa. We already agreed.”

He stood slowly, the fire licking up between them, “I know what we said, but I think things have changed. I’m worried about you out there alone.”

Saiyan stood now, growling lowly, his teeth bared. Tsukasa looked at him and then, taking a deep breath, he looked back at Umeka, “Come talk to me.” He nodded away from the fire. She picked up her bow and followed him.

They stood in silence for a moment, far enough from the fires that only the moonlight lit his face. Umeka took a ragged breath, she felt close to tears. Terrified and desperately wishing she’d seen this coming. That she’d just gone with Senku when she sent him away. Or better yet, that she’d moved camp as soon as she met Tsukasa. It had been so nice to see another person, to talk, and she’d never realized before then how bitingly lonely she was. Now, she thought, she would prefer to be lonely again. It would be better than being terrified, captured. 

“I told you...I was going home. I am going home,” she spoke firmly, pointing her finger at the ground to emphasize but she didn’t look him in the eye.

“Umeka,” Tsukasa’s voice was irritating, admonishing her like a parent, like the adults he seemed to harbor so much anger at but she knew better than to say that.

“So you lied to me. Told me I could go home and never planned to let me.”

“What? No. Umeka, please,” he reached a hand out, gently taking hold of her shoulder, “please, look at me.”

She sniffed, trying to hold back the tears forming in her eyes, but looked up glaring at him.

He flinched. It made it worse that he genuinely seemed concerned, honestly upset that she didn’t want to stay. It would be easier if he was like a villain from one of her early morning cartoons as a kid. Motivated by evil, no kindness in his actions. Just selfish and ugly and cruel. But he wasn’t. He was terrifying, yes, because he was big and powerful but his face was beautiful and his expression was kind. The hand that now squeezed her shoulder gently was carefully placed and warm. She didn’t know why exactly he was so determined to bring her to his camp, maybe he truly just wanted her help so they could survive winter easier. But something about the pained look on his face made her doubt that was all that was going on. Despite her fear and confusion, she knew he didn’t want to hurt her. She also knew that not wanting to and being unwilling to were dangerously different things.

“Tell me what I can do? I want you to be happy here but I also want you to be safe. You don’t understand what’s about to happen between Senku’s people and mine. I can’t let you get caught in the crossfire, do you understand?” his voice was hushed like he didn’t want anyone to hear the gentle things he was saying.

“You can keep your promise,” she said, speaking over his sigh, “let me go home.”

“Umeka-”

“I don’t want,” she frowned, “no, I don’t like that you tried to trick me. That isn’t going to make me trust you. It doesn’t feel like it’s to help me if you have to trick me to do it. So let me go home.”

He looked hurt, really and genuinely hurt even though the tension in his mouth, the muscles tense on the sides of his neck made him look angry. He took a shaky breath, frowning at her. He turned facing back towards her home, looking off through the trees even though it would be impossible to see it from where they stood, “I want you to move here. If you go home tonight, I want you to come back tomorrow. How do I know you’ll do that?”

She didn’t speak. He knew the answer, she knew that much.

He sighed heavily, “Right.”

Her chest heaved, a sob desperately trying to escape but she choked it back making a painful sound that drew Tsukasa’s eyes, “Umeka…” his hand raised, reaching to touch her cheek but she flinched, just slightly from his touch and he jumped back. Pulling his hand from her in shock. 

They stared at each other in tense silence. Saiyan looped low around the back of her legs waiting for one word to make him jump on Tsukasa. He turned suddenly, looking away from her, “Okay.”

She blinked. Struck still with shock.

He turned toward her again but didn’t look into her eyes, “Go. Go home,” his voice was deep and harsh but it trembled slightly. So little she wasn’t sure she had even heard it.

She thought she should say something. Ask if she could or thank him. But he didn’t have the right to control her so she shouldn’t have to thank him. Instead, she nodded to Saiyan and they quickly walked toward the forest. “Umeka,” Tsukasa called out just before she got to the tree line causing her to turn and look at him, “tomorrow,” he said. She didn’t speak, only stared for a while, until she got too nervous and hurried into the woods.

As soon as she felt like she was well enough out of sight she ran. Saiyan close by her. She dug her nails into the dirt of the embankment she’d earlier jumped down, desperately digging in and pulling herself up. She ran as fast as she could, pushing through branches and desperately catching herself when she stumbled. 

It wasn’t long until she hit the clearing that she called her home, the dogs leaping up when she came busting through the trees. Saiyan cut them off from rushing to her and they all seven stood at the ready watching as she desperately packed. She folded over her old clothes tying them to make sacks and slinging them over the backs of dogs. She grabbed as much food as she could, skins and furs, all of her arrows. She packed knives and utensils and pots. The dogs all stood still letting her tie things on as though they were pack animals. She’d have to leave all the water, her garden, the house itself, the chair she made, all her traps in the woods around them. She climbed down and whistled for the dogs to line up.

“Sazae, guide,” she spoke, and Sazae moved around to the front of the line, walking calmly into the woods. Umeka knew it would be better for her to keep her eyes up, wary of predators or Tsukasa pursuing her. But instead, her head was low and she cried weakly. Suit who walked beside her licked her hand apologetically, whining in concern. Umeka sniveled, wiping her dripping nose on the back of her hand. Her eyes hurt, her throat hurt. But she kept herself together enough that they could keep walking. 

Sazae gave a quick bark, drawing the dogs up. The forest once again broke into a clearing. In it were a series of buildings. Weird machinery Umeka didn’t understand. From the top of a stilted tower, the calm night wind whipped a heavy-sounding flag. She glanced around, she didn’t see anyone so she nodded to the dogs and they stepped out of the woods. Alone in the strange camp, Umeka stood for a moment, wiping her face and breathing deeply to stop her crying.

Once she calmed down she cleared her throat and called out quietly, “Senku?”

She stood silently. Nothing.

“S-Senku!” she called louder. Then she heard men speaking in the distance, and the sound of footsteps rushing towards her in the dark.

Chapter Text

Kohaku hadn’t been able to sit by since Hyoga had attacked. Ever since they narrowly won that conflict with a combination of luck and good planning she’d been training furiously with Kinro and Ginro. She’d also taken up guard duty. Kinro tried to dissuade her, he claimed her skills would be better used somewhere else. But with the village badly damaged by the fire, Homura started and so many people left exposed he wasn’t able to argue with her for long. Not that there was really ever any point in arguing with her. No matter what she was going to do what was best for her people, what was right. And for now, as Senku, Chrome, and Kaseki set about creating something she couldn’t even begin to understand, being a guard and a warrior felt like all she could do.

She was glad she had. She could see, off in the distance, movement through the trees. It was swift and direct. Whatever was coming their way wasn’t wandering. It was aiming at them, coming at the village. She drew her knife, “Kinro.”

The lean man was just returning from a walk around the perimeter, his spear held between his hands at the ready. He looked at her, and seeing her serious expression, nodded and turned in the direction she was facing, he squinted into the trees but there was no way he’d be able to track the movement Kohaku was following, even if he didn’t have the fuzzy-eye sickness, “How many?”

“Eight, I think,” Kohaku breathed, eyes scanning over the different tracks of movement, “but seven of them are much lower down than the other...it’s...not human whatever it is.”

Ginro came up from the other side, his spear lazily resting over his shoulders, his arms hung over it at the wrists, “What are you two doing? Lazing off on the job?’

Kohaku wheeled on him bringing her first down hard on his head, “Idiot.”

“Learn to read the mood, Ginro,” Kinro sighed, giving an all too familiar look of disappointment to his younger brother.

“What!” Ginro whined, much quieter this time as he rubbed the sore lump on his head, “Why’d you hit me?”

“Something,” Kohaku said, jabbing her knife toward the woods, “is coming, get ready.”

“S-Something? D-D-Don’t you mean someone?” 

“No. Something. It’s not human whatever it is,” she turned to Kinro, “I’m going around behind it if I can get there, get ready.”

Kinro gave her a firm nod, his head lowering at the woods as he readied his spear. She jumped up into a tree, hopping through the branches trying to stay wide to avoid being detected by whatever was going at them. The last thing they needed now was some beast stalking the innocent villagers when they already had Tsukasa and Hyoga to deal with. As she jumped back down to the forest floor and made her way around she decided; whatever it was she wasn’t going to give it a chance to hut her people. 

⛮⛮⛮

Senku had busied himself as soon as he returned or rather, as soon as he explained to a furious Kohaku where he’d been and gotten Suika to release Sazae so she could return to Umeka’s home. It was a rough estimate but judging by the description Gen had given him about Tsukasa’s hideout and the locations he now knew; Ishigami Village and Umeka’s house, the three places formed an obtuse triangle with Umeka’s house as the wide center point. It took him the entire morning to get back to the shack and his legs were still trembling from the effort. 

He wanted to stay up, finish drafting out the plans for the cell phone. He wasn’t a particularly good artist, but anything he could give Kaseki might help him apply his insane artisanal skills. Despite his determination, he was falling asleep. His head rocking heavily toward the skin he was drawing on. He’d just dozed off when Ginro’s high pitched scream shocked him awake so hard his head snapped back.

“Ah!” he hissed the muscles of his neck seizing painfully. Still, he scrambled to his feet and stood at the top of the ladder looking out at where Ginro was. 

“Huh!” Chrome shouted, his voice thick with sleep, scrambling to his feet behind Senku, “What was that?!”

“Ginro screaming bloody murder.”

Chrome blinked, his eyes suddenly shooting wide, “Someone was murdered?!”

“What? No. It’s…,” Senku sighed, rolling his eyes, “It’s an expression. Come on.”

He turned, climbing down the ladder and trying to look off into the distance. It was hard to see in the dim light of the waxing moon above him but he stopped hurrying toward them when he made out the shapes. Seven dogs and one incredibly long-haired girl. He chuckled to himself, stopping by his equipment. 

“Uh, hey, Senku, don’t know if you forgot but Ginro just screamed so maybe we, I don’t know, hurry over?!” Chrome fussed behind him, hands flailing in Ginro’s direction.

“Eh, he’ll be fine what’s all the training for otherwise?” Senku smirked, “Besides, if what I think is happening is happening, and I’m like...ten billion percent sure it is, we’re gonna need some light.” He gathered a lightbulb and a battery, slipped a clay disk in the rope cage from a broken pot, and put them together. An incredibly crude lantern. Turning on the light, he nodded toward the noise, “Now we can go.”

⛮⛮⛮

Ginro’s whole body was shaking. Kohaku said that there was something not human coming out of the woods. He figured that meant it was a boar or a big deer or something. Not the scary forest spirit in front of him now. 

He and Kinro had stood at the ready as Kohaku told them too, waiting for her to flush the creature out. Or, as he hoped she would just handle it herself so he didn’t have to get involved. It felt like she’d been gone a long time. 

Then Kinro heard a rustling noise, just out of their field of vision, whatever was in the forest stepped out and spoke but neither of them could make it out. Then it went silent. It didn’t sound like it was moving. Then it shouted, clear as day, “S-Senku!”

Kinro had immediately launched into action, “Come on!”

They had run and as soon as Ginro made out the shape of the spirit and their seven evil-looking lumpy, teeth bearing familiars he’d screamed, high and loud.

Now they were at a standoff. The vengeful forest spirit’s hands raised, definitely ready to do some awful magic, like turn him into a toad or something. All of the scary beasts circling her legs and growling.  They held their spears, though Ginro’s arms were shaking terribly, and the creature for whatever reason didn’t do anything. One of the familiars suddenly snapped, its teeth flashing toward Ginro making him cry out and jump back. 

The spirit jumped toward the beast, casting a spell, “Sueno-” but before it could finish, Kohaku landed behind it grabbing the monster from behind, and holding her knife to the creature’s throat. 

“Call it off!” Kohaku demanded. 

The creature grasped at its throat, clawing open its skin and pulling out a thin straight bone that it put in its mouth. Nothing happened, there was no sound or flash of light or anything but all the familiars stopped and laid down. Their eyes still flashing looking between them. 

  Kohaku, brave to a stupid degree, squeezed the creature making it fight weakly, “Who sent you?”

⛮⛮⛮

“No one,” Senku called out, walking up on an absolute disaster scene. Maybe Chrome had been right and they should have rushed a little more, not that he’d admit that. “At least I don’t think. Anyone send you Umeka?”

Umeka, eyes wide with fear in Kohaku’s grasp shook her head, “N-No,” she twisted a little trying to look at Kohaku, “Could you put the knife down?”

“Ha! Yeah right!” Kohaku chided sharply.

Senku caught her eye and nodded, “Yeah probably just. Put that down.”

“What! She came out of the dark with beasts in tow and you want me to just let her go?” Kohaku shouted over Umeka’s shoulder making Umeka flinch at the sound. 

Senku scanned his eyes over the stressed dogs scattered around them. He spotted Sazae and lowed his light near her, “Look familiar?”

Kohaku blinked, unintentionally loosening her grip on Umeka. Umeka swallowed with relief, her neck finally free of the press of the knife. 

“The dog from earlier…” Kohaku’s eyes shifted back to Umeka, “You’re the one that helped him.”

Umeka nodded quickly, her eyes moving nervously over the weapons still pointed at her. Senku sighed, walking up between the brothers and putting his hands on the spears pushing them so they pointed at the ground, “Sorry about the welcome wagon, I’m not a very good party planner.”

Umeka smiled at him weakly, she held her arms across her chest, and in the low glow of the lightbulb, he could see tear stains on her face. Before he could say anything else Ginro spoke, “You didn’t tell us that you met a forest spirit! You just said it was some girl.”

Senku rolled his eyes, “Because it is a girl. There are no such things as forest spirits. Though I guess Princess Mononoke...does kind of qualify.”

He grinned at her briefly and laughed when she rolled her eyes and frowned at him.

“The-Then explain her lumpy evil familiars!” Ginro demanded, his voice hitting the notes of a bratty child. 

Senku deadpanned, he wanted to just ignore him and figure out why Umeka had shown up in the middle of the night but he knew Ginro well enough to know that he wasn’t going to let it go until he got his asinine questions answered. Senku abruptly lowered the light above Sueno, who laid just in front of Ginro, his eyes not moving from his face, “There are dogs..or wolves...both probably? With packs tied on.”

“...” Ginro blinked, deflated at the simple answer, “Well...well what about the spell?!”

“Well,” Chrome interrupted, “I think we’ve all learned spells aren’t real.”

Senku blinked, thinking. He wasn’t sure, obviously, it wasn’t a spell but he didn’t know what Ginro thought he heard or saw. He looked to Umeka who began to open her mouth but Kohaku spoke over her shoulder again, “She said, ‘Su-eh-no,’ right when that one jumped at Ginro.”

“Oh,” Senku nodded, smirking slightly, “That’s just the dog’s name. He’s a jerk. She was probably trying to stop him from getting you.” 

Umeka nodded vigorously. 

“Well fine!” Ginro pouted worse now, folding his arms with his spear still in hand, “but I bet you can’t explain how she pulled a bone out of her chest, and then all of the dog-wolf things just stopped and laid down. That has got to be magic.”

Senku narrowed his eyes at Ginro. He lifted the lantern to Umeka and, smirked, stepping toward her. He reached out with his free hand and hooked a finger under the chord that hung around Umeka’s neck. On it hung a long thin tube, a small notch in the top toward one end, “This,” he lifted the chord and gave it a gentle shake, “is a dog whistle. It makes a note too high for human ears to hear but absolutely perfect for training dogs. And,” he looked back at Umeka, “very impressive to make by hand in this Stone World.”

Umeka looked up at him, shifting a little on her feet as Kohaku let her go, “I had a lot of time to work on it.”

He chuckled and turned back to Ginro, “Satisfied? Umeka isn’t some forest spirit, she’s just a girl that’s trained some big dogs and lived out here on her own.”

“You trained all these dogs?’ Chrome said, suddenly moving toward Umeka and leaning in to look at the whistle, “That’s so bad!”

She blinked, smiling at him awkwardly, “Thank you?”

Chrome, with a stunning lack of respect for personal space, picked up the whistle and pulled it toward him making Umeka lean her shoulders lean in at him, the chord pressing into the back of her neck. For whatever reason she didn’t say anything, she just glanced around uncomfortably as Chrome spoke, “Wait...so how does it work? Like how do you know what dogs can hear-”

Kohaku reached out and smacked him, “Don’t just pull on her things!”

“What!” Chrome yelled, rubbing his head, “You were holding a knife at her!”

“I thought she was going to murder us I wasn’t asking her about a science whistle!”

“Well. Technically any whistle is a science whistle but that’s semantics,” Senku mumbled, picking at his ear, “How about we start a fire and let Umeka explain why she came for a visit so soon. I kind of at least expected a whole day, to pass before I saw you again, ya know?”

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka held her hands out toward the fire, trying to warm up after the bone-chilling walk through the woods. She’d pulled the packs off the dogs and piled them up at her feet letting them all curl up in a heap just behind her. The long walk with all the bags tied to them must have worn them all about because they were sleeping incredibly soundly now. 

Senku was explaining how the dog whistle worked to Chrome. Well. And to her. She’d just messed around and carved things until she couldn’t hear it and the dogs clearly could. Beyond knowing how to make a whistle she really didn’t understand anything about it so while she was trying to pretend like she wasn’t, she was listening intently. 

  “-so knowing that any noise you hear is just air being moved we’re able to measure it by measuring the vibrations themselves. When it comes to sound there are two,” Senku explained holding up two fingers, “major tools. Hertz and kilohertz measure the frequency and decibels measure the air pressure, or in lay man’s terms, the loudness. Human ears are only good at detecting and making sense of a certain range of frequencies, typically somewhere like twenty hertz to twenty kilohertz, of course, when you get older your ears lose a little sensitivity to some noises and the range drops to more like fifteen to seventeen,” He nodded his head toward the blond girl that had grabbed her, “course, there’s always an exception to the rule even with science. There’s probably some ear version of Kohaku out there with hearing above the normal range. But with most dog whistles coming in the twenty-three to fifty-four kilohertz range they’d have to be a real freak to hear a dog whistle.”

“That is so bad!” the one with a rope tied around his forehead shouted, gripping his hands into fists in front of his chest. 

Senku grinned, nodding and then shifting his eyes to her, “It is pretty cool, especially that you made one just by trial and error.”

She blinked. That was the phrase Tsukasa had said before. She grimaced, must have been taught in high school or something. 

Senku tilted his head slightly, “Uh...everything okay?”

“Oh!" she flushed, “Yeah sorry, I was just. Thinking.”

“Sure…” he smiled a little, “so...why did you come so soon?”

Umeka took a deep breath. She’d managed to stop crying a while before she wandered through the trees but she was worried that now, telling the story over, she might cry again and she doubted that would look good. If nothing else it would be embarrassing. She looked around at them all. Senku had mentioned a village, he’d mentioned people by name, but somehow she still hadn’t expected as many people as she now found herself surrounded by, she breathed out, “I decided to run. I...Tsukasa-”

“Tsukasa!” Chrome and Kohaku shouted at the same time. Kohaku instantly getting defensive, ready for a fight Umeka didn’t want to give her. 

“We’re never going to get answers, ya know?” A smooth sounding voice called just beyond the glow of the fire, “If you keep cutting the poor thing off,” the man spoke walking into the firelight. His hair was just in a weird pattern, a section blunted into a rectangle that hung by his chin, half black and half white. He smiled, but his eyes were sharp like a hawk, “My name is Gen.”

Umeka blinked. He looked really expectant. When she didn’t give him anything he gave her a pouty frown, his voice comically whiny, “How uelcray! Tsukasa never told you about me?”

“I think I’d remember that,” she said, dropping her head in embarrassment when Senku suddenly laughed at her small joke. 

Gen didn’t seem to mind, he smiled and sat beside her, “Go on. Tell us more about why you came.”

Umeka looked at him for a moment and nodded, “I promised Tsukasa I’d finally go to his group’s hideout when Senku was in my house. It was raining and Tsukasa wanted to stay and I wouldn’t let him and then I thought if I told him no to going to his group he’d get really mad and then maybe he’d hurt me or he’d go up anyway and find Senku and kill him cause Senku acted like he’d get killed if Tsukasa found him but when I saw Senku off in the woods Tsukasa was at my house and then he took me to his group and they were all scary and he had a throne which he somehow didn’t find weird even though it is and then he tried to bully me into staying and I yelled at him and then he looked sad and said I could go home but I had to come back tomorrow and I don’t want to do that so instead I packed everything I could and then I came here cause Sazae knew the way from bringing Senku back earlier,” she took a deep breath, blinking in embarrassment at the blank stares around her, “…..and that’s...why….I’m here…”

Gen recovered first, “And why did you come here and not just run off somewhere on your own?”

“I had to leave my house and all my traps in the woods, rebuilding all that now would be really hard. And...Senku…” she flushed again. 

“Well, I did invite her. Might as well try us instead of jumping right to a hard mode reset, right?” Senku said, seeming to jump in on her behalf.

“Okay well, how do we know she’s not working for Tsukasa?” Kohaku asked, raising an eyebrow, “I’m sorry but. It all seems a little too convenient.”

“Kohaku has a point,” the tall dark-haired boy with glasses spoke for the first time that Umeka heard.

Senku grinned, “Well. Umeka could have handed me over to Tsukasa when I bumped into her. Coulda killed me herself. She could have had the dogs rip me apart when I got to her house. She could have poisoned me since I ate food that I didn’t watch her prepared. And she could have killed me in my sleep cause I stayed the night at her house. It’s not a perfect alibi but...that is a lot of opportunities to ignore.” He cast his eyes over to Gen, “Besides, Tsukasa doesn’t really strike as the type to try the same plan twice,” he pointed his thumb to Gen, “especially not when the last time lost him a valuable resource.”

Gen gave a wicked grin, acting bashful suddenly, “You flatterer.”

Senku rolled his eyes but still smiled, “Yeah, yeah.”

Ginro suddenly spoke up, his voice sounding like a kid that got thrown in a time out, she wondered if he was a little upset he got told off about her not being a forest spirit, “Okay but...maybe Tsukasa knows all that. Maybe that’s his plan.”

Chrome nodded his head like he was trying to decide between things, “Surprisingly, he’s got a point.”

“Than-Hey!”

“Well,” Gen cut in quickly, “Let’s think as Tsukasa then, shall we?” The air around him seemed to change. Suddenly he was giving off the same intimidating aura Tsukasa did, his mannerisms even changed to the familiar gestures of Tsukasa, when he spoke his voice was deep and warm just like the man she’d run from and it spooked her so badly she scooted toward Senku who glanced at her but didn’t seem to mind, “Umeka is important to me, she has resources I need for my people and skills very few, if any of us, have. I recently found out my enemy Senku is alive and well, so I decided I should finally get Umeka to join me so she wouldn’t join Senku’s side,” then Gen rolled his neck, and every trace of Tsukasa melted from him, “Seem about, right?”

“I guess…” she frowned.

“Yeah okay, so she’s important if he has her stuff why not send her though?” Ginro protested.

Gen sighed, “Okay. Let me put it this way then. Tsukasa met Umeka before Hyoga attacked the village, I know this because I was there when he came back and shared the news. Some of the...less intellectually inclined suggested we just send a group to go take her stuff if she didn’t want to join. It is, to date, the only time I saw Tsukasa actually yell and threaten any of his men. From then on, if Tsukasa was going to visit Umeka it was well understood no one in the group was welcome to go with him. In fact, as far as I know, he was the only one that knew where she lived. Understand?”

Everyone else seemed to nod or shift around. Out of the corner of her eye, Umeka saw Senku tense, that funny stressed smile spreading on his face again. Everyone seemed to understand something new except herself and Ginro, “So what! I don’t get it! And I still think she could be a spy!”

“Seriously, Ginro,” the other guard grumbled, rubbing his eyes under his glasses.

Gen was looking at Umeka, he gave her a small strangely comforting smile, and then rolled his eyes to Ginro, “Basically, I’m saying if he wouldn’t even let his own men know where she lived or go to see her there’s no way he’d ask her to go on a spy mission. Especially not,” he tapped her foot against a bag in front of Umeka, “With a bunch of supplies.”

That seemed to be the last piece. Now she was even happier she brought all that stuff. Everyone seemed to relax, Gen tucked his hands in his sleeves, sharing a small look with Senku that Umeka just noticed before Gen quickly looked away.

“Good point so, what’s in the bag anyway!” Chrome yelled, suddenly hopping forward to them. 

Senku lifted his foot, jamming it against Chrome’s face and pushing back, “Back off. We can loot Umeka’s supplies tomorrow. It’s late. We should go to sleep and figure the rest out tomorrow.” He put his hands behind his head, stretching for a minute, then he dropped a hand to hold his belt and glanced at her, “Well come on, guess you can stay with us in the science shack for now.”

She blinked, a little shocked at how easy it was. Sure there were witchcraft accusations and a knife to her throat earlier but, somehow, she’d never really felt scared. Maybe she was just tired from earlier, all out of fear from her fight with Tsukasa. But maybe, she could just trust them and that thought made her smile. She followed Senku, Chrome, and Gen to their shack pulling out bedding she’d brought from home and completing a little square on the floor with the three of them. They fell asleep as easily as though she’d always been there and she listened for a while to their breathing and Chrome kicking around in his bed. It was hard for her to sleep with so much noise, she was used to complete silence, but it was comforting to not be alone and when she finally did doze off it was the best night’s sleep she’d had in years.

⛮⛮⛮

He’d known when he told her to go home she wouldn’t come back. At least, he thought, she didn’t lie because she never actually said she would return. Somehow that hurt less. That even if she wanted to avoid him she didn’t lie to his face. 

Even knowing she wasn’t going to come back to him he’d hoped, foolishly, that she’d be at her house. Just scared by his pressure to move. But she wasn’t. Standing at the base of it now, he could tell she’d run. Things were scattered on the ground, the remaining plants in her garden had been trampled by her and the dogs. She must have been truly afraid, he didn’t feel she’d step on her plants any other way, even if the frost would soon begin to set in and kill them.

He put his hand on the rope ladder, looking up. He started to put a foot on the rung but then he remembered her strong rejection and he stopped. He thought about calling up to her, but that made him feel even more foolish. He sighed in frustration, rubbing his forehead. He shouldn’t have waited. He should have gone after her right when she left. He could have explained himself, they could have compromised. But he’d thought it would be better to give her some space. Now it was going to be harder to find her and work this out.

His heart tingled uncomfortably, he frowned, his fingers subconsciously touching his chest. He didn’t understand how it could have gotten so bad that she’d risk being off on her own without shelter in the winter over living with his group. He looked around what she’d left, hoping to find a sign, anything that might point him in her direction so he could find her and calm her down. Make his apology and ensure she was safe. Even if it meant she lived in her home and he had to travel to visit her.

There wasn’t much to see. She’d dropped some bowls. She’d left the frame she built for cleaning game. She’d left her water barrel too because, of course, it was far too big for her to move. Then his eyes fell on the bucket beside it. Sitting there, still waiting to be washed, were two bowls and two spoons. He stared at them for a long time feeling his muscles tense, he clenched his teeth and turned in the direction Umeka had walked toward him from just the other morning. Maybe she hadn’t run away from him. Maybe, he thought, she’d run to someone else.

Chapter Text

When Umeka woke up she was the only person in the so-called science hut. She rolled over, blinking in confusion; stunned that she slept until midday by the look of the bright sun. She scrambled up to the door and stood at the top looking out. 

“Well hey, Princess Mononoke, glad you finally decided to join us,” Senku called, waving at her from the middle of the yard.

She rolled her eyes but turned to climb down the ladder anyway. There were far more people out and about now that it was daytime. An old man stood with Senku, and Gen. The warriors were nowhere to be found and neither was the headband wearing boy called Chrome. The dogs were all awake, running and barking with children from the village. She smiled, “How long have they been playing?”

“Oh just the entire morning,” Senku sighed, giving her a teasing grin, “thanks for that, they haven’t done a millimeter of work.”

“I’m just glad the dogs haven’t eaten them.”

Senku’s eyes went wide and his mouth dropped slightly; his eyebrow twitching. Umeka couldn’t hold it for long before she started giggling and Senku groaned and rolled his eyes, “Very funny.”

She smiled, proud of her joke and how Gen was still laughing his face tucked behind his sleeve, “I don’t think they’d be dangerous without being told, but I am surprised they want to play so much. They’ve never been around any humans but me.”

“Well, you probably gave them crazy high expectations for humans. You probably increased the quality of their lives by ten billion percent. With that being their only human contact of course they’re going to like any others.”

“It’s hard to believe,” the old man spoke, his voice shaking in a pleasant elderly way, “someone so young could get big beasts like those to listen to them. Around the village, even little creatures like Suika’s puppy are pretty rare!”

“Well,” Senku spoke, a small smile breaking out on his face the way it did when he was going to say something smart, “the development of agriculture and the domestication of animals both happened around ten thousand years ago. It might not seem like it but those are the building blocks of civilization and the foundation of science.”

Gen squinted, looking up above his head, “How is...that?”

“Something tells me he’s glad you asked,” the old man chimed.

Umeka smiled slightly, glancing back to where the dogs ran full force circling laughing kids and pushing their bodies in the dirt around them with their tales wagging like crazy.

“When people didn’t have to fight for resources and spend every day wondering how they were going to shelter themselves and eat they were able to start thinking about other things. Domesticated animals provided food, protection, resources, and companionship and domesticated plants formed gardens that allowed for food storage and a more sustainable source of nutrients,” Senku grinned at her, “that’s why Umeka was so quick to do it even though she was young.”

Umeka furrowed her eyebrows at him, “No it’s not.”

“H-huh?” Senku blinked, his head tilting in genuine confusion.

Though it had made her feel a little pouty in the face of him making a big claim, now she felt embarrassed, her cheeks puffing out, “I just...wanted to pet the dogs.”

Senku stared for a moment, then busted out laughing, hand patting his side. She turned red, puffing up at him, which only made him laugh harder, “Sorry, sorry it was just such a simple reason,” he said, wiping tears from his eyes and still trying to stifle a laugh, “of course, you were a kid so even if you were as crazy-smart as you must be you just wanted a pal.”

Even though she’d wanted to fuss at him for laughing she couldn’t help but smile a little since it seemed like he understood her. She rolled her eyes away from him, her face still burning with embarrassment. 

Gen chuckled and looped his arm over her shoulders, “Would you mind telling us about what you brought then? We’ve been able to hold off opening the bags until you woke up but I don’t think we can stand it any longer.”

“Yes! I want to see more treasures from the past!” The old man chanted, pumping his fists.

“You know you could at least tell her your name first, gramps!” Gen fussed, leaving his arm over Umeka’s shoulders as they walked.

“Oh! Right! My name is Kaseki!” He said proudly, his chest puffing out, “I’m a craftsman and a builder!”

She smiled a little, “You sound like my grandpa, he was a builder too. But just old stuff he wanted to make not for a job or anything.”

“Old stuff you say? How do you mean?” The way Gen talked, it felt maybe a little put on but he focused all of his attention. Made it clear he was listening and remembering the things she said. It made her want to keep talking to him.

“Oh well. My grandpa was a folklorist-”

“What does that mean?!” Kaseki interrupted eyes seeming to glitter with interest. 

“Shh! She’s trying to tell us.”

Umeka snickered patting Gen’s hand for jumping in again, “It means he studied traditional things, I guess. Old stories and traditional ways of making things and why they were done that way. He was always telling me myths and showing me classical instruments and old school crafts.”

“It’s,” Senku said, not looking up from a bag he was already rifling through, “a branch of anthropology. A lot of folklorists focus on myths, legends, and stories like she said. They work to preserve the lessons of culture as science moves forward and makes some things obsolete as tools for sharing knowledge.”

“You...lost me.”

“I’ve gotta be onesthay, you lost me this time too, Senku.”

“Oh!” Umeka raised her hand, inexplicably, making Gen and Senku chuckle, “I think I know.”

“Well go ahead then,” Senku smirked, continuing to pour out a bag of tools and sift through them.

“Stories used to be used to share information when people didn’t always know how to read or write or have paper and pens and stuff! So instead people would tell stories because they were easier to remember than just a list of facts! Lots of myths were made up to explain things like...big storms...or...uhm...uh...oh! Food! Why we eat certain things or why some stuff seems to grow better or worse in some places. Before people had science they kinda...made up a reason to help make sense of the world and to spread information and uh...how did grandpa…” she tapped her chin, “Oh! Make a ‘cultural identity.’ That’s what grandpa told me. At least.”

“Heh,” Senku tilted his head back to look up at her, “ten billion points, Umeka. That’s pretty much exactly it.”

She grinned, swelling up with pride that made Gen giggle softly beside her. 

“Sounds like the hundred tales!” Kaseki said.

“What’s what?”

“That’s because that’s what they are,” Senku sighed.

“What are they?”

“So the tales are myths! What’s a myth?”

“Oh, a myth more specifically-”

“What!” Umeka interrupted, flushing when Kaseki and Senku jumped to look at her and mumbling the rest of her question, “Are the hundred tales…?”

Senku sputtered another laugh, “Right. You haven’t been here the whole time. Gen?”

“Me?” Gen blinked, but then seeing Senku excitedly showing a tool to Kaseki and gesturing with it wildly, “oh okay we’re losing them. The hundred tales were stories passed down from Senku’s dad and the other astronauts who are the ancestors of this entire village. They made the stories trying to help their descendants live but also to get information to Senku because his dad had azycray faith in him, to put it simply.”

Umeka stared at him, wide-eyed. Then blinked. Looked up at the sky. Then back to Gen, “Astronauts…?”

“Yes.”

“...they just...came back?”

“Mhm.”

“....whoa.”

“I know right,” Gen laughed, “It is pretty insane. I guess more insane if you weren’t with us when we found out! That’s why the village is called Ishigami Village. He’s Ishigami Senku. Oh, and he’s the chief.”

“You are?” Umeka looked at Senku a little shocked but he was just fussing with her bag of tools.

“Yeah, that’s not such a big deal though,” he said, his voice dismissive of his position, “Are these what I think they are?” he smirked at her, almost mischievous. 

“...,” she grinned, plopped down in the dirt by him, “what do you think they are?”

“I think they’re gonna blow the old man’s mind,” he said, turning the simple-looking block of wood over in his hand.

“Oh. Probably,” Umeka grinned, barely able to withhold the giggle that was building as Kaseki leaned around like a little kid in an ice cream shop watching their scoops get placed on the cone.

“Come on then! Tell me!” He complained, trying to snatch the tool from Senku who twisted around to hold the block behind him keeping it from Kaseki.

“This...is a super crude all wooden kiwakanna, isn’t it?” Senku said, raising an eyebrow, the smile on his face looking strangely proud.

“Yeah, it doesn’t work very well because it’s-”

“All wood.”

“Right, but I wanted to try,” she nodded, “I didn’t ever keep much of the stuff that I tried that didn’t work. But...I guess I just really wanted those to work so I kept them.”

Senku grinned, “well it’s good you did, we can make real blades for these, and between you knowing how they work and Kaseki being a crazy fast study we’re going to have real Japanese wood joinery unlocked in no time.”

“Wood...joinery?” Kaseki echoed, drool forming in the corner of his mouth.

“...Hi excuse me but,” Gen said, squinting down his nose, “Why...bother?”

“Why bother!” Senku frowned at him, clutching the plane to his chest.

“I didn’t know you were such a traditionalist,” Gen teased making Senku roll his eyes.

“I don’t think that’s why,” Umeka smiled, holding up her fingers and interlocking her knuckled as examples as she spoke, “Traditional Japanese carpentry was all about getting the wood to stick together without nails, screws, fancy tools, glue, or anything else. Just the wood.”

“It’s a crazy precise science,” Senku said, lovingly looking over the tools, “created exactly for this climate. With Japan’s humidity and fluctuating temperatures, nails and screws would rust and fall apart and glue fails even faster. Wood joinery basically gets stronger over time, that’s why Japan had so many ancient temples in our day. And besides,” suddenly a dark glint came into his eye, he loomed over the tools, “it’ll cut out a whole line of production for fastening products meaning-”

“...that labor can go somewhere else,” Gen sighed.

⛮⛮⛮

For the rest of the afternoon, the young girl explained her tools and shared the various dried meats and fruits she’d brought while they talked. Senku had, maybe too abruptly for Kaseki’s tastes, dismissed some of her tools as things they meltdown and repurpose. Other times, like the carpentry planes he’d gotten so excited for, he’d hold them up as the new standard. The girl seemed to take it all in stride, unbothered when Senku tossed through her worn stone knives and simple awls. 

“Okay!” Kaseki shouted, “be a little nicer with the stuff, Senku.” He cradled an awl that had snapped on the ground.

Senku blinked, having enough shame to glance at Umeka who smiled at Kaseki.

“No it’s okay,” she said her thumb running a dull knife edge and then lightly tossing it over her shoulder, “some of this stuff is junk I shouldn’t have brought,” her eyes went unfocused, looking off into the distance, “I was just panicking.”

“Of course they were useful to you but we have better ones here, we just don’t need them, old man,” Senku shrugged, returning to the planes to gather them up, Umeka following after him to help his noodle-armed self hold them all. 

“No reason to keep them if you have something better! I would have tossed them if I had ever had metal anyway!” She grinned, rushing after Senku who was practically sprinting to the kiln. He immediately dropped, laying on his stomach as he happily drew. 

He reached behind him without looking, grabbing Umeka’s wrist and pulling her down beside him, “So if the metal goes...here,” he said, drawing furiously, “this is the normal shape, right?”

“Mmm,” she tilted her head, leaning in to look, “No...more like...I dunno like,” she lifted up her hands, angling one from the other in front of her, “like that? Does that make sense?”

Senku stared for a moment, “Oh. Sure! So it goes...and then…”

Kaseki blinked, turning to Gen who gave a good-natured shrug, “No clue. But they look excited. I don’t know a ton but I know enough to confidently say you’re going to love it.”

He nodded, walking over to the kids who were eagerly discussing the tools. Once he caught sighs of the drawing his heart raced, it was a very simple blade they needed to make, but that’s why it was so exciting. Something so simple in design could make all the complicated shapes needed in a house. He couldn’t wait to get his hands on it.

“What do you think, expert craftsman? You getting excited?” Senku chuckled, Umeka grinning over his shoulder.

“Beyond! Quit yapping and help me make this damn blade!”

Senku laughed but jumped up, explaining the mixtures of metal to Umeka who blinked in confusion, nodding without seeming to understand. It wasn’t long until they’d poured metal in a cast and sat around waiting for it to cool enough that Kaseki could grind it down.

“So this is how your house was put together?” Kaseki asked.

“Oh!” Umeka laughed shortly, “No. Mine was more like...wood and plaster and rope. It was all I could do. Ugly but it worked. She laughed, tugging at the front of her shirt, an animal skin she’d wrapped around and tied, “pretty much everything I did or owned was just cause it would work.”

“That one macrame chair you had hanging from your ceiling was a ‘need,’ huh?” Senku grinned. 

“Well,” she blushed, glancing away, “there was a while where I couldn’t lay down. I think I probably poisoned myself, every time I laid down I’d vomit. So...haha...I made the chair so I could sit up and sleep. Those fancy looking knots are just the only way I knew to make it.”

Senku frowned as she spoke, “Sounds like it was pretty bad.”

“Oh yeah,” she shrugged, trying to brush past the moment, “but what do you expect! I guess stuff that wasn’t poisonous before learned to be poisonous. At least some things. I’ve never eaten anything I didn’t recognize. I probably eat….mmm...I dunno. Less than fifty different things. Types of animals and plants and everything included.”

“Smart,” Senku laughed a little, “but sounds boring.”

She shrugged quickly, “Better than getting sick like that again,” she overplayed a shudder trying to joke but it was clear she didn’t want to talk about it much longer.

“Hey!” Senku suddenly called, looking over the cast, well-timed as ever, “looks like it’s cooled off.”

“Give it!”

Umeka barely had to explain, once she showed him one smooth push from the plane on the wood a thin curl pulling off the board he understood. He flexed with excitement, clothes straining free, as Gen’s hand shot around to over Umeka’s eyes.

⛮⛮⛮

“Hey!” she said, trying to pull him free.

“Trust me,” Gen sighed, “I’m doing you a favor, Umie.”

“Umie?” she turned, blinking up to him.

“Like it? I thought you needed a cute nickname,” he tapped his finger on her nose, “for such a cute girl.”

She blushed, eyes wide with shock. Gen couldn’t help but chuckle to himself. She wouldn’t have had any real experience with flirting, having been so young when the petrification happened. Maybe a schoolyard crush, that would have been normal for her age but little boys are more direct, throwing things if they’re mean or stating their feelings outright and giving gifts if they weren’t. Based on this, and her strong reaction to compliments much less his obvious flirting, he could only assume she had no idea Tsukasa had feelings for her.

He wanted to know, though, how she felt. If she cared for him and was just scared, it might be risky having her around. She might change her mind and go rushing back to his side taking secrets with her as she went. If she didn’t want to go back to him but liked him the coming fight might be difficult for her to help in, and it could be unfair to ask certain things of her. The last option that occurred to him was that she didn’t like him at all, and then it wouldn’t be any more difficult to fight him than anyone else. Provided, of course, Tsukasa didn’t make a battlefield confession which didn’t seem likely to Gen. In fact, if she didn’t return his feelings it might be useful to them in the future, as long as everyone was okay with a little cruel manipulation of romantic feelings for personal gain. As far as Gen was concerned, that was fair game against someone who could rip a tree from its roots. All is fair in love and war, after all, and there’s a reason romance had been used for centuries in spying and conflict; it works.

He grinned, sitting by her, “So Umie, can I ask you about Tsukasa?”

“Oh…” she blinked, watching Senku and Kaseki furiously playing with the new tools laughing like idiots, “s-sure?”

“What do you think of him?” honesty seemed like the best approach with her. Umeka grew up alone, so certain little tricks or outright deceptions would work on her better than the average person, that said, it also meant she grew up without certain social pressures. Some things people would have been taught to be ashamed of or cautious about sharing she might not have. Mostly, Gen got the sense that she had a very fine-tuned instinct since even without much human interaction she’d been using her basic knowledge and instinct alone to survive all those years. 

“Uh…” she frowned, folding her arms in front of her. Closing off and protecting herself. She either had something she didn’t want to share or-

“He’s scary.”

Or that, “How so?”

“He just...feels scary. Like…as soon as I met him I knew he could do whatever he wanted. And I was right. He killed a bear with a sword! I’ve seen him grab birds out of the sky and he brought me a whole tree one time for firewood. A whole tree! It had roots! I don’t think I need to feel like I can beat everyone to feel comfortable here. I mean...individually maybe I could take you all if I had to fight but probably not everyone. But I still feel comfortable here. I never felt comfortable with Tsukasa,” the corner of her mouth dropped, her eyes casting down sadly.

“Because it felt like you didn’t have a choice, hmm?” He smiled, familiar with the sensation, though it seemed Tsukasa’s charisma didn’t work on Umeka the way it worked on most. It felt like a weird solidarity, like he’d felt when he found a good assistant for his shows in the past.

“Yeah!” she seemed excited to be understood, it had relieved some lingering guilt she must have been harboring from running.

Gen smiled, poking her nose again, “Okay that’s all I wanted to ask, Umie. Thanks for answering me.”

She smiled awkwardly, touching her nose. There was no way she knew how Tsukasa felt and even though Gen hoped it would help them one day, he worried that it might also be the source of a huge problem.

⛮⛮⛮

The rest of the night passed easily. Senku’s hands were covered in small splitters from helping Kaseki. Even with the good tool and Kaseki’s intense skills, Senku’s own less deft hands had gotten damaged in the process. Not that it mattered. What mattered was that it was going to up their production time and the quality. It making Kaseki excited and seemingly helping Umeka feel like more a part of the group was just a nice side bonus.

He sighed, pulling his collar tighter, it was getting cold fast at night now, and sitting on the science hut roof without any cover wasn’t helping. It probably wouldn’t be long until he was breaking out the winter layer of his clothes. 

“Senku?” Umeka spoke from beside him suddenly.

He flinched, yelping and nearly sliding off the straw roof but Umeka’s hand shot out easily and grabbed him, helping him stay on, “Sorry! Sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you I thought you noticed me.”

“Heh. Try to remember you have that hunter sneak bonus, kay? I didn’t hear a millimeter of straw shift out of place.”

“Is that a lot?”

He blinked, “Oh. Hadn’t learned measurements yet?”

“They tried but...you forget some things,” she shrugged, “I remember centimeters! That’s why my hair is long!”

“...explain that.”

“My mom, oh well you saw her,” he nodded as she spoke, “she had long hair. She liked that it was a tradition. She said it made us fancy,” she laughed suddenly, waving her hand, “I think she was joking but it was fun to brush mom’s hair and she’d do mine. She liked stories like grandpa so she’d tell me some then or teach me a song. I already had hair to here,” she lifted the chord she kept free from the braid, the one that hung in front of her shoulder and she pinched the highest bead, “mom used to measure my hair to see how it was growing. She told me it grew twelve centimeters a year so-”

“You...did the math and...made a calendar with your hair,” Senku cut in, his voice soft with shock. He chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief. 

“I know it probably doesn’t work super good, but I just wanted to know how many years it was and I didn’t know what day it was when I woke up or anything so this was all I could do beyond count the days and get a rough idea of the months once-” she stalled, blushed when she realized what she was about to talk about.

Senku snickered, “don’t worry, human biology doesn’t bother me but you don’t have to explain. I know what you mean.”

Still, she glanced away awkwardly, a blush still spread over her face, then she noticed his paper, “What’s that?”

“Ah. Well. I’m,” he looked up, “trying to make a star chart. For navigation.”

She leaned in quickly, her shoulder pressing against his. She didn’t seem to notice or care, but it made Senku jump. It was a little stupid but he wasn’t used to many people being that close to him. If she’d been looking at him he might have actually gotten flustered but instead, she was staring seriously at his crude map and then looking at the sky and then back at the map, her eyebrows furrowing more with each glance.

“Want to share with the class or?”

She blinked, “Oh. Uh. It’s...wrong?”

“Excuse me.”

“That’s…” she pointed to a constellation just over the horizon, barely visible above the treeline, “Orion.”

“No it’s not,” he leaned a little trying to peak through the trees, putting a hand on her far shoulder to steady himself, “See it’s just a box there, there’s not a star connecting the...what the arm? All the double Orinis stars that connect off of-” He paused, there was no way, “What makes you sure that’s Orion?”

She raised an eyebrow at him pointing as she spoke, “That’s Oushi. And that’s Gyosha. Kujira. And I can’t really see that one but I bet it’s Futago. Those are all the constellations around Orion so that has to be Orion, right?”

Senku could barely contain himself, he grabbed her shoulders, shaking her, “Do you know what this means?!”

He could cry, he groaned loudly ignoring Gen and Chrome’s protests, “Hey! Shut it! Stuff something in your ears! This sucks!”

“What’s happening!” Umeka yelled, looking dizzied from his shaking.

“It happened! Betelguese finally went supernova while we were all stone…!” He groaned loudly in frustration, “It could have been another hundred thousand years but nooo it just had to happen,” he turned glaring at the constellation, “While no one could see it! Damn!”

Umeka was staring at him when he turned back, still breathing hard from his little fit. Her mouth smiled but her eyes continued to stare in unblinking confusion, “Explain?”

He sighed heavily, leaning back against the roof, “You’re right. First of all, so thanks. I wasn’t even thinking about it but...the star that should be right...there. Died off. It was something everyone that watched the sky was getting excited about. It was gonna be brighter in the sky than the moon for weeks. I had noticed it was getting dimmer just before the petri-ray happened, I guess it was just closer than I’d thought.” 

“Oh so...you’re just sad that you missed it,” she smiled a little, “cause you’re a big sky nerd, huh?”

He blinked at her, “Yeah. A real big one. What, can you recognize your own kind? You called them by their Japanese names, right? Oushi is Taurus, Gyosha is Auriga, Kujira is Cetus, and Futago, the twins...Gemini.”

She smiled, leaning back beside him, “If you say so. Grandpa just taught me the Japanese names.”

“Man. I can’t wait to meet your, grandpa,” Senku laughed.

Umeka was quiet for a moment and he turned, worried he’d upset her bringing up her family, especially someone she hadn’t found but she was looking at him with a soft smile. He blinked, suddenly feeling awkward and she must have noticed because her smile broadened, “Guess you have to settle for me for now.”

“I’ll survive somehow,” he sat forward again, scratching away at his paper making the corrections, “so would you say you know all of the stars, some of the stars, what are we working with here?”

“Senku,” she called, still leaning back.

He looked over his shoulder, “Huh? What is it?”

“I definitely know them all but I’m only going to help on one condition,” she grinned at his suddenly deadpanned expression.

“Yeah, yeah what silly thing do you want then? Are you gonna be like Gen and want a soda?” He teased, trying to suppress the concern she’d want something he couldn’t easily provide.

“Hey!” Gen called from somewhere below them but they both ignored it.

“No,” her grin widened, “I don’t really care about anything like that. I just want you to let me tell you the stories while I point them out.”

“...heh...a folklorist like your grandpa, huh?” He smiled, turning back to his paper, that wasn’t too much to ask.

“I guess,” she sat up, looking at the paper over his shoulder, “I just think maybe it would be fun and you look like you’re always working.”

“Well...sure but to be fair,” he looked at her, awkwardly pulling back from how close they were, “I think the work is fun.”

“Fine,” she rolled her eyes, smiling and looking up into the stars making her eyes shine with the brightness of the night sky in a world with no other source of light, “then maybe it would just be nice to remember all the things people used to believe and we already know better than. Honor the past and-”

“Move toward the future.”

She grinned, “Plus I get to show off the thing I’m smart about.”

Senku snorted, “Yeah, you definitely haven’t done that yet. Please keep struggling to prove your worth.”

She laughed, elbowing him which nearly made him slip off the edge since he was unprepared, “Oh sorry!”

He rolled his eyes, “Yeah it’s okay but let’s keep our hands to ourselves, hmm? Now. The stars.”

She grinned, looking back up and pointing as she leaned on his shoulder to make sure they were tracking the same things, “Hey wait a minute, you didn’t actually agree to listen to the stories.”

He turned, smiling at her suspicious expression, “I’ll listen, promise,” he offered his arm for a bump, a gesture he’d gotten so used to with the others he forgot she wouldn’t know it. She paused for only a moment before reaching out and forcing her pinky through his, giving a little squeeze with her small finger.

“Good, then we can get started,” she said, turning her face back to the sky as she let his hand go, her eyes searching for a good starting point the smile on her face a stark contrast to her fearful expression she wore just a day ago when she arrived.

Chapter Text

Umeka woke with a loud snort, her body jolting against the hay, “huh? Where…?” She sat up slowly, her eyes wandering around in confusion until they fell on Senku who was smirking back at her.

He was still snickering over her snorting awake, making her turn red when she realized, “Welcome back, you’ve been having a nice nap while I’ve been working.”

“When did I fall asleep?” She asked, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

“Oh, you coaxed yourself to sleep somewhere around...uh the middle of the story of the big guy himself,” Senku said, pointing lazily at Orion.

Umeka yawned, leaning her head on Senku and ignoring how stiff he went under her touch, “Do you want me to finish the story?”

He was quiet for a moment, she could feel the nerves radiating off of him. Frozen from just her temple resting on the point of his shoulder, but if he wasn’t going to ask her to move she thought she’d stay. It was comforting, even if he was clearly a little unsettled. She could hear him turn toward her, “What with you still half asleep. Please save me from that torture.”

She laughed weakly, looking down at his chart, “You got a lot done.”

He yawned loudly, stretching and knocking her off, leaving her blinking, “Sure did! I should get a nap in I guess, before the day starts.”

She sniffed, squinting at him for brushing her away. 

“C’mon,” he nodded his head to the side, foot fumbling for a ladder rung. 

Umeka grinned, sliding off the edge and landing feet first, dropping to a squat to lessen the pressure on her legs, she stood and turned toward him, grinning at the deadpanned look on his face, “Want me to hold the ladder for you?”

“No I think I got it but that you for the condescension, Princess Mononoke,” he said, rolling his eyes and climbing down. He rolled up the paper and bopped her on the head.

“Fine, I deserve that,” she said, still ghosting her fingers over where he popped her as though it hurt.

“I appreciate the help though,” he sighed, picking at his ear again, “so climb up any time you think you can keep your eyes open.”

She rolled her eyes and followed him up the other ladder into the science hut where Chrome and Gen slept peacefully. They crawled into their beds quietly, Senku making a show of yawning and flopping down. She pulled her covers around her shoulders snuggly, easily dozing back off again.

⛮⛮⛮

Tsukasa couldn’t bring himself to take anything from her house but a small necklace he’d found, broken off on a branch at the treeline, probably ripped off when she ran. It was simple, just a chord tied around what appeared to be one of the dogs' fangs. He’d tied it around his wrist, his fingers rubbing over it as he thought. He knew the decision he’d come to with Hyoga was the right one. They couldn’t attack an island fortress in winter, not when the water would freeze. Without Umeka they’d have to work even harder to survive the winter, especially if they were going to expand the army for the coming fight in spring. All of that was important, more important, in fact than the part of their conversation that rung in his head.

‘Homura confirmed your suspicions...the girl Umeka is with the Kingdom of Science,’ Hyoga had informed him, his eyes opening briefly, sharply focused on him.

It was one of the few times where Hyoga showed himself. His true self. The deepest part of him that was always assessing the strength of those around him. Hyoga was loyal, but only because he was stronger, and if he ever showed too much weakness Hyoga would take his chance to overthrow him.

He’d managed to control himself, to moderate his reaction to the news. In truth, he wasn’t as upset as he thought. At least if she were there she wouldn’t be in danger all winter, she’d have food and shelter but she’d also have time with Senku and his friends and ideas. If she took to them then when he came back in spring, even if he ensured her safety as he intended to, she may run. If Senku’s group fought too hard and it resulted in deaths, Umeka may never forgive him.

For now, he couldn’t do anything but hope the take over went as peaceably as possible and Umeka could see reason as she hadn’t before. He visited her home, occasionally, ensuring it wasn’t overgrown or infested with anything from the forest. Ready for her when she had to come back.

⛮⛮⛮

“Umeka!” Chrome cheered when she climbed down in the morning, “I need your help!”

She yawned, blinking at him sadly, “I just woke up.”

“I haven’t slept!” he grabbed her hand, dragging her along, “Me and Kaseki are working on a project and we need your help. And the dogs, can the dogs come? Cause if the dogs could come and help that would be bad.”

“Why would you want them then?” she tilted her head, pulling out her whistle anyway.

“What? Oh! I mean it would be good,” He laughed, “you know like bad not like bad.”

He turned back when she was quiet, she blinked, then blew the whistle, all seven dogs charging up to join her, Suika still clinging to one laughing as she bobbed along.

“Suika!” Chrome shouted, “leave the dog alone, we’ve got important science work to do they can’t just keep playing all the time.”

“The dog has a name,” Umeka frowned, picked Suika up, “it’s Sentai and playing is fine cause Suika is small. You should get to play.”

“Oh, I wasn’t playing!” Suika smiled, “I was just trying to tie him to the spinny thing! Senku thought trained dogs might be better at making the wheely thing spin better than Kinro and Ginro but it didn’t work.”

“Oh okay well, they can help with my spinny thing,” Chrome said proudly, “but it’s top-secret so I’m not saying anything else.”

“Then do I still have to go?” Umeka frowned.

Chrome turned to her, drawing his face sarcastically, “Yes! We need you real quick it’ll be great.”

“But I wanna know about the spinny thing,” she pouted more, but Chrome grabbed her hand anyway dragging her behind him into the woods the dogs following along behind her.

“The spinny thing is a ‘gear’ Senku made to help us made the gold thread, which we need to make the phone-”

Umeka stopped so hard his arm jerked, “Phone?!” He blinked, turning around to look at her. Her eyes were huge, mouth open slightly, “You said a phone?”

“Yeah,” Chrome said, his voice concerned until he remembered, “oh duh yeah you’re from the future too so you know what it is. That’s good! You can probably help us make it better then.”

He pulled her along again, as she mumbled, “No...I definitely can’t.”

“Can you tell me about phones?” Chrome asked, glancing back at her as they walked, “just cause, Senku explained all the stuff about air pressure and things but...why? Did people in your time have to talk to others so much? Why not just go and talk to them?”

“Uhhh….” she drawled, sounding like she was thinking hard, “phones in our time did way more than that though. You could send written messages to people...and you could take pictures...uh you could look stuff up and play games. That’s what I mostly did, my mom had a whole folder of apps for me to play with.”

“That...is so….bad!” Chrome screamed, making birds fly out of a nearby tree. Umeka smiled at him, looking amused, the way Gen did when he experienced something from the past for the first time. A look like the one you give a kid that’s just trying to learn how to walk. Her eyes shifted suddenly to the tree line, seeming amazed by all the work he and Kaseki had gotten done in the past day. 

“What...are you doing?” She asked, eyes glancing around at all the wood.

“Umeka!” Kaseki called happily from on top of a big wooden circle, “your planes have been a big help I’m glad I was around yesterday.”

She smiled up at him, “that’s good but what is this?”

“A forever spinny cotton candy machine!” Kaseki called down, Chrome turned to her nodding happily.

⛮⛮⛮

Her mouth watered, “A cotton...candy machine?”

“Huh?” Chrome raised an eyebrow at her, “Yeah! Senku was making cotton candy that day you arrived. Come to think of it….maybe that’s why that Homura girl didn’t snag you. She was probably eating it! The next day when I went down to where he’d left it it was gone!”

“Is there more cotton candy?” she asked quickly, glancing back at the village.

“Eh...Senku can make more, I guess,” Chrome said over his shoulder, busying himself with some large hunk of wood and she walked back towards the trees, intent on getting cotton candy, “Hey hey hey!” he shouted chasing her and just catching her hand before she reached the forest, “where are you going?!”

“But the cotton candy…” she pouted. It had been years since she had anything sweet that wasn’t a fruit. 

“I didn’t mean now!” Chrome frowned at her, “later! We don’t need help for long!”

She groaned, “fine fine...what do you need?”

“Can we use the dogs to pull these big trees up?” Chrome asked, gesturing to a fork-shaped wooden trunk, “It’ll be pretty hard for just me and Kaseki and I was hoping to keep it a secret until it’s done. I’m proud of my invention you know so I wanna show it to Senku fully working!”

“Chrome’s really on to something with this, Umeka,” Kaseki called, “I just know Senku is going to be floored.”

Something told her that wasn’t the case but she smiled anyway, gazing at the shaped wood that looked familiar to her in a way she couldn’t place, “hmmm….they’ve pulled things before but...I don’t know...I think…,” she pushed her foot to one end, “if you blocked it so it couldn’t slide, then tied the rope to the far end the tree should have no choice but to flip up. I guess...the problem would be pulling it too far…”

“But it’s possible?”

“Oh sure,” Umeka blinked, “I mean probably. I don’t know. I know we can try it though.”

“I like how she thinks!” Kaseki yelled, barely audible over his saw.

“Do you have a rope? I’ll see if I can make a harness,” she said, plopping down to the ground and gesturing for Saiyan to stand by her. 

“Oh sure, sure,” Chrome said chipperly, gathering her some, he passed it to her and crouched on the other side of Saiyan watching her work. She used the same techniques she’d learned as a kid, tying notes to secure things in the garden or make holders for pots and the funny historical techniques her grandfather taught her. Chrome looked amazed, trying to track her hands as she wove a harness around Saiyan, “wait wait….how are you doing that.”

She laughed a little, knowing Senku would tease her for what she was going to say, “it’s a combination of macrame and a Japanese martial art form called Hojojutsu which was all about binding captives. Though,” she paused staring off into space. “Grandpa said it developed into something else I wasn’t allowed to know about so maybe it’s not a good thing to do.”

“Well! I’m glad you know it,” Chrome grinned, “I wanna try. Here,” he patted the ground and Sazae came over, waiting patiently for the rope to be tied. Chrome was a surprisingly quick study, and with his help, they had all of the dogs rigged up in no time.

“Okay,” Umeka took a deep breath, “let’s give it a shot,” she whistled sharply with her fingers in her mouth and all the dogs pulled. The tree rocked up quickly and went to continue falling over. Chrome, Kaseki, and her yelled reaching out and grabbing the large wooden pole in a tight hug. For a moment they all rocked and she thought they would tumble over under it but instead, the tree rocked back once more and settled into its new spot.

Umeka sighed, falling back on the ground, “That was scary.”

“Uh...yeah...we have to do it again...like...three more times,” Chrome admitted sheepishly. 

She sat up and frowned at him, feeling tricked and betrayed, but she got up anyway. No use pouting when she’d done so much for her by taking her in, she might as well do all she could to help them out.

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka, Chrome, and Kaseki had been missing all day and so had the pack which was beginning to eat at Senku’s nerves. He tried to hide it but ever seen the attack on the village he worried whenever one of the group was out of his view, especially if he didn’t know where they were supposedly at.

When Umeka came out of the forest with the dogs inexplicably in rope harnesses he headed over, “Is everything okay over there?”

“Yeah and…” Gen said, walking up behind him, his expression twitching slightly as a bead of sweat rolled down his face, “why…are the dogs...tied like that?”

“Like?” Umeka blinked at them, “Oh! Do you know?’

Senku raised his eyebrow expectantly at Gen who sputtered, “No. I think I will wait until you explain what it actually is and then I’ll decide if it’s something I’m going to share out loud or not.”

“...it’s...Hojojutsu, or sort of, tying techniques my grandpa taught me,” Umeka narrowed her eyes, “What do you think it is.”

“Nope.”

“Oh come on! You must know the thing Grandpa said I couldn’t know. I’m older now. So tell me!”

Gen laughed in a high pitch, “Absolutely not!”

Senku smirked at him, “What why not, Umeka wants to know, you know, clearly. Sharing knowledge is important to the advancement of society, after all.”

Suddenly Gen’s expression turned wicked in a way that made Senku wish he hadn’t spoken, “Well why don’t you tell her, you seem to know, and you are our main things-explaineryay around here.”

Umeka wheeled on him, expectantly staring at him with her wide amber eyes, brows furrowed as she leaned in at him making him sweat and swallow hard, “No.”

Her face drew into a comically large frown, then she crossed her arms over her chest, “that’s not fair. I’m sure my grandpa was gonna tell me when I got as old as I am now.”

Gen snickered slightly, scratching his cheek, “Somehow I doubt that.”

She looked at him, then her eyes slowly drifted back to Senku. Then suddenly her expression softened in realization, “Oh...it’s something dirty isn’t it.”

Senku sputtered, folding over slightly with shock before busting out laughing as Gen did the same. Umeka tried to smile slightly, but she suddenly looked embarrassed, turning a little pink and looking off out of the corner of her eye, “that’s fine just don’t tell me then, okay?”

Senku was still laughing slightly as he talked, “I’d be happy not to. Now, tell me how the other two are, you don’t have to tell me what they’re working on I just wanna make sure everything is okay.”

She smiled, “I think they’re fine. Other than not sleeping. And I think they aren’t going to until they’re done and it seems like it’ll take a long time.”

He shrugged, “Eh that’s fine.”

“Hey, Senku?”

“Yeah? What?”

“Chrome…” she seemed to get bashful suddenly, puffing out her cheeks like she wasn’t sure how to bridge the topic which was funny given she’d just been pressing him to explain how her dogs' harnesses had a striking resemblance to a BDSM art, “Well….he mentioned..cotton candy? So I was just wondering-”

“Oh….nope. Sorry,” he sighed.

“Senku!” Gen looked at him shocked like he’d just insulted her or something. 

“Look it’s not that I don’t want to it’s just we can’t right now. We’re working on the gold thread and if sugar gets on the thread it’ll ruin the connection,” he explained quickly, trying to ignore how crushed Umeka looked. She wasn’t like the villagers who wouldn’t have known what they were missing. Moreover, she had been a kid in the past anyway so more likely than not her attachment to sweets was even stronger than his or Gen’s. He sighed, rubbing his forehead, “We don’t have the time right now to build a new machine and I resued the parts so it’s not like we have the lumpy one just around but...if you can wait until we’re done with the wire, we can make it then. Okay?” he almost didn’t want to look at her but when he did she smiled and nodded.

“Sure, later sounds good,” then she turned and looked toward a pile of tools, “I’m gonna go cut the dogs free from their harnesses now cause I feel gross about it.” Then she was off, calling her dogs along without another thought.

“Make her,” Gen said suddenly smacking Senku with his sleeve, “some cotton candy, you monster!”

“Would you,” Senku said as he swatted back at Gen, “stop that! I wasn’t lying. Or being mean. Or lazy! We just can’t. And it sucks but we don’t have the time to stop and she missed it by a day. Okay?”

Gen frowned at him and looked like he’d say something else, then he scoffed, “Fine. I guess I’ll go find something to do since we don’t have any time.”

The sarcasm that dripped in Gen’s voice made Senku take a long blink, looking off to watch Umeka patiently cutting her dogs free. He’d have to think of something they could do for her, make her feel more welcome, and thank her for what she’d helped with so far. He’d just have to think a little harder to figure out what would make sense along the way.

⛮⛮⛮

Once the dogs were freed from their apparently gross ropes, Umeka took them hunting. The village definitely did have hunters in it but, they seemed more focused on opportunity. Maybe she’d learned it from the dogs but Umeka knew to look for printed in the dirt and grass, poop, broken twigs, and half-eaten berries. If you think like the pray, you can find the pray. She felt like she should bring a lot in, she hadn’t been able to bring everything she and Tsukasa got from the bear, it was way too much meat and she hadn’t smoked it all yet. So she took what was prepared and left the rest. As much as the thought made her stomach feel wiggly, she hoped Tsukasa had returned and taken it so it wouldn’t go to waste.

The hunt wasn’t long. The game in the area was way more abundant than at her own home. Now she was stuck trying to get four deer back to camp with tired dogs. A spark went off in her head, “Oh the big guy! Protect the deer, everyone!”

She ran through the trees, luckily they’d gotten them closer to the camp but there wasn’t a clear path big enough for the dogs to drag the deer without tearing them up and it wasn’t exactly a very efficient or clean way to transport them. Moreover, it made them really easy to track and that felt dangerous.

She busted through the trees searching the villagers' faces until they fell on the gigantic blonde man, they hadn’t spoken and she didn’t get a very friendly vibe from him but she did get the sense he liked to eat so, “Hi, could you help me?”

He scowled at her, “What, little woman? Think I wanna help you weave something?”

His smaller friend chuckled at his statement which, she guessed was supposed to be a joke but it wasn’t funny. She blinked at him, it seemed tiring to be so aggressive from the start, “No. I went hunting but it’s too much to carry back.”

“Oh, I’m sure. A few rabbits too heavy?”

Umeka looked around at some of the other villagers who were watching with tired expressions, “So...you’re just...like this? All the time?”

A group of young men started laughing and he yelled at them, smacking one upside the head, “That’s not nice!” she shouted, frowning up at him.

“What are you gonna do about it?”

“...I mean,” she blinked, “Nothing. It’s just not nice. I’ll just get it myself then, I thought you’d want to eat.”

“Magma!” his small friend yelled, “Go get the food so you can...you know…”

She looked between them, not knowing what he knew, apparently, but Magma suddenly changed his mind, “Yeah...okay. Sure. I’ll help.”

She stared at him, eyes squinting, then turned and lead him into the woods. 

“You know if you were going to hunt you could have brought a bag to carry the game back in, it’s not hard,” he said, scowling down at her.

She huffed, fixing her bow on her shoulder. It was better not to engage with bullies so she decided to stay quiet until they got to the deer. Then she waited for his shock to wear off, mimicking the condescending face he’d been making at her as he explained such basic things as having a bag.

“....Fine,” he admitted, not looking in her eye, “it’s impressive.”

“Thank you.”

He was able to carry two of the deer on his own, which was terrifying. And between Umeka and the dogs, they were able to carry them all, shifting things around when they got to places that were too awkward for the dog team to easily carry the deer. “Hold on,” Magma said, “I’ll carry these to the village and come get the other two, we’re close enough now.”

“Oh…” she smiled, “sure. Sounds good.”

She heard a commotion in the distance after a while, he must have arrived with the deer. She couldn’t keep a small proud smile from breaking across her face. She was glad they were excited about the deer and that it helped, she hoped three gave them enough food for now, and the fourth could go to the dogs who’d worked so hard for the day, much harder than they usually worked. She pet Sailor, “You’ve all been really great…! Good girl! So smart! Strong!” Sailor’s tail wagged and the other dogs wandered closer, waiting for their praise.

Magma came back through the trees, rolling his eyes at her praising and lifting the other two, “Okay if that’s it let's go.” 

She and the dogs followed after him and into the village but when they arrived the villagers cheered and circled Magma, chanting about how great he was for bringing in so much and how good they were going to eat. And he let them, laughing and holding his chin high. She couldn’t believe it. For a moment she was struck still, staring in shock. She looked at her blood and mud-soaked clothes then glanced at Suit to see if he was seeing this crazy scene. 

“Since when,” Kinro suddenly spoke from beside her, “did Magma hunt with a bow and arrow?”

The villagers went quiet seeing the wounds on the animals and looking at Magma who was sweating slightly. The villagers groaning at him when they realized.

Kinro just shook his head and looked at her, “Sorry,” his eyes shot coldly at Magma, “he actually does things like this more than you’d think,” he looked back at her, a pleasant smile on his face, “I’m sure you did all the work though and we appreciate it.”

She met Magma’s eyes, tilted her head back staring at him for a moment, a small grin broke onto her face, “Don’t worry I can give you some pointers. For hunting. Or for that weaving that you were talking about.”

He rolled his eyes heavily and then got distracted with villagers chiding him as they all took over the work of cleaning the deer.

“Oh wait,” Umeka said, walking into the bustle to grab a deer's legs, “this one goes to the dogs, sorry. But they can’t eat plants so.” They all seemed a little disappointed understandably, but no one would fight seven wolves for food so they let her drag it away with Kinro’s help, “you’re much nicer than I thought you were.”

He seemed hurt, blustering in shock slightly, “I...seemed mean?”

“Well...you pointed a spear at me.”

“The rules…” he swallowed awkwardly, “the rules are the rules so...any intruder.”

She considered teasing him for a moment but decided to let it go. He was genuinely nice after all, to step in on Magma’s glory hogging and to drag the deer with her. More importantly, he didn’t seem like the type that would handle being teased well, not like Senku who seemed completely unbothered when she joked with him. She yawned, looking at the sky and the dim stars that were beginning to show. She thought it might be a little difficult for her but she wanted to climb onto the roof and tell Senku more stories, but this time she’d remember to bring a blanket.

⛮⛮⛮

Dinner in the village was in a big circle that night, everyone eating the results of Umeka’s hunting trip. The meat was good, especially after a day of hard work and it had gotten everyone so excited they forgot about all the grueling effort that was going into getting ready for winter and starting the work on the cell phone. Smaller kids had started playing war with larger bones and others were working on their meals, laughing and talking about the day but Senku didn’t see Umeka anywhere among the main group.

He glanced around again until he noticed, off behind the science hut, a dim orange glow. Another fire. His eyes narrowed suspiciously and he sighed, pushing up from where he sat and walking over, with his hunt of meat still in hand ignoring Ginro calling after him. When he reached the fire, sure enough, Umeka was alone with the dogs sitting by her own little fire eating her dinner.

“Hey this is,” he said, sitting down across from her, “way to kid-that-eats-lunch-alone-in-homeroom, sad.”

“I ate lunch in homeroom.”

“Okay. I was talking about high school, thank you.”

“Oh,” she avoided looking him in the eye.

“Is this Magma related?”

“Oh,” she shrugged, “No. I don’t care about that. I just...wanted to sit alone.”

“Explain?”

She smiled lightly at the callback, the rubbed a hand on her cheek comically hard, pulling at her skin or pushing her cheek up so high her eye seemed closed, “It’s just a lot of people and I don’t know most of them and it’s loud…I’m not used to stuff like that. I spent all day almost with people so I guess...it just made me tired.”

He nodded, rubbing his neck. He wished he still had that stupid cotton candy machine, it felt like a treat would improve the moment. Then it hit him and he jumped to his feet, “Come on.”

“Huh?” He groaned and grabbed her arm, trying to drag her up but floundering slightly, “This isn’t making me feel good about myself, Senku,” she frowned standing up and going with him.

“Oh trust me you’ll feel better in a minute,” he grinned, “we just need a few things from upstairs, come on.”

He climbed up quickly, glancing back to make sure she was following.

“Here,” he said, lifting a basket of leftover berries onto the science table, “pick your favorite.”

She raised her eyebrow at him but when he waved his hand she set about sifting through them. He pulled out the sugar, a little water, and the potassium bitartrate, then he flicked on the little bunsen burner and waited for her to pick her berries. 

She held out a small mikan, “what are you doing?”

He snatched it from her hand making her twitch back, pealing it furiously and squeezing the juice into the glass, then tossed the flesh back to her. She barely caught it before it hit her face, her eyebrows furrowing deeper.

“Just eat that and stop trying to ruin the surprise,” he smirked.

She pouted at him but set about pulling apart the small pieces and eating them, still studying what he was doing. When the juice cooked down enough, filling the room with the smell, he started tossing things in, “A little water, some sugar which we got from messed up wine and,” he grinned, shaking the small flash of white power, “potassium bitartrate, also a byproduct of winemaking known in the culinary world as tartaric acid or cream of tartar.”

“Oh,” she said, her mouth obstructed by the orange, “I’ve heard of that.”

“Most homes have it,” he smirked, stirring eagerly, “it’s a thickening agent, you’re probably more used to corn syrup in these but we don’t have corn so. No corn syrup.”

She almost looked agitated, not with him really, more like he’d told her a riddle she couldn’t figure out and it was bothering her, “...and you think I’ve had this?”

“Oh I’m,” he paused, turning to find a small bamboo stick and trying to search his cabinets for something to make a suitable mold, “certain you have.” He found a small strip of metal, that would have to do. He curled it with his fingers, leaving a gap so he could uncurl it once it cooled. He was making a small one so the mixture was already bubbling pleasantly, thick enough to pour, so he set it on the glass and took the beaker off carefully, glancing up at Umeka who still looked confused, that is until he poured.

As soon as the small sugary circle formed on the glass she smiled, only growing wider when he carefully placed the bamboo stick, “A lollipop.”

“Ten billion points to Umeka,” he grinned, looking at the messy creation. Without dyes, it had turned a muddy brownish color and he doubted it was going to be as sweet and addictive as the lollipops they were used to. But sugar was sugar and after so many years without it, it stood to reason it might strike her the same as the cotton candy had the villagers. 

She glanced at the beaker, “It looks like there’s enough for two, make one for yourself.”

“Are you just trying to sucker me?”

She frowned at the joke, “No I just think if I get poisoned you should too.”

“That’s dark but fine,” he set his own up, “don’t have to twist my arm.”

It was quiet for a while, just the two of them standing across the table waiting for the lollipops to cool. It felt a little awkward in the silence, but it was also nice after such a busy day to be quiet but not alone. Umeka reached a finger out going to touch her lollipop and Senku grabbed her hand just at the last second, “One millimeter closer and you’re going to get an insanely painful burn, sugar looks cool way before it is.”

She frowned, “Then why didn’t you make them and then show me this waiting is awful.”

He laughed, “Geeze you really were a kid weren’t you. Quit whining! You’ll get the lollipop soon. You’ve waited thousands of years you can wait a few more minutes.”

She rolled her eyes, pouting, and he realized he was still holding her hand, “If I let go are you going to try to keep touching the lollipop?”

“You never know,” She grinned.

“...Is this just a ploy to hold my hand then?”

She paused for a moment, her smile slowly growing wider in a way that made Senku almost unbearably, unplaceably nervous, “You never know.”

Chapter Text

Umeka twisted the stick of her lollipop between her fingers, watching the amber disk refract the bright moonlight above them. She stuck it back in her mouth and smiled, shutting her eyes and taking a deep breath. She hadn’t had something so sweet since the day the green light hit. Her eyes watered suddenly, remembering how her mother had swung her up into her arms when she picked her up from school, how they’d gone to the convenience store and gotten popsicles they’d eaten on the walk home. She wondered how long it had taken for her popsicle to melt over her hand, for the stick to rot away between her stone fingers, for her uniform to shred from the grey rock of her body. She’d heard once that plastic never broke down and found herself wondering if her mother’s card that had paid for their popsicles was still somewhere in the world, the characters of her mother’s name, Himari Yamaguchi, still raised on it even if they were no longer silver. Maybe one day she’d find her mother’s ID and have a picture to keep with her until she was able to wake her up again.

When she opened her eyes she could swear Senku had been looking at her but his eyes shifted back to the sky so quickly she wasn’t sure, “You do realize,” he said, red eyes glimmering at her from the corners as a smirk pulled on his lips, “that this is the second night in a row you fell asleep up here?”

“Mmm,” she grinned slowly, blinking up at the stars above them, “‘s comfy.”

Senku rolled his eyes but his expression stayed mockingly judgemental, “Clearly.”

She pushed up and leaned to look at the star chart. He’d done an amazing amount of work in the past two days. She wondered if she’d even ever be able to understand how smart he was, much less be smart herself, “Science was my favorite class in school.”

She blurted it so suddenly they both blinked at each other. She could feel her face reddening as Senku’s expression twisted with embarrassed confusion. 

“I-Is that so?” his voice strained. His eyebrow twitched and he couldn’t keep himself from glancing at his star chart. He wasn’t playing off his discomfort at all, but she appreciated his obvious effort.

“Sorry I-” She shook her head quickly and looked back up at the sky, “That was a weird thing to blurt out while you were working it’s just. You’re really smart. So. And...you like science and-”

“Heh,” Senku chuckled suddenly, then started to shake as he laughed harder. Tears formed in the corners of his eyes and he laughed, looking at her as though he was sorry even though he didn’t try to stop his laughter. She stiffened, mouth gaping at him as her cheeks burned from the heat of her blush and from the strain of her shocked expression. 

“Don’t laugh at me!” She cried, her voice whiny and high, the break in it making Senku struggle to contain himself.

“I don’t know what else you expect that was so weird,” he sighed, smiling as he wiped the tears from his face, “and I mean...nothing you said was weird but you treated it like...heh...like it was talking about...I dunno. Something really nerdy and obscure…”

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka puffed her cheeks at him, eyebrows knitting together as the pinkness spread over her face and onto her ears, “The kids in my class thought liking science was weird so!” She stopped short, folding her arms over her chest as if to say that was enough. She turned, pouting somewhat over the top, and stared back toward the village but she didn’t move. 

Senku sighed. This was something that had always confused him about other people. Taiju had never really done it, maybe that’s why Senku had decided to make him his best friend. He was earnest, honest, and maybe just a little simple. He was about to chide Umeka for being childish when it struck him. 

In some ways she was. Of course, they were the same age now. But without the green light putting them on pause and her early wake-up call, she would have been some ten years younger than him. All she’d known was grade school teasing, kid’s cartoons, and the apparently vast teachings of her grandfather. Given that she’d done incredibly well. Freakishly well in fact. Just like Taiju’s terrifying endurance, Gin’s mental abilities, Tsukasa, and Kohaku’s strength; Umeka was yet another freak of nature. Freakishly able to survive despite all the odds. He swallowed hard, so maybe she was a little childish in how she expressed herself. What else could he expect? Ten years of isolation and now she was stuck with people with vastly different levels of socialization. Even people from the past might not be able to relate to her. What were kids even watching back then?

“Hey…” he spoke, his voice rasping.

She didn’t speak, but she raised her eyebrow at him, unable to stop from turning her shoulders back somewhat though she still tried to play up her cold shoulder.

“Did you watch Doraemon?”

Her demeanor suddenly changed, her eyes widened in the starlight that shone on the threat of tears. It made his throat tighten but he couldn’t think about it for long because Umeka suddenly launched into his space. 

“You watched it?!”

“Heh,” he smirked, “a big nerd like me watching Doraemon should be ten billion percent not shocking.”

“Well it’s just,” and then she smirked, suddenly seeming to feel better, “it was for kids, after all.”

Senku rolled his eyes, “Oh don’t be one of those people.”

“Just admit it was for kids, Senku.”

“Kids might be a major target demographic-”

Umeka settled back, and leaned her head toward him looking at him from under her brow, “Senku.”

“Fine. If it will make you happy. Even though I think it’s a pretty narrow-minded way to classify Doraemon which had a wide fan base due to its long serialization and various anime adaptions spanning generations; it was technically for children,” Senku rolled his eyes about but smiled at her, ever so slightly.

“So this is how you say you’re sorry?”

“Well if that’s how you want to take it I won’t argue with you.”

She smiled wider, “You already knew that though, right? Because of Sueno’s name.”

Senku turned, looking back at the stars, “Musta forgotten.”

She hummed beside him playfully but didn’t speak. That was something he’d grown to really like about her. She didn’t talk all the time. She didn’t ask a ton of questions and when she did she seemed to always take his answers at face value. Though now he wondered if she was quiet because he confused her or maybe made her uncomfortable, but glancing at her in the moonlight that didn’t seem to be the case. She looked peaceful, gazing into the skies. Whatever accidental hurt he’d caused before seemed to be forgotten now as her amber eyes traced the patterns of the stars. 

“Your grandpa…” Senku spoke, surprising himself. It wasn’t like him to probe for knowledge. Even when Ruri revealed the truth of the village to him he couldn’t bring himself to poke her for too much. It wasn’t in his nature. At least not person to person, he left his investigations for science, for the inhuman elements of the world. It made him feel more like his father in a melancholy way that he tried to ignore. 

Umeka turned to him, tilting her head and patiently waiting for him to continue. 

“He taught you a lot, it sounds like…”

She stared for a moment, and then a slow teasing smile broke onto her face so smoothly it made Senku cringe in embarrassment but she didn’t tease him. Instead, she smiled and answered, “He did. And Grandma. They both did. Grandpa was a folklorist for work and Grandma was a housewife, but they both knew tons of stuff. I think Grandma knew more things to do. Grandpa knew more stories but Grandma...she was the one that made clothes and planted gardens and cooked… Of course. Grandpa helped in the garden too but Grandma was the boss. We did what she said when we’d be working the field and every year we had so much leftover one of my evening chores was to run them around to other houses in the neighborhood.”

“So you lived with them, huh?” Senku set his paper down without thinking about it. Turning toward her. For the moment it was more interesting to figure out how she’d survived so young in such a brutal place.

“Oh. Only in the summer,” she smiled wistfully. She didn’t look at him. Instead, she was looking up into the stars, as though her grandparents and her childhood were constellations there she could map out for him as she told her own myth. “Mom would work more in the summer, or she’d have to travel. So since I was off from school I’d spend the month with my grandparents. Mom and I lived with them when I was really little but I don’t remember so much of that. Mom got a job in Tokyo when I was...uhmm...five? I think. So we moved so she could be near work and I could go to better schools.”

He felt lazy. He wished he didn’t feel so guilty when he had a normal conversation. He realized he didn’t know much of anything about Gen’s life, at least, not his life off the stage. What he knew about Chrome and Kohaku he’d just learned incidentally as they fought to earn the trust of the village. He wanted to know about them, he was enjoying hearing about Umeka’s life. Yet he could never dismiss the constant urge to work, the guilt that drove him to push forward on every project. No one else could do it and so his conscience or maybe his ego was driving him to work all the time leaving very little time for his friends that trusted him and helped him so much more than he felt he deserved. 

He pushed the thoughts away, even sliding the star chart further away from his hand, “Do you know what your mom did?”

“Oh uh,” Umeka seemed to think hard, a finger tapping her chin, “No...I’m not super sure. She worked in a big building. She walked me by once but she never brought me in. I don’t think anyone knew about me….now that I think about it.”

Senku didn’t speak. He wasn’t sure what to say and he knew from personal experience how complicated explaining one’s parents could be, so he waited instead. Glancing at the sky to call himself.

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka waited for the inevitable questions. ‘What about your dad? Why did your mom look so young? Why would she hide you?’ But Senku didn’t say anything. He looked peaceful, calmly looking out at the sky and the village on the horizon. Her eyes traced the cracks on his face, then down his nicely curved nose, and over his chapped lips. She found herself staring at the equation on his chest, the one he’d written in blood but she’d yet to ask about. 

“My mom…” Umeka offered, suddenly compelled again to share as she had when she blurted out her love for science, “she was really young when I was born.”

Senku looked at her, sincere but passive. It filled her with a foreign sensation, a tightening in her stomach she couldn’t identify. She’d trusted him quickly because of his honesty. He wasn’t secretive, or bashful. He was painfully, almost rudely honest. But he was kind, and his eyes were beautiful but strange. A reddish color she didn’t think she’d ever seen before that made her want to look away or stare longer.

“My father,” she swallowed, then she stopped, “Should I be quiet? Are you working?”

Senku blinked, and glanced at the star chart behind him, “Ah it’s so far away now. If I reach for it I’d probably fall to my death but,” and then he turned back to her, the airy joking in his voice dropping out suddenly leaving him quiet and earnest, “you don’t have to tell me about him. If you don’t want to, I mean.”

Her lip quivered. Her birth hadn’t been a secret to her. Her mother and grandparents had thought honesty was the best policy. Growing up she’d been told she probably knew more than most children her age. She could still see her mother; beautiful and crying gently as she apologized for something Umeka didn’t fault her for. Even if she’d made her peace with it thousands of years ago now, she’d never told anyone else before and as much as she wanted to, it felt heavy and difficult. And she didn’t want to mess it up, “Can you tell me about your parents?”

“Well you know a little already,” Senku nodded, completely unfazed by her request, “he was an astronaut but he got that on a real crapshoot I mean...he worked like crazy to get it but it was really a one in ten billion percent chance. He’d tried a bunch of times before and always failed. To be honest, I think they might have taken him the last time cause it was starting to get a little sad.” Senku smiled in his teasing way, a quick quirk of his mouth, but his eyes looked sad and his shoulders slumped without him noticing, “Anyway...he’d been a college professor before that. Science. Byakuya was a good guy. He was nice...and funny...and supportive I guess. Or maybe, I was just a brat. Heh.”

They sat quietly for a while. In the distance early morning birds began to chirp. Signaling the end of their talk soon, as the village woke up and they had to get to their work and chores for the day. Senku turned, staring for a moment in the direction of the birds and then looked at her, “Byakuya isn’t my biological father. I don’t know them, or anything about them really. All I know is that Byakuya said my birth father was his best friend but...why they gave me to Byakuya or where they were I’ve got no idea. I never wanted to know.”

“Because Byakuya is your dad.”

He stared at her then and she thought she might have just seen his eyes quiver, a gentle shimmer of tears passing through that didn’t fall. Like storm clouds rolling over without raining.

“Right,” he spoke, nodding. “That was that.”

Umeka took a deep breath. Maybe Senku would understand even better than she thought. Maybe even if he didn’t he was the best person she could tell. He was logical after all. “My mother was sixteen when she had me. My father was a young teacher at her school...I think he’d just finished his training. Because she was just old enough in our prefecture...and because my grandparents thought maybe it would be hard on my mom, I don’t think they got him in as much trouble as they could have. I know Grandpa went to the school and got him fired, and mom told me once that Grandpa hit him but he thought that was bad of him to have done around kids so she told me not to tell him that I knew.”

She paused and looked at Senku but his expression was unreadable. It wasn’t pity or even sympathy. He was just listening, calmly waiting as she thought. In a comforting way, it was like she wasn’t even telling anyone. He looked like she told him grass was green and birds had wings. A simple fact of nature he’d learned when he was very young. 

“If he ever wanted to meet me he couldn’t. He signed something and gave up his rights and he wasn’t allowed near me and mom. I think...they told me a little more than most kids because...maybe my grandparents felt bad. Like if they hadn’t sheltered mom my dad couldn’t have been bad. But...I don’t think they did anything wrong...and mom was just a girl. There’s probably not so much we can do when there are bad people I mean. At some point, everything is just the person who is doing something wrong’s fault. I think. It’s always been kind of confusing cause I think it was hard for mom but if that hadn’t happened I wouldn’t be alive.”

Senku nodded, and then took a heavy breath, “A guilty feeling when you didn’t do anything wrong is the worst because it’s the epitome of illogical but it’s just human nature.”

“So humans are illogical?”

“Heh...probably ten billion percent of the time.”

“Out of how much?”

Senku smiled slowly, “Oh I dunno...infinity maybe? Philosophy isn’t my strong suit though.”

Umeka smiled, even though, if she was being honest, she didn’t really understand what he meant, “I’m older than my mom was when I was born now. She was twenty-four when she was frozen...it won’t be too much longer and we’ll be the same age.”

Senku took a deep breath and dropped back to the roof, “Well let’s try and make sure you stay younger than your mom. We’ll have to wake her up soon.”

“No.”

She didn’t look at him but she heard the hay rustle, she could feel him sitting up by her shoulder, waiting for her to explain. She choked back the tears that suddenly threatened to come out, struggling to keep her body still. She’d seen enough of Senku to understand that big emotions scared him and she didn’t want to make him uncomfortable when he’d already been so kind listening to her. But he put a hand on her shoulder, heavy but gentle and still. She took a deep breath through her nose and though she could feel tears trailing down her face silently she turned to him and spoke her voice somehow remaining strong and unbroken, “I don’t want to put her through anything else hard. I’ve already decided; I don’t want to wake her up until we fix everything.”

Senku nodded, looking down between them. Then he sighed loudly and looked back at her, “Well we’ve got a lot of work to do then. What, you woke up at eight and it’s been another eight or so years now, right? So we’ve got another eight years to get society full back and running if we’re going to make sure you stay mommy’s little girl.” He grinned suddenly, “Far from the worst deadline we’ve had.”

She felt her lip wobble, “Can I hug you?”

He rolled his eyes slightly, but a small hint of pink seemed to prick his ears, embarrassment she assumed, “Do you have to?”

“No, that’s why I asked.”

He snorted but dropped his shoulders, “Fine. One hug. And don’t tell anyone I don’t want them getting ide-”

She launched forward before he could finish his demands, hugging him tightly around his shoulders. She didn’t expect much of a return, Senku was after all an awkward maybe even aloof person. He was full of high-fives and half-said praise, but not much open affection and she didn’t want to make him regret allowing her a hug. But just as she started to pull away one of his arms wrapped around her, the open palm of his hand pressed lightly to the back of her head.

They were still, silent, and she noticed Senku barely breathed by how still his chest felt against hers. When she moved slightly he quickly pulled back and picked at his ear, eyes falling anywhere but hers. She smiled. 

“Seriously. Don’t tell them. If I have to hug Chrome I’ll never forgive you.” She grinned wider and finally he smiled, “And look I-”

“I just told you because you need to plan who to wake up, right? I didn’t want you to worry about me and my mom.”

“Who says I would have done that?”

She raised her eyebrow and he sighed, “Fine but-”

“And it’s nice to know...someone else knows her. Sort of. She’s not in the past now...if we both know about her. Like Grandpa’s stories.”

Senku smiled gently, nodding, “Sure. Only logical.”

“Thanks...really…”

“Don’t mention it.”

“I wasn’t talking about the hug.”

Senku groaned, then laughed slightly, “Are you sure you never met Byakuya? Maybe he was your professor in some insane early placement college?”

Umeka grinned and started to climb down the ladder as the sun’s rays peaked on the horizon, “Hmmm maybe? I mean. I wasn’t in an early early early college but hmmm. I feel like I met a lot of people. Why ask?”

“Oh sure. Eight-year-olds are famous for their social engagements with college professors. How silly of me. It’s just, much like my dad, you have a very annoying habit,” Senku said as he climbed down after her, turning to look into her face as he finished, “of thinking you are absolutely hysterical.”

“I…” she leaned toward him slightly, enjoying just a little how he flinched back from her, “don’t know what the word hysterical means.”

Senku sputtered for a moment, and then laughed loudly, waking up a very grumping sounding Gen above them. 

“Ooooh. I think I figured it out.”

Senku smiled and shook his head, “Go be funny somewhere less distracting for a while, I’ve got dangerous chemicals to mix together on no sleep.”

Umeka smiled and looked at the dogs under the hut, maybe she’d take them hunting. Get together a nice breakfast. Another nonverbal thank you for Senku since they seemed to be the only kind he’d accept. She nodded and whistled for the dogs, heading into the woods feeling lighter than she had since the first cracked stones had fallen from her body years before.

Chapter Text

The hunt didn’t go particularly well. Her bow was getting old, the wood struggling to keep its shape which made the string lax, her arrows shooting wildly off to the sides or completely dropping to the ground.

“UGH!” She tossed the bow to the ground in annoyance, dropping herself into the dirt and retying the string tighter for the third time that day. 

Sentai wandered over, dropping the hare he’d run after moments ago into her lap and then licking her from chin to forehead making her flinch, “thank you,” she breathed in exasperation, wiping the hare’s fur from her face. 

“Remind me, ‘new bow.’ Top of the ‘things we need’ list. Okay?” 

Sentai quirked his head to the side, an ear twitching as animals rushed around in the bush.

“....oh just go,” she waved, and he was off, chasing some poor creature through the underbrush. 

She sighed, standing and righting her bow in her grip. Big game was hard to come by, they normally moved further south once it got cold, and it was late enough now she wasn’t going to run across another bear like she had with Tsukasa.

  She wondered what he was up to. Since she’d first arrived they’d barely talked about him or his team much. Everyone was so focused on finding enough to survive and getting all of Senku’s projects done, but something about the looks Gen and Senku gave each other as she told them about her experiences made her wonder if there was something more. Senku seemed confident that they wouldn’t come after them, but what if he was wrong. She pulled the bow taught, aiming calmly at a bird as it landed on a branch. Could she aim so easily if it was a person? 

The bowstring snapped, flinging sharply back at her arm. She hissed, dropping her bow to the ground and clapping her hand over her arm to try and calm the unbearable stinging. She looked up, her eyes pricked with tears and half shut as she winced in pain but of course the bird was gone. She rocked herself slightly, trying to get through the initial shock of the injury so she could look at the wound. Sentai rushed back through the woods, a squirrel dangling from his mouth that he dropped at her feet, forcing her head under her hand and whining.

“I’m okay,” she hissed, pulling her arms away so he couldn’t move them. When she pulled her hand off it was smeared with blood. The string hadn’t cut into her skin deeply, but rather caused a bad abrasion; the majority of her inner arm turned bright pink and was pricked with blood all over. 

She groaned, annoyed with herself for not noticing she’d overtied the string. Pulsing her fingers on her injured arm she could feel the pull through her skin and knew it would make it difficult to use the bow for a few days, beyond the fact that now it needed much more work to be usable. She sighed, dropping her head back. She didn’t like going without a weapon. As a kid, it had taken over a year for her to make anything long distance. Those early years had been so brutal, spending all of her time foraging afraid of every little rustle of leaves. Even now with a whole village to return to and a pack of loyal dogs the thought of being unarmed and injured made her skin crawl. She pushed up from the dirt, snatching up the squirrel and tying it to the belt where she carried their earlier catches of hares and birds, “Let’s go back, Sentai. You did good.” She forced herself to smile at him, patting his head between his stout triangular ears.

When she got back to the science hut everyone was gone. She blinked, scanning the trees to see if anyone was just out of the clearing. She had hoped to find Senku. Of everyone in the group, she was the most comfortable with him. Everyone else made her nervous or shy, and it scared her to think of asking them for help with her injury. She could at least take comfort knowing it wasn’t completely silly, Senku would know the best way to treat it anyway. She untied her belt, dropping the game in a small pile by the fire. She’d have to come back to handle them later, once her wound was dressed. 

She glanced back at Sentai, “Go rest,” he huffed, slowly looking back to the science hut where the dogs liked to sleep in the shade.

She tossed her bow rather hard into the dirt, frowning at it bitterly, and then glanced toward the bridge. As much as she would rather find Senku and get him to help her, it wasn’t a serious wound. At least not yet. But infections could set in fast, she learned that the hard way, and looking around in the forest for Senku when she knew there were people in the village would be childish. He’d call it illogical probably, and she’d already lost her ability to effectively hunt for a few days. She couldn’t be any more of a bother so she sighed and trudged off toward the bridge. 

The homes in the village were built the same as the science hut and storehouses she was growing accustomed to but they were far more alive. Little kids rushed in and out of buildings, carrying bowls and she could hear voices clamoring all around. It was noisy and a little disorienting. 

One of the small children bounced into her leg. She looked down, blinking as the kid fell back in the dirt, their eyes going wide. 

“...are you-”

Before she could finish the child squalled, scrambling to their feet and running, screaming at the top of his lungs as his friends who were now also screaming ran ahead of him.

Her mouth quivered badly. She sniffled. She was just going to ask if he was alright and she hadn’t knocked him over intentionally. It was mean to run away yelling. A squat old man with a thick white mustache peaked out of a nearby hut.

“Oh! The princess…!” She looked at him. Furrowing her eyebrows in confusion as he shuffled out of his home, “Forgive them please, Princess. We’ve all heard about you and some of the kids are a little scared.”

“Of me?” she felt her voice break, the tears worsening in her eyes. She sniveled as they started to fall. The day had already been bad enough the last thing she wanted was to find out the whole village thought she was scary. 

The old man flinched, raising his hands, “Oh..! Well. Because you’re so mysterious and you hunt with those big dogs! We’ve never seen anything like it so they’re letting their imaginations run wild, I suppose. They did the same with Senku, at least until he made ramen.”

She slumped into the dirt in front of him, pouting still, “Oh…” She hid her face in her lap. 

“...Is your arm hurt?”

She glanced up at him without lifting her head, “Yeah...no one is at the science hut...so I came to see if someone could help.”

The old man smiled warmly, “Of course we can. You just wait right there,” and then he leaned back into the hut, “Alumi! The Princess came over the bridge. She’s hurt so do you think you could take a look?”

“Oh of course,” a shaky voice called from inside. The old man lifted back the hide flap and an equally small old woman came out, her shoulder-length silver hair perfectly framing her wrinkly face and warm smile. “Let me see where you’re hurt, dearie.”

Slowly Umeka lifted her arm and turned it over, letting Alumi undo the wrapping she’d put on it as she walked back through the woods, “Oh my this looks very painful, you poor thing.”

Umeka’s lip quivered, “Yeah….it was.”

“Oh ho ho,” she laughed gently, petting the top of Umeka’s head, “well we’ll get it all patched up. Don’t cry now, you’re okay.”

⛮⛮⛮

Senku was overjoyed. Of all the things he’d thought Kaseki and Chrome were building he’d never expected them to come up with the water wheel. Now that he’d shown them how to make a battery and they were on their way to making a new gear to upgrade the furnace it had been a hugely productive day. 

Of course, all that meant was there was no more goofing around. Now they needed to go to expert mode because the light bulbs were going to be easy and there was still step after step to go to make a cell phone. He certainly wasn’t going to reveal that they needed to make two, at least not until the first one was done.

He glanced around the camp. Umeka had left to go hunting hours ago now. It felt like she should be back now, even if it was just to clean the game and get it ready to be cooked, after all she was a petite girl, how much could she even carry? He looked under the hut, all seven dogs were there. That wasn’t like her at all, one of them always stayed with her when she was out, he’d noticed that much because he counted them occasionally since she had a habit of coming and going without telling anymore. No, something was definitely wrong.

“Looking for Ume?” Gen said, seeming to materialize at his shoulder. 

“You realize it’s creepy when you do that, right?”

“Don’t change the subject just because you don’t like it when you're perceived having an emotion.”

“What the hell are you talking about,” Senku deadpanned at Gen who grinned broadly.

“You care about Ume, don’t you? Because she’s not adjusting to the Kingdom of Science very quickly,” his grin became maniacal, curling at the mouth like an old cartoon, “unless of course, you’re just in love with her.”

Senku rolled his eyes, “Spare me.”

Gen huffed, his expression returning to his usual smarm, “Wherever little Ume ran off to she must be in friendly territory,” he said, pointing by a fire where hr bow lay, “she never goes off without that after all.”

Senku frowned, “Yeah, you’re right.”

“Oh, you are worried!”

“Will you shove it? You’re the mentalist, where did she go then?”

“So ensitve-say,” he sang as he glided to her bow, he picked it up and blinked when the string drifted down, “Oh…”

Now Senku’s frown shifted to a grimace, he reached out cupping the broken string in his hand, it felt crusty. He lifted it and sniffed, ignoring the face Gen made, “blood…”

Gen laughed awkwardly, “Well sure...she’s a hunter...right…? So...blood.”

Senku raised an eyebrow, “I know you have at least a millimeter of an idea how a bow and arrow work.”

“Right...so it’s….her’s?”

“Logic dictates,” Senku straightened, “And if she came back hurt and couldn’t find anyone here…”

“The village.”

“Let’s go.”

⛮⛮⛮

Alumi and the old man, who’d introduced himself and Natri, guided her into their home, a small low hut positively filled with hides and skins. 

“Oh sorry about the mess,” Natri said, folding some deer hide neatly and gesturing for her to sit, “We mostly handle the tanning now that we’re old! Good work for those of us that can’t walk far. You’ve been keeping us busy.”

“O-Oh,” she mumbled, awkwardly shifting around.

“This might sting a little,” Alumi said, blowing gently on her arm, “but it’s just water to wash it out. You were smart to wrap it.”

“Uh... right of course,” she tilted her head, “you’re supposed to keep wounds clean and covered, aren’t you? Grandma always said.”

“Hmm…” Alumi sighed, “You’d be surprised how many of our young hunters think they should rub dirt in a wound and move on.”

“Yes,” Natri chimed in, settling down by the window, “we’ve lost a lot of strong warriors that way...especially...well…”

“Shh, Natri, not now,” Alumi waved at him. She was so gentle Umeka hadn’t even noticed that she’d started to wash her arm, the weak freshly formed scabs occasionally breaking off and bleeding again. Her skin felt so raw even the gentlest touch made her wince but Alumi seemed very experienced at reading the subtle signs of discomfort, “Don’t worry, Princess, I’ll be done soon.”

“Why…” Umeka sighed, “Why are you calling me that?”

“Princess isn’t your name?”

“What?”

“The kids! They said Senku called you Princess Mononoke. Oh! Do you not like the nickname? It’s just Princess Mononoke is such a long name around the village we just call you Princess now,” Natri smiled.

She felt her face go hot. Her mouth wobbled again, an uncomfortable smile breaking on her lips, “Oh please don’t call me that at all. My name is Umeka.”

“Oh!” the old couple explained, glancing at each other. 

Alumi laughed, “So sorry! Natri mentioned it, didn't he? All the kids and their fascination with you. They must be making up stories with every little thing they see and hear.”

Her blush worsened to the point she could almost feel herself sweating, “I wish they wouldn’t.”

Alumi smiled, gently tapping her on the nose with the corner of the cool wet cloth, smiling at her softly in a way that reminded her of her grandmother. 

“So I suppose you aren’t half wolf?”

“I don’t think so.”

“And you didn’t punch Magma?”

“What? No.”

“Shame.”

“Natri!” Alumi scolded, looking back at her husband who looked out the window, twisting his face into an expression that said ‘who me?’ making Umeka laugh.

“Oh look! It’s Senku and Gen now,” he smiled back at them.

The thought of Senku seeing her injured only made her more embarrassed though she wasn’t sure why. Before she could protest Natri waved out of the window, “Senku! Come here for a moment.”

“What is it, old man? We’re a little busy, ya know.”

“Oh sorry, we can probably handle it then if you’re busy, it’s just Umeka got hurt hunting so-”

Before Natri could finish Senku yanked back the curtain over the doorway, “There you are!”

Gen sighed loudly behind him as he marched in, squatting in front of her and staring at her arm, “You should have told me your bow was that worn out! We could have fixed it so this wouldn’t happen.”

“I...didn’t want to bother you.”

“Like you getting hurt isn’t a bother?”

She felt her lower lip tremble, the threat of tears in her eyes once more. Senku’s annoyed expression immediately melting into one of fear, “Wait...wait-”

“Nice oing-gay, Senku,” Gen teased, “maybe just actually bully her next time.”

Senku twisted, looking back at him quickly before looking at her again, “Don’t cry it’s just. I’d ten billion percent rather have to sidetrack to fix something quickly than have to deal with someone getting hurt. That’s all. Okay? So...just don’t cry.”

She sniffled, “I’m not crying.”

“Heh,” he huffed, a small smirk on his face, “Sure. Mind if I take over here?”

Alumi smiled, “Oh sure, I hope we were able to help a little at least.”

“You did,” he nodded, standing and heading to the door, “come on, I gotta whip something up at the science shack.”

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka sat on the table like a medical patient, calmly watching as he worked, Gen trying to entertain her desperately from where he leaned at the door. 

“Are you sure you feel okay, Ume?”

“Yeah...I’m all right, it doesn’t hurt anymore.”

“Well that’s good but I meant…” Senku could feel Gen’s eyes on him, “I meant from when Senku was trying to make you cry earlier.”

“I wasn’-” he frowned, looking back at him, “you know what. Out. Go on.” He lifted a beaker of water, shaking it at him, “Back!”

Gen squealed, “What is that! Senku!”

Senku advanced, raising the beaker, forcing a maniacal grin onto his face, “What else would it be but sulfurina herself?”

“Senku!” Gen squirmed, backing out of the door, “Seriously?! Hey, are you serious?!”

He rushed down the ladder and Senku turned back to Umeka who raised an eyebrow, “What was it?”

“Just water,” he shrugged, setting the beaker down. 

Umeka smiled slightly, rolling her eyes, “What are you making?”

“Well…” he sighed, “I’ve been trying to isolate Streptomyces fradiae for a while now but I haven’t been working on it very hard, and honestly, I don’t think we have the equipment available right now.”

“Uh...what? Step toe mice Friday?”

Senku snorted, “Close enough. It’s a species of actinobacteria, discovered in 1949 by a doctor and his student at an American university. It’s used in making tylosin, fosfomycin, and neomycin, all antibiotics. You might no neomycin better as-”

“Neosporin!”

He blinked, then grinned at her, “Ten billion points, Bacitracin too.”

“But you can’t make it?”

“Well..” he sighed, rubbing his forehead, “It’s not so much that I can’t make it. I’ve got where it should exist there in that jar,” he said, jabbing his thumb in a dark corner of the room, “the problem is it’s one tiny organism that has to be extracted. After all, get the wrong thing and you just smear bacteria all over someone that’s already sick or injured. It’s why we made sulfadrugs for Ruri.”

She blinked at him and he waved his hand, “Don’t worry about it. Old news.”

“Okay...so…”

“So we’re kicking it old school,” he sighed, rubbing his neck, “Which I’ve gotta be honest my scientific heart doesn’t love. But there’s a reason cultures across the globe from the native peoples in America to ancient Egypt and China used them. They do work.”

“...What does?”

He grinned at her pulling out a bulb of garlic, a sprig of clove, and a ginger root. She blinked. Eyebrows immediately furrowing, “What are you making soup?”

“No, you idiot,” he rolled his eyes, setting to pasting the ingredients together, “We’re going to rub them on your arm.”

“I guess…” she squinted, “grandma mentioned honey and ginger once when I was sick. But she made me eat it.”

“Sure,” Senku shrugged, “if you have strep throat it’s just from a bunch of gross bacteria throwing a party in there. Eat something that kills them, feel better.”

“And it’ll work just...slapped up there?”

“Well,” he smirked at her, “I was just going to gently apply it, I don’t think slapping will improve the efficacy at all.”

She frowned at him and he laughed, working in silence for a moment. It bothered him a lot more than he expected that she’d gotten hurt. Especially over something he could have prevented. He wondered how accustomed he was going to have to get to that feeling. How many more people might get hurt trying to help him? Especially if the fight with Tsukasa got out of hand. 

“By the way,” he blinked, looking at the less than amused expression on Umeka’s face, “the village kids think my name is ‘Princess Mononoke’ because of you?”

He laughed, making her pout at him even harder, “Well it sort of is, isn’t it?”

“No! It’s not!”

“A nickname.”

“No!”

“Codename?”

“Senku.”

“No, that can’t be your codename, it's my name, that would be too confusing.”

She huffed, pursing her lips at him. A look that melted when he took hold of her wrist and turned her arm over, “I gotta be honest. This is probably gonna sting.”

“Don’t worry,” she shrugged her free shoulder, “couldn’t sting more than the bowstring.”

He nodded, applying it as gently as he could. She flinched but didn’t say anything, watching as he calmly rubbed the pungent paste on her arm. When he was finished he picked up a clean cloth, wrapping it around her arm without looking up until he was done. When he looked up again he immediately caught her eye. He blinked in surprise, awkwardly straightening up when she blushed and looked away. 

“Well…” he sighed, picking at his ear, “we’ve got some left over…”

“...you want to put it on the meat don’t you?”

“Well...it’s a shame to waste it, right?” he smirked.

“You’re such a bully,” she sighed, slipping off the counter.

“I beg your pardon, Princess.”

She cut her eyes at him again, “Senku!”

“Oh, San right, sorry!”

“Stop!” she whined. Going to cross her arms. 

He reached out quickly, gently grabbing her fingers, “Don’t mess up my work! Now,” he let her go quickly, walking past her to the door, “Let’s eat. Then we can work on upgrading your bow. We could paint it red, make it look like you stole it from the prince.”

“Please.”

“Okay fine,” he sighed, turning as she climbed down the ladder, “But come back injured over something we could have fixed and I’m getting the whole village in on teasing you.” She smiled, shaking her head at him but didn’t say anything else as they walked to the fire flanked by her dogs and the cool fall wind.

Chapter Text

Back at her house, Umeka had kept a calendar. She’d been too young when she first woke up to think about time. To think of the importance of tracking certain aspects of her life but as she got older she realized timing was everything; she needed to know when to plant certain crops, when the bears would be preparing to hibernate, when the deer would be mating. Her calendar had a simple beginning, she marked the days of her cycle when they began and how long they lasted. It had been a start but they were inconsistent, sometimes months between, sometimes ten days, and others two. So instead she began compiling information. She would write down the first frost and the first snow. She’d keep track of the days it rained, when she saw the first young fawn stumbling in the woods, and the constellations moving through the sky. Over the years she was able to form a sort of almanac, based on the seasons and the trends through the years. She hadn’t bothered with the months, after all, the constellations were in different seasons now so it stood to reason that the months wouldn’t match up anymore. 

“Umeka!” Kohaku screamed through the trees.

Umeka blinked free from her thoughts. She’d been perched in a tree, waiting for a deer to pass the clearing. Something that wouldn’t happen now that Kohaku’s powerful voice was ripping through the leaves. 

Umeka turned and looked over her shoulder back to the clearing where the Science lab was, where Kohaku’s voice had come from. Before she could move she saw a blur of blue shooting over the branches. Umeka jolted as Kohaku landed, crouched in front of her on the branch.

“Uh...yes?” Umeka sputtered, voice cracking from her long silence. 

“I need your help with the battle team training,” Kohaku was staring at her, big blue eyes locked on fiercely. She was confident and assertive, not rude but it always made Umeka nervous. 

“Right...now?” Umeka blinked, sitting up from where she’d been leaning against the tree trunk.

“Yeah,” Kohaku said shortly, reaching to hold Umeka’s wrist, “come on.”

Umeka sighed shortly, it wasn’t like she’d be getting a deer now that Kohaku had leaped through the trees screaming for her. Still, she wasn’t excited to go back to the town. There were so many different people. All with different needs, thoughts, personalities. It was hard to keep track of so even though she’d been there for weeks now she tried to avoid it as much as she could. She didn’t have long to worry though. Kohaku pulled her to her feet and leaped, hand still grasping around Umeka’s wrist, pulling her along as she hopped from tree to tree. 

Umeka stumbled after her, barely catching her footing before Kohaku launched off again. By the time they landed in the clearing Umeka felt dizzy and doubled over, bracing her hands on her knees and breathing deeply through her nose. 

“Are you all right, Umeka?” Kinro’s gentle voice asked somewhere beyond her.

She groaned back. 

She felt a hand on her back briefly.

“Ginro!” Kinro shouted as the hand vanished, “Keep your hands to yourself!”

“Whaaat!?” Ginro whined with a false cuteness in his voice, “I was just trying to help!”

Umeka stood back up as Kohaku punched Ginro on the back of his head. She shut her eyes as Ginro moaned about the pain; it would be a long evening. 

⛮⛮⛮

It wasn’t hard to keep Umeka’s home clean. It was so high up off the ground even tree-climbing animals didn’t come up to rest in it. The worst Tukasa had dealt with so far was a series of bird nests that had been easy enough to relocate outside. He left everything else in its place, as much as he sometimes wanted to look through her things for clues. 

Deep down he knew she was with Senku’s group. If she’d gone on her own she wouldn’t have left so much at the house. Even if she was afraid of him she would have risked a run-in with him and taken something. He frowned, jumping down from the hole in the house floor rather than climbing the ladder, and immediately began his run to their base. He still maintained the secret of her home from the others. He’d brought a few things back, very slowly so it would go unnoticed by the majority of his group. Of course, not everyone he woke was foolish. 

As he walked past the guards Hokutozai approached him. He sighed, softly enough she couldn’t hear.

“How was your secret hike?” she said, smiling softly as she spoke, hands folding neatly behind her back.

“Secret hike?” he repeated. 

She flustered, a blush spreading on her cheeks, “Well you always...you know you go off on your own and don’t let anyone come so. Secret hike.”

He forced himself to smile, watching how the comfort washed over her, “It was fine. Thanks.”

He walked quickly, trying to get past her. Hoping she would assume he had business to attend to.

“Is she-” Hokutozai spoke, her voice catching in her throat, Tsukasa froze but didn’t turn around. He felt a heat rise in his stomach. An anger he didn’t know he could feel so easily. It felt shameful, a primalness he’d spent learning to control for so long. “Is she out there?”

“No,” he said shortly, then he walked faster. A clear sign he didn’t want to talk with her any longer. He didn’t want to discuss Umeka with any of them. Not until he could get her back.

⛮⛮⛮

“So what do you need me to do?” Umeka asked, stomach still tumbling from her trip with Kohaku. 

“Shoot at them,” Kohaku said shortly.

“Oka-wait what,” Umeka blinked, hands moving to knock an arrow without thinking about it. 

Ginro jumped behind his brother, “Yeah what are you talking about?!”

Kohaku sighed, folding her arms across her chest, “Look. Realistically they’re going to have other weapons, right? We’ve got the spears and the katanas now, but I’m sure they have something long range too. It would be dumb not to.”

Umeka nodded, “I don’t remember seeing an archer with them when I was there but...I wasn’t looking for one.”

“So Umeka is going to help us. She’ll shoot at you. You’ll deflect it.”

Umeka looked at Kinro who tried to hold strong, his mouth pressed into a hard line. His eyebrows, furrowing painfully behind his glasses, made it clear he was worried. She thought that was pretty smart, she’d never shot at a person before but she was certain they wouldn’t be able to deflect her shots. Ginro however was now openly sobbing, snot flowing from his nose so fluidly that Umeka felt her stomach turn again. 

“You aren’t actually going to do it are you, Ume?” Ginro cried, reaching for her.

She took a step back, “Uh well…” she glanced at Kohaku.

Kohaku’s expression went flat, grabbing Ginro by his collar and dragging him back, “She’s going to. You’ve gotta learn.”

Umeka sighed, turning and pacing away from them.

“Uh...where are you going?” Kinro called.

“Further,” Umeka shouted over her shoulder, “The further I am the longer you have to track the arrow and knock it down. And the slower the arrow will be by the time it gets to you.”

When she turned Kohaku had taken a place to the side, in the middle of herself and the brothers, “It’s more realistic that way too. It’s not like their archers are going to be close to you.”

Umeka took a deep breath, raising her bow. She wondered if Kohaku would know if she cheated it. She didn’t want to aim at the boys, she’d never shot an arrow at a human before. Even the one time she’d tried to threaten Tsukasa she felt like she was going to throw up.

“Oh,” Kohaku said suddenly, as though she was reading Umeka’s thoughts, “and make sure you really aim for them. They aren’t going to learn if they aren’t really in danger.”

Umeka swallowed dryly, “Isn’t that dangerous…?”

“Of course it is but,” Kohaku frowned, a small crack in her well-crafted armor, a brief moment where Umeka could sense her concern for her friends, “better to be in a little danger here where they’re safe than in the battle with Tsukasa.”

Umeka nodded, pulling back on the string, “Kinro. Ready?”

Kinro stiffened, holding his sword out in front of him, “Yes.”

She took a deep breath and tracked the outside of his shoulder, hoping if she hit him it would be just a bad scratch. She let the arrow go and heard it whistle through the air. It wobbled awkwardly, poorly launched by the badly repaired bow. She’d have to ask Senku for help again.

Kinro moved so swiftly she could barely track it. By the time she could tell what was going on again Kinro was standing in a lunge, the sword swung forward, and the arrow in pieces at his feet.

“Ah!” she shouted without thinking.

Kohaku huffed in satisfaction, a small proud smile on her face. 

“Kinro!” Ginro cried, launching himself onto Kinro’s back and hugging him around the neck so hard Kinro choked and grabbed at his brother’s arm.

“My arrow!” Umeka cried out, frowning. She looked at Kohaku expectantly. “I didn’t think about them breaking them! I can’t lose that many arrows for training!”

Kohaku blinked, looking at the arrow and back at Umeka, “Well we can just make more…?”

“I know I can make more but it takes-”

“I said,” Kohaku cut her off, smiling gently, “ we can make more. We have a storehouse of arrows in the village for hunting. We can replace whatever you lose from there. When you’re hunting too. Did no one tell you about them?”

Umeka flushed, feeling stupid for pouting over an arrow so quickly. Her clear embarrassment made Kohaku smile more. A soft comforting smile that was a little surprising on such a tough person's face but no less sincere.

“Have you been making all your own arrows this whole time?” she asked gently.

Umeka pressed her lips together, muttering, “yes.”

She looked down, kicking at the dirt. Awkwardly glancing at Kohaku who smiled again when they made eye contact, “Well that’s okay. I’m glad you know about them now.”

Umeka could feel her ears burning, “Can we keep going?”

“Sure! Ginro!”

Ginro screamed, “wait no Kinro can do it because he’s cool don’t make me.”

Umeka pulled an arrow back, glancing at Kohaku who nodded solemnly, “Sorry, Ginro!”

The arrow ripped through the air, catching an airstream and spinning faster at its screaming blond target who ducked to the ground instead of deflecting it with his blade. The arrow continued until it buried itself in a tree. Ginro turned to see it, pointed, and screamed, “That could be me!”

“YES!” Kohaku and Kinro screamed back at him.

“It could be if you don’t learn to block it!” Kohaku yelled, rushing at him and punching him again.

Umeka knocked another arrow. As Ginro and Kohaku argued she locked eyes with Kinro. She glanced at Ginro, then back to Kinro. Then glanced between them again. Kinro nodded solemnly and she let the arrow go. 

Ginro’s body moved on instinct, flicking his wrist out as his sword sliced through the air deflecting the arrow into the dirt in front of his brother’s feet. He took a hard breath and looked between the arrow and her, “HEY!”

She glanced away, pursing her lips out. Kohaku laughed, “See! You can do it!”

Ginro cried once more. Somehow still having tears to shed, “You’re all so mean!”

Umeka smiled, listening to Kinro and Kohaku laugh. They spent the rest of their afternoon practicing until all of her arrows were broken over the field, “I can go to the storehouse and get more if that would help?”

Kohaku smiled, “Sure, it’s to the right by the other bridge. If you can’t find it, ask anyone.”

Umeka nodded, dropping her bow to the dirt and she hurried off.

⛮⛮⛮

“I don’t understand what I’m looking at, Senku,” Kaseki frowned at him. Glancing at the wood on the ground in front of him. 

“Heh,” Senku smirked, “It is weird, isn’t it?”

“Well yeah! Why would you tie two bows together facing each other?!”

Senku grinned, looking back over his plans, it had been a few days of math but he was sure he’d gotten it right. Or at least, he’d gotten the math close enough that Kaseki’s craftsmanship can get it the rest of the way, “It’s a type of bow called a cable-back bow. This particular design is based on the Penobscot bow. The Penobscots were a tribe of Native Americans. It came about around 1900, the original crossbow which...means nothing to you but. The smaller bow on the front braces the chord making it so the string only gains three pounds per inch of draw without any hand shock where the arrow is loosed.”

Kaseki blinked up at him. 

“She can shoot better just from these small changes to the design. I'd bet someone like Umeka could triple her haul from hunting,” Senku nodded, “These bows are also famous for shooting some crazy arrows, as long as the shooter's arms. It’s an insane upgrade for her.”

“Well!” Kaseki clapped his hands, “I don’t really understand but maybe I will when it’s done. If it’ll keep her from getting her arm cut then it’s worth it!”

Senku smirked and turned back to his paperwork while Kaseki set to work. He’d tried to get Umeka to wait. He wanted to give her the new bow before she went out hunting again. Her wound was healing well and in all honesty, it probably wasn’t that bad in the first place but it was still unnerving. She’d stayed in for a few days, admitting that her arm did hurt too bad to pull back the bow for any extended period of time. This morning though she’d shaken him awake before the sun had even cracked over the horizon whispering that she needed to go hunting but wanted his help to repair the bowstring. He’d tried to convince her to wait, though he didn’t want to admit his plans for her new bow. She’d seemed fidgety and nervous and it was clear his help or not she was going out and hunting. 

He wondered when she was going to come back, pausing to glance around the clearing in case she’d slipped up without him noticing. She’d been doing better in general. For all his annoying comments she seemed comfortable with Gen and often at night when they all ate dinner she found her way to his side or otherwise receded to where the dogs stayed under the observatory claiming she had to go and feed them. She’d gotten friendly with the old couple but beyond them, she seemed nervous around the villagers. He didn’t want to force anything so he didn’t even allow himself to comment on her slow adjustment. It wasn’t any of his business anyway. He wouldn’t have drawn up the plans for the bow if it wouldn’t serve them all. A more advanced weapon would be better for hunting and the worst-case scenario of the coming conflict with Tsukasa. 

“Uh, Senku?”

Senku blinked, looking down at Kaseki and the now beautifully finished bow. A grin broke across Senku’s face, “You sure are fast for an old man!”

“Ha!” Kaseki laughed, though it was gruff and harsh, annoyed at having it pointed out but knowing he was indeed old, “Is this what you wanted?”

“Yeah, it’s perfect now, here,” he tossed another paper to Kaseki, “Take this, she’ll need some better arrows for this too.” Then he turned and hurried off toward the village.

“Wait where are you going?”

“Well we need Umeka if we’re going to test your work, don’t we gramps?”

“Feh!” Kaseki shouted after him and Senku scanned the faces that he passed on his way into the village.

⛮⛮⛮

Every village clearing was full of children and the elderly spinning baskets and baskets of gold. It reminded Umeka of a fairytale. Like the town had to make a beautiful rope for a king. Even though it was overcast the gold glittered beautifully as she walked by, carefully picking her footing over the thin threads.

Despite the beauty and the complete absurdity of the amount of gold, they had no one looked happy. Instead, they grumbled, twisting their fingers across the threads. 

“Hey!” A little boy shouted, yanking the threads back from a girl beside him and making her gasp as the metal slid through her fingers. 

“Ow! That hurt!” she yelled at him, raising a hand to smack him on the arm.

“Wait!” Suika yelled out, holding her hands up to them both, “I know it’s hard but we’ve gotta keep working! Senku is relying on us…!”

“But it’s hard!”

“Yeah! My fingers hurt!”

Suika hung her head, “Well...I know...but…”

“Have you guys ever heard of a work song?” Umeka spoke before she could catch herself. The whole group turned to look at her. She flushed, feet stumbling back without thought, “Uhm...sorry...for listening in I-”

“What’s a…'song'?” The little boy asked eyebrow arched suspiciously.

She felt her jaw fall open in shock. She couldn’t believe they hadn’t come up with music in all their time since the Green Light. Then again, they didn’t seem to have any art, beyond the beautiful weapons like Kohaku’s old shield. Even their clothing was simple, with rough edges and a narrow color pallet. She took a deep breath. 

“Uh...have you ever like uh…” she blinked, then she whistled a little tune. The first one that occurred to her; the theme from Pokemon. 

Now the group gapped at her, “You can make that noise! Like a bird!”

She smiled softly, “Well everyone can do that, you just have to learn but...like a bird! Yeah! Bird’s sing! And their songs tell other birds different things! A work song is like that. It helps pass the time and keep everyone on track so you don’t snatch things or hurt each other. It might help with tedious work.”

The kids seemed to vibrate with excitement. Overjoyed at the idea of anything that would lessen the burden of their work. Umeka turned, looking around. She spotted a jar by a doorway and wandered over. It was empty so she picked it up and carried it to the center of the circle. She plopped down, setting the jar between her legs, mouth down, she patted on the pot, satisfied with the hollow thunk that echoed inside. 

She glanced around at the eager faces watching her, then shut her eyes and took a deep breath, patting on the drum, “So I’ll play this,” she said, tapping out the simple rhythm, and sing a line. And every time I finish I want you...to say ‘yes, yes,’ okay? I can teach you more once we have that, okay?”

She heard echoes of yes, and she began playing the old Soran song her grandfather traveled to Hokkaido to learn. She shut her eyes, ignoring the boring stares of the villagers. The jar didn’t make for a very beautiful sounding drum, and her voice trembled nervously knowing she was being so closely observed but for a moment, with her eyes shut as she played she could almost feel her grandfather’s over hers as he taught her the song when she was small and in her shaking voice she heard her mother and her grandmother singing along with the voices of the villagers all around her.

Chapter Text

Twisting the golden threads had become a truly abysmal chore. Suika knew she had to do it. Knew she would do it. In fact, even if Senku needed enough chord to wrap around the entire island until you couldn’t see the ocean anymore she would do it, but it was horrible. Working from one basket with multiple people meant the other kids were arguing more often than not and Suika was having a hard time keeping everyone on the same page. Worse, others, who hadn’t had their lives changed by the power of science like she had, often tried to slack off. They’d say they needed to go pee and Suika would find them later, running around in the fields or taking a nap. The work was so terrible and boring that even the promise of delicious ramen and cool science shows wasn’t keeping everyone’s focus. 

But now, as Umeka hit the bottom of the jar she held between her crossed legs everyone was focused, fingers twisting the shining thread in time with her. Umeka’s face was pink and her eyes darted around, avoiding looking at anyone for too long, but her voice was strong and loud. It sounded so different from the other times that Suika had heard her talk. She’d said the word ‘song’ earlier, so, this must be some special way of talking. It was beautiful. It sounded like Umeka but so different, like watching Kohaku walk versus when she would flip and jump. The beauty of Umeka’s voice was in how smoothly it seemed to move. How it changed with the words and with the drum. 

The song was so fun, so simple, that soon everyone was singing along. Others who hadn’t been involved with the gold threads joined in, picking up bowls and watching the hands around them to learn so they could have an excuse to join in. 

When Umeka stopped the crowd erupted, “More! Sing more!”

“Yeah! Start from the top; SOOORAN SOOORAN!”

Others began to chant and Umeka’s face reddened further. She seemed to swallow, “Uh…okay uhm…well…other songs I know need a shamisen-”

“Where do we get one from?!”

“Uh!” Umeka blushed worse, lighting up her face in a way that made a wobbly smile break onto Suika’s own mouth. 

She rushed forward standing in front of Umeka. She faced the crowd and put her arms out, as if she could shield the nervous teenager, “Quit yelling at her! Umeka is doing something nice! Don’t be greedy!”

The crowd seemed to calm down, bashful now realizing how caught up they were getting, some muttered apologies as they fiddled with the golden threads.

“Uhm…” Umeka spoke, peaking over Suika’s shoulder from her seated position, “A shamisen is an instrument. It’s made to make music. This…uh…this jar is an instrument right now but because it wasn’t made for that it’s not very good. A shamisen is made for music and it’s a different type of instruments so-”

“How is it different?”

“Uh…a-a drum is…like…you hit it? Normally I think they’re wood and an animal skin but a shamisen is strings and wood and…okay I never made one so maybe I don’t really know.”

Toward the back, Carbo jumped to his feet and ran off but before Suika could call after him Shovel asked, “Can you use the jar to show us another song?”

“Yes…uhm…” Suika stepped aside looking at Umeka who tapped her chin, “What about…oh…! Would you rather hear a song about sticking things in the ground to build a long road for a big machine or a song for digging deep in the ground and getting shiny things?”

“Both!”

“....okay, but…which one first…?”

And then, unsurprisingly everyone began to argue. 

Umeka looked at Suika, “Would you like to pick?”

Suika thought for a moment and then grinned, “Which is your favorite?”

Umeka blinked. Suika hadn’t spent much time with her yet, Umeka tended to go hunting in the forest with her big dogs. As the mornings got chillier and the nights got closer and closer, Suika often spotted Umeka wrapped in thick furs moving along the edge of the treeline in a way that made her look like a scary monster. But now, as she grinned back at her, Suika thought she was really very beautiful. Her brown eyes tilted down slightly, emphasizing the freckles that peppered her nose. Whisps of her black hair danced around her face in the breeze and as she turned to sing a song with a strong beat, smiling as the villagers slowly joined in Suika thought she really did deserve the nickname Senku gave her, it really was like a princess had wandered from the forest. 

⛮⛮⛮

“I’m not crazy, right?” Kaseki asked, cupping a hand over his ear.

“Depends on the context, gramps, why are you asking?” Senku said, smirking down at the elderly man.

Kaseki rolled his eyes, “Can’t you hear all that racket? I’ve never heard anything like that before in my life.”

Senku’s amused expression melted to concentration, he squinted his eyes slightly, tilting his head like Kaseki did toward the village, then a wicked grin broke onto his face that sent a chill up Kaseki’s spine, “You’ve never heard a song before?”

“A…song?”

“...wow,” Senku sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, “guess we’re definitely not going for a cultural victory in this civ game.”

Kaseki stared at him blankly. Sometimes he was certain Senku was just making words up. This was one of those times and he would have said so too had Gen not come running up the bridge to them. He stopped as soon as he was on solid ground in front of them, “Oh thank heavens you were easy to find for once.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“It doesn’t matter you’ve got to come to the village. It’s Umeka.”

Kaseki could feel how Senku’s body went rigid, the light amused air he always seemed to be in vanished. Senku straightened and moved toward Gen slightly, “What happened?”

Kaseki glanced up at Gen, noting the glint that came into his eye as he said, “Oh nothing baaaaad, don’t worry. She’s just up to a little something that I think will make you fall even more in love with her.”

And just like that Senku’s air shifted again, his expression flattened and he grimaced at Gen, “You’ve gotta stop saying that.”

Kaseki scratched his head, “Now, wait, I’m confused. You’re in love with Umeka? Is that why we made her this bow?”

“No. No, I am not in love with her. Love is illogical. It’s an impulse that blinds you to facts. I would also be ten billion percent creepy if I was goo-goo-gaa-gaa for a girl I just met. Gen just has emotional issues that he likes to project,” Senku spat, folding his arms over his chest and frowning at Gen.

Gen clasped his hand over his heart, “So defensive for a man literally carrying a gift he had made for a woman he just met.”

Senku’s eye twitched, “It is a bow. You know? The weapon.”

“Oooh Senku,” Gen sang, “that would be threatening if I hadn’t already seen how little upper body strength you have.”

Senku stared for a moment, “Okay. Well. I’m not wasting any more time on this. Kaseki. Let’s go.”

“Oh, you’re no fun.”

“That conversation wasn’t even a millimeter of fun.”

“Are we ever going to discuss the fact that you are totally misusing those measurements almost constantly?”

Kaseki started to move faster. Sometimes he couldn’t stand to hear how those two would bicker. Or how any of them would really. He just wanted to build neat things. No time for arguments. Or any sort of goofing around really, especially now with how much he had left to learn thanks to Senku. He walked quickly as Gen and Senku got louder and louder behind him, rushing up only to find the village all talking in the strangest way he’d ever heard. Children were holding hands in a circle and jumping as Umeka, sitting in the center of it all, slapped her hands on a jar. Others called out responses as Umeka shouted, her voice fluctuating in a beautiful way he’d never heard. As bizarre as it was, the sounds Umeka was making and the joy on everyone's faces as they moved and played together were so beautiful his eyes welled with tears instantly. 

“Heh, Princess Mononoke strikes again,” Senku said from behind him.

Gen whistled, “She’s got quite a nice voice. But what a weird song to pick, don’t you think? Though you know, I love a floral reference so I’ll never be mad about hearing Song of Picking Safflowers.”

“Song of what?”

Gen grinned down at him, “This is an old folk song, like old old. Like it was old when we were alive. I recognize it but I can’t say I would know it. Looks like Umeka might be our historical source. It’s actually quite lovely to hear something so old and to think only one person remembered it and now a whole village knows it…” Gen’s thoughts seemed to drift, he turned slightly raising his sleeve to his face.

“Heh,” Senku smirked, “You big softy.”

“Oh shut up, you just don’t care because it’s not science.”

“Who said I didn’t care?” Senku frowned, “This is great, Look how well everyone is working. Productivity is going to go through the roof!”

Gen frowned, “You would focus on that.”

“And just think! Maybe there’s a bunch of babies like you-”

“Hey!”

“-in Tsukasa’s group who would hear these old songs and see the ramen and want to join us so they can be in a more familiar setting. Looks like cultural victory is back on the table.”

Kaseki glanced up at Gen but Gen didn’t seem to get the reference either. So maybe Senku really did make that phrase up. 

“Hey, Umeka!” Carbo shouted running down the street from the village toward them, “I made…I made a drum. Right?!”

Umeka stood, brushing the dirt from her clothes. Carbo rushed up and presented a deep carved wooden bowl that must have been for storage now with a thick animal skin stretched over the top and sloppily nailed down. Umeka’s back was to them but it was clear she was assessing it. Kaseki could make something better in his sleep but he was impressed Carbo had even tried. For years and years, no one but him had made anything new. Of course, there were other people in the village who made beautiful shields and spears and arrows but no one was trying to make better ones. He looked at the bow Senku had him make earlier, the one he still had in his hand now. He wondered if they would have ever made something like that without the young man grinning and walking up to Umeka now.

“Looks like a drum to me,” Senku called. 

Umeka flinched, turning swiftly to Senku. Her face was beet red now, a nervous smile on her mouth, “Y-Yeah I think he did a good job.”

“Nice!” Carbo shouted, taking over the center of the work circle to show off his drum. Kaseki thought he’d have to take note of what he used and make a better one when he was back at his workshop later. After all, if they were going to do this song thing they might as well do it right. 

⛮⛮⛮

Senku smirked broadly. Umeka was so tough and so clever but she seemed to get so embarrassed so easily. She squirmed slightly in front of him, “I uh…just thought it would help so-”

“Oh, you were definitely right with that hypothesis. Look at them go,” Senku said, thumbing toward the villagers furiously beating on Carbo’s new drum. “You didn’t mention that you were a talented singer. Got any other secrets we should maybe know about?”

“I wouldn’t say talented-”

“That’s okay. You can be wrong.”

She blushed which made Senku smirk harder. She diverted her eyes, “I liked singing as a kid I guess…it’s just what I did to stay awake.”

He blinked, “Wait…you mean…in the stone?”

“Hmm? Yeah. In the stone, I sang to myself. I-” she leaned in slightly, “I was always pretty afraid of the dark if I’m being honest. I hated being in the stone so singing helped keep my mind off of it.”

Senku nodded,turning toward the villagers, “Sure…that makes sense. Statistically speaking about 20% of children develop a sustained fear of the dark.”

Behind him, Umeka laughed, a soft lilting laugh that made him turn to look at her. She was grinning, an amused squint to her eyes that crinkled her nose slightly, “You remember too much.”

“Ha! Too much, huh?” 

“Yeah.”

Senku rubbed his neck. Maybe he needed to lay off the salty foxtail millet ramen, his blood pressure felt a little high.

“Ummmeeee,” Gen sang, slinking an arm over her shoulders and pulling her to his side, “Senku has a little gift for you.”

“Senku and me!” Kaseki called from where he was already furiously disassembling a protesting Carbo’s drum.

“I wouldn’t so much call it a gift as-”

“I would call it a gift.”

“Well, I didn’t ask you, Gen.”

“Can I have it?” Umeka asked, face lit up, “I love gifts.”

Senku snorted, “Somehow I didn’t expect that.”

“How could she not? I mean have you gotten many gifts over the last what…nine years?” Gen asked, looking down at Umeka.

She looked up at him, smiling as she played along, “I know it’s surprising but actually I have gotten no gifts while struggling to survive on my own.”

“Unbelievable.”

“Hilarious. You are both just…so funny,” Senku said, rolling his eyes, “Can we go to the not-gift gift then? Get this over with. Maybe you two forgot but we are sort of working on bringing humanity back. Modern innovations, civilization as we know it. Sound familiar?”

“Vaguely,” Gen chirped as he and Umeka began to walk together, his arm still looped over her shoulders. Contact she was surprisingly comfortable with.

“Actually I don’t think I know any of those words,” Umeka smiled, putting her arm around Gen to steady herself as they walked.

Senku grimaced and turned away. He needed some water, or a good dose of potassium, his blood pressure was really starting to feel off. 

⛮⛮⛮

“Do I get a hint?” Umeka asked, grinning at Gen. 

He pulled his arm free from her, dramatically tucking it back into his opposite sleeve, he bent backward slightly and then slowly leaned forward taking a deep breath before whispering, “No.”

She pouted, turning away from him as he laughed. Senku had headed off to get the prize as soon as they crossed the bridge. In the quiet, between Gen’s teasing laugh she could hear the sound of a much better drum and the slightly warbling voices of the villagers that had just learned what a song was. She smiled, “I can’t believe they didn’t make music.”

“Well…” Gen leaned in slightly, “I think maybe…they were a little closer to dying out than we really think about…you know? It’s such a small village after all…with no art and no music. I must have been all survival all the time. But Senku is giving them back their free time, and now you’ve helped them to start accessing art…that’s really something.”

She blushed slightly, “It’s not really a big deal I-”

“Oh. I would say it is. Access to art and to the materials needed to make art has been a major motivator for exploration throughout humanity. And that song you taught them…it mattered enough for people in our time to remember it. So I think…it probably is a big deal,” Gen smiled at her with the wise smile he would do sometimes. It reminded her a little of her grandfather. Not that they were really anything alike but…that smile. A grin that told you he knew or understood something you didn’t yet. Gen was good at that sort of smile.

Senku cleared his throat, “If you two have a moment,” Umeka straightened, blinking at Senku as he approached with a long object covered in a cloth, “I’ve got the ‘gift,’ if we’re really sticking with that terminology.”

“We are,” Gen chirped. 

Senku rolled his eyes but held the object out to Umeka with a slight smile on his face, “Okay, take a look.”

When she reached out she realized her hands were shaking just ever so slightly. It was just so exciting to be getting something. It felt a little silly but other than dead vermin the dogs would bring her sometimes she hadn’t been given anything in a long time. Unless of course, you counted the bear from Tsukasa which she didn’t. She wondered if Senku noticed her fingers trembling, she guessed he did, given how he lifted the cloth-covered object to meet her hands. She pinched the fabric lightly and pulled it away, met with the strangest bow she’d ever seen.

They lingered in silence for a moment before Senku coughed slightly and spoke, “Do you know what it-”

“It’s a bow…right?”

“Yeah, but-”

“I’ve never seen a bow like this! What is it?”

Senku laughed, “I was trying to tell you. This is a double-string bow. Originally made by the Penobscot, a tribe native to North America. Think of it like a very early crossbow, but…you know shaped like a normal bow, obviously.”

It was so smooth. The wood was so lovely. It even had etchings along the handle, wolves. She smiled. Kaseki must have made this. 

“Well, are you going to take it or not my arms are getting tired,” Senku chided.

“Ah! Ah! Sorry,” she said, wrapping her hands around the bow and lifting it. It was surprisingly light and fit into her hands very well. She eyed Senku and then looked the bow over, turning it in her hands, “Why did you do all this?”

“Well…we’d found your broken bow. And of course,” he gestured to her arm, “You got hurt which I told you is incredibly inconvenient and inefficient. So. This is the solution.”

“A…beautiful new bow with fancy decorations that clearly made specifically for me?” She asked, raising an eyebrow, “Isn’t efficient supposed to mean like…least amount of work for most payoff or something like that?”

“And? Your point?” Senku smirked slightly.

“Wouldn’t it be better to make a more generic bow?” She asked, squinting at him. She just wanted to catch him once. Just wanted to prove one time that he was just being nice. It had nothing to do with efficiency or what he needed or the grand scheme. It was just a nice thing he felt like doing. 

“Clearly,” he sighed, turning away, “you have no idea how much more you bring in from a hunt compared to the others. This bow is an investment. Don’t get a big head over it, Princess.”

She sighed, shutting her eyes, “Sure. Okay.”

He looked back at her, a soft smile on his face as he waved an arrow, “Wanna try it out?”

She grinned, snatching the arrow from his hand and ignoring his wicked little giggle and the way Gen sighed behind her as she rushed toward a tree trunk. She readied her grip, adjusting her stance. She knocked the arrow and drew.

“HEY!”

Umeka flinched, the arrow loosing and shooting weakly to the ground a meter or so in front of her.

“Where have you been?” Kohaku yelled, fuming as she rushed up.

Umeka turned, wide-eyed, “Oooooh no.”

“'Oh no' is right!” Kohaku yelled, “We’ve been waiting for you to come back for hours! Where have you been?! Why does your bow look so different?! And what is all that noise?!”

“My you’ve been a busy little dignitary, haven’t you?” Gen teased from behind her.

“I-I-I….I’m sorry! I forgot I-”

“We don’t have time for people to forget things, Umeka!” Kohaku’s eyebrows furrowed at her like a disappointed teacher, “We needed your help to train.”

Senku stepped between them waving his hands, “All right, all right. Chill out, lioness. So the princess wandered from her duties. It might seem like she was slacking off since we taught the villagers songs and then came to play with her new toy but,” he shrugged, “Okay. Maybe she was slacking off a little.”

“I wasn’t slacking off!” Umeka protested, blushing as Senku’s smirk grew wider and more wicked.

“Oh come on, it’s okay to admit it,” Senku tilted his head to the side, his tongue seeming to fork as his voice became more sickeningly sweet with each teasing word, “even our diligent hard working Umeka gets to take a break to sing songs and get gifts.”

“I wasn’t slacking!” She yelled, blushing furiously. She pouted and stomped her foot.

Senku laughed, his demeanor melting back to normal and he let go of the bit. He wiped a small tear from his eye, “No. Maybe she forgot and sure I can see how that would be annoying for you, Kohaku, but. The song she taught the villagers really is helping with the golden chord situation. And the gift thing…well that’s on me. Though. I didn’t know she was supposed to be with you.”

“Apparently neither did she,” Kohaku snarked. 

Umeka hung her head. She was horribly embarrassed. She didn’t even have arrows. The whole reason she’d gone to the village in the first place. 

Kohaku sighed, “Look…it’s fine. We still trained and we can train with you another day so it’s…not like it’s that big of a deal. Just…don’t forget next time.”

Umeka slowly looked up, meeting eyes with Kohaku, “I’m really sorry. I swear.”

Kohaku held her gaze for a moment before looking away, crossing her arms over her chest. She looked annoyed but when she spoke her voice was soft and affectionate, like a big sister, “Whatever. Just show me how the new bow works and we’ll call it even.”

Umeka grinned, “Deal.”

“Luckily,” Gen chimed, pulling arrows from his sleeve, a place they really didn’t seem like they would fit but given his previous profession Umeka wasn’t so surprised, “we made you some brand new arrows for your brand new customized 100% to you for totally just efficiencies sake bow.”

Senku rolled his eyes muttering, “For the love of…”

Umeka laughed, taking the arrows and knocking another. She drew scanning the treeline. She aimed at a young sapling just on the edge and then let the arrow fly. It cut through the air silently, so fast and quiet even Umeka lost track of it for a second and then the sapling broke and the top fell to the ground.

For a moment they all stood in silence and then Kohaku finally spoke, “Okay…maybe we don’t train arrow blocking with that bow.”

⛮⛮⛮

A chill shot up Umeka's spine as she poked out the fire for the night. No snow had fallen yet but soon it would be time to wear furs and prepare the roofs. She sighed. Above her, she could already hear Chrome snoring.

“Well…” Gen yawned, “Don’t stay up too late you two. Even with your little star gazing da-”

“Goodnight, Gen,” Senku barked from where he sat by the fire, not looking up from his furious sketching. 

Gen snicked but didn’t say anything back as he climbed up the ladder. Umeka watched as his robes drew up into the hut, swearing he looked back down and winked at her before receding inside but in the dark, it was hard to tell. 

Senku sighed and leaned back against Suit, who’d curled up behind him hours before.

“You look tired,” Umeka blurted.

“Yeah. I’m basically dead on my feet over here,” Senku answered matter-of-factly, “but if I don’t finish this now it’s going to be ten billion percent more difficult to remember and pick it back up later.”

“What is it?” she asked, scooting over, her bow still in her hand. She drew it up and rested her cheek against it as she looked over a complicated drawing.

Senku started to speak but then he yawned, “Can I tell you tomorrow? I’m too tired to draw and explain right now.”

She laughed, nodding back, “That’s okay, I’m probably too stupid to understand.”

Senku rolled his eyes, “You aren’t stupid at all. We just know different things. Like everyone else here. The only stupid people are people that don’t want to learn or refute proven facts.”

“...Tsukasa…then?”

Senku leaned his head back. He gazed up at the hut for a moment before looking back at her, “Yeah. I guess…in a way. Tsukasa.”

Then they went quiet. Maybe it was the weather but she felt she’d been thinking of him a lot lately. She wondered what he’d done to her things. Wondered if he’d found her bees. Her silkworms. She wondered if he’d forgotten about her or if he still prowled around her home looking for her. Or worse, if he was out looking everywhere for her. Sometimes, when she was out on hunts, a twig would snap behind her and she’d turn certain that he’d be there ready to snatch her up and take her back to his cave like a fairy tale monster. But it was never him. It was always a deer, a villager, or just the wind. It had been months but in the village, Tsukasa felt ever-present. Everything they did was to try and fend him off. The idea of seeing him again someday, armed with her new bow and whatever Senku was furiously drawing felt bizarre now that a few months had passed since she ran from him.

“You like it, huh?” Senku asked, pulling her from her thoughts.

“Hmm?” 

“Your first gift in eons?” He pointed with his brush at the bow and she lifted her cheek to look at it.

“Yeah…but…I realized it isn’t the first gift,” she said, tracing her finger over the fine lines of the etched wolves. 

“Oh yeah?” Senku asked, continuing to draw, “What? The pack pool money to get you a birthday present? Tsukasa shower you with pelts trying to get you to stay?”

She rolled her eyes, tapping her bow against his leg roughly which made him huff in amusement, “No. The lollipop. I think the lollipop you gave me was my first gift.”

He blinked, looking at her with an unusually soft expression so suddenly her heart skipped a beat and she lurched back a little smiling at him awkwardly.

“Yeah…I guess that’s right,” he said. Then he nodded and quietly returned to his drawing.

They sat like that, in the silence of the dying fire and the soft brushing of his drawing until he was done. Then, without speaking, he stood and nodded his head to the ladder and they climbed up together, going to their beds across the room from each other and laying down without another word. As she began to doze off, Umeka rolled over and wrapped her fingers around her bow, pulling it to her chest and breathing in the deep smell of the freshly carved wood as she finally fell asleep comforted by Chrome’s obnoxious snoring for the first time.

Chapter Text

The lightbulb process had been incredibly painful. Between the filament burning out and the trial and error of the shape it had been a bumpy road but finally, they were well on the road to production. Presently they were able to finish ten lightbulbs a day which was not exactly where Senku would like to be but with mercury as their only option for making a vacuum he couldn’t let anyone else manage that step. With only Kaseki talented enough to make the bulb itself the process was unavoidably slow. But progress was progress and they were staying on target to be done by Christmas. 

In his spare time, Senku busied himself with making plans for everything else they were going to need in spring. He sighed, leaning back from his paper and rubbing his neck. Everyone was busy, the warriors training, Kaseki cranking out bulbs as fast as he could between repairs, but he hadn’t seen Umeka all day.

He glanced under the hut. All of the dogs were there. He looked toward the village, trying to focus his ears but he heard none of the drums or Soran songs he’d gotten used to from Umeka. He frowned. He didn’t like hovering over anyone, it felt like a waste of time and maybe a little more than infantilizing but he couldn’t help it. He held himself responsible for all of them and Umeka, despite her skills, had a habit of getting in trouble and failing to ask for help.

He sighed, as he stood, a crick in his back from slumping over his work for so long, he rubbed his back and grumbled, “Now where did she get off to this time?”

Senku walked leisurely, trying to come off casually as he searched for Umeka. He knew if Gen caught him he would never shut up. Beyond the mentalist and his fanciful ideas, Senku wasn’t sure what he would say if someone asked him why he was looking for her. He wasn’t sure of the reason himself which was his least favorite feeling though he did have a sneaking suspicion that he chose to ignore.

“Looking for someone?” Gen called coyly from the base of a tree at the edge of the clearing.

“You’re like some sort of mythological creature, you know that?”

“That–does not answer my question.”

“...Have you seen Umeka?”

Gen grinned. A wicked incredibly annoying grin that made Senku roll his eyes. It was like dealing with a cat. Gen simply couldn’t let things go.

“Look, you’ve gotta stop with the-”

Suddenly, Umeka hung upside down from a branch making Senku jump. She blinked at him swinging slightly from the inertia, her braid so long it swept across the ground and bangs suddenly exposed her forehead, “What do you need me for?”

Gen’s smile grew wider as Senku deadpanned at him, “You’re really funny.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Gen drawled, playing with the long beaded staring of Umeka’s hair.

“Why are you hanging upside down?” Senku asked, unable to keep a bemused smile from cracking over his face.

“Oh, just cause it’s easier than hoping down and then climbing back up,” She shrugged, an odd gesture on an upside-down body, “I don’t think Gen could be a foothold more than once.”

“Hey!”

“Okay, better question,” Senku asked, “why did you get in the tree in the first place.”

“Question for you first,” she smiled, “do you know what kind of tree this is?”

Senku stepped closer, standing near where she hung and studying the bark, “Do I get a hint? It’s winter, after all, not exactly the season for dendrology.”

She raised an eyebrow at him.

“The science of studying trees.”

Gen groaned, sitting on the ground by the tree, “Ume, could you wake me up when Senku gets to the point.”

She giggled, trying to cover her mouth when Senku frowned at her. Her poor effort to hide her laughter made him smile, shaking his head, “Do you want me to guess or not?”

“Yes! Sorry. Guess. Guess!”

“Okay, but before I do can you sit up? My stomach is getting sick just seeing how much blood is rushing to your head right now.”

She laughed again, easily pulling herself up without even using her hands, the kind of display of casual strength he’d gotten used to being around Kohaku and Taiju. 

“Well, it’s a deciduous tree, obviously,” Senku said, gesturing to the bare branches, “but that doesn’t exactly give us much of a lead considering 25% of the world's forests are deciduous. If we had a leaf, I would probably be able to identify it from that buuut-”

“Any day, Senku,” Gen called, putting in an effort to sound bored. 

“Shh!” Umeka hissed, pressing a finger to her lips, “let him finish.”

“Thank you,” Senku said, “Japan had, when the Green Light happened, at least 25 million hectares of forest which, we can assume, has greatly expanded. Given plants' ability to adapt and crossbreed without human intervention, I could assume that had happened but since you’re asking me to identify it I also have to assume you already know what it is. So. That leaves-”

“Ha,” Gen called out, making Umeka snort despite her best efforts to contain herself.

Senku cleared his throat, “the bark.”

“Right,” Umeka smiled, “I mean. I didn’t really understand most of what you just said but. Yes, the bark is what I was looking at.”

“Given how you were raised I’m just assuming you know a pretty good bit about plants.”

“Yes.”

“But I’m also gonna assume you know more about plants that you can either eat something from or need in order to find a certain animal.”

“Mhmmmm,” she hummed, smile growing bigger as he inched toward the point.

“And while this tree is taller than any I’ve seen of this kind before,” he touched the branch beside where she sat, “given the rough furrows of this grey trunk, that twist it has there at the base, and the orange new growth up top I’m going to guess…Mulberry.”

Senku glanced at Gen who was craning his head toward Umeka, trying to feign like he wasn’t interested in hearing if Senku was right and failing miserably. 

Umeka laughed, hand reaching out to pat Senku on the head, “Ten billion points. That’s right!”

Senku smiled, looking at the tree, “Good find.”

“Wait,” Gen called, “so this one is abnormal?”

Umeka hopped down between them, crouching to lessen the impact before springing back up, “Oh yeah, it’s sort of huge. Mulberrys are normally lower to the ground and have a bunch of skinny trunks.”

“There’s even an old English children’s rhyme about the mulberry bush,” Senku added, “but they are all trees.”

“Anyway!” Umeka interrupted, holding up her bag, “I found them.”

“Found what?” Gen asked, “I came because you said it wouldn’t be dangerous but you didn’t tell me what we were doing.”

Umeka opened the bag revealing numerous white pods.

“Seeds…?” Gen ventured, squinting at Umeka.

She smiled wider, a glint in her eye that made it very obvious she knew what was about it happen, “Worms.”

Gen shuddered, leaping back, “Those are worms?”

“They won’t hurt you, Gen,” she said, feigning innocence as she moved toward him holding the bag open, “they’re in their cocoons.”

“That’s fantastic for them, keep them there. Keep them away from me, Ume,” Gen warned, pointing a finger at her.

She moved the bag toward his hand, “So you do want to touch them! They’re soft!”

Gen squealed, yanking his hand in, “No thank you! I do not like bugs!”

“Ohhhhh well,” she smiled back at Senku now. He smirked, she’d become much livelier as she adjusted to the Kingdom of Science, “I guess no silk for Gen.”

“...Silk?”

“Yeah,” Umeka shrugged, shaking her head at Senku who did his best to join in the bit despite how amused he was.

He shrugged, “Better put them back in the tree then, you know if Gen doesn’t like them.”

Umeka turned, acting as though she would climb even though she’d brought Gen along to help her in the first place, “What a shaaaaaaame.”

Gen seemed aware they were doing a bit but still more focused on the silkworms, “So you’re saying if we keep close gross little…things we could make silk?”

“Yep. But now-”

“Okay! I get it. You’re both so haha very funny,” Gen pouted, “but Silk would be nice. Imagine how extravagant and breathable in the summer!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Senku waved his hand, “forget about fashion. We could make parachutes. Sutures. Bike tires.”

“Parachutes?!” Gen and Umeka exclaimed at the same time, though in very different tones.

“Yep,” Senku smiled, squeezing Umeka’s shoulder, “great work once again.”

Gen sighed, putting his arms inside his sleeves, “So what’s next? You said there we two things. Is the other one bug related?”

Umeka blinked, slowly giving him a sheepish smile.

“No. Absolutely not. Count me out. I will take the gross worm bag somewhere for you but I will not be collecting any more bugs.”

Umeka sighed, “Fiiiiine.” She tied the bag up and handed them to Gen. “Just find a safe spot in the science hut for them, it’s too cold for them to hatch so as long as they don’t get too warm they’ll be okay. We just have to make them a home for spring.”

“Fine. And thank you for the promise of the first silk outfit.”

“I didn’t-”

“Thank you!” Gen demanded taking the bag politely and marching off.

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka blinked, watching Gen march away for a moment before turning toward Senku. He looked at her for a moment, then smiled wickedly and doubled over laughing. It made her laugh, trying to cover her mouth in case Gen could hear them.

“Who knew Gen was such a baby when it came to bugs,” he smirked, “Somehow I didn’t expect it.”

“I know! I figured…I don’t know. Magicians would like icky stuff.”

“Well…he is an illusionist. Not a magician so obv-”

“Oh, right. Obviously. My mistake.”

“Just don’t let it happen again,” he smirked.

She laughed, then paused and slowly smiled at him.

“The lightbulbs-”

“Awwww come on.”

“Umeka I really should get back I-”

She blinked, She hadn’t thought of why he’d come over in the first place. He hadn’t needed anything. If he had he wouldn’t have messed around with them for so long, “Hey wait what did you come over for anyway?”

“Wh-What?” he asked, voice breaking as he did.

“Just now. Normally when you find one of us it’s because you need something. Did you need Gen for something?” she tilted her head at him slightly. Picking up her braid and looping it once around her neck as she did in the winter, a self-grown scarf of sorts.

His mouth seemed to wobble for a moment, then he glanced away, “I didn’t need anything.”

She didn’t respond. Just narrowed her eyes and stared at him, a smile slowly forcing its way onto her face. Senku didn’t look at her but he seemed nervous, almost as though he was sweating, “Does Gen know?”

“Does he know what?” Senku asked, he turned and looked at her raising an eyebrow. The nervousness seemingly replaced with curiosity. 

“About your Christmas plans.”

His expression was almost unreadable. She narrowed her eyes and leaned toward him slightly but it didn’t provoke a response.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh come on, Senku.”

“Nope. No idea what you’re speaking about at all.”

“Yeah? Then I’ll explain.”

Senku paused. Waiting for her to answer. He glanced at the village and then back at her, “...Okay?”

“After you help me with the bees.”

He snorted, holding his arms as he laughed, “Man, Gen is really rubbing off on you.”

“Oooh, maybe I can rub off on him too. Get rid of his fear of bugs.”

Senku laughed again, then sighed, “All right. I have to know what you think you know which is definitely wrong just so you know now but if you won’t tell me unless I help you, fine. I will help you.”

The way he talked sometimes made her head spin. He could just say so many things so quickly it was a struggle to even track what he was saying but he said he would help with the bees and that’s all she needed, “Fantastic. On to the bees!”

Before he could say anything else she grabbed his hand and rushed into the forest. She figured if she could get him out there he wouldn’t turn back on her project. Everyone was so busy with the lightbulbs and the fold filament and training she was starting to feel useless. Maybe she’d helped here and there somehow it felt like if she didn’t have something new to offer their interest in having her around would wear off and she’d have to leave. She knew that was silly really. Senku was far too kind to throw her out. And she liked to think she’d made friends with Gen at least. Maybe even the old couple in the village. And the kids. 

But somehow she was always a little afraid she would lose them. She wondered if she’d always feel that way. Maybe it was a side effect of being alone for so long. Maybe she’d always been like that and just didn’t know because she didn’t have anyone else. It was hard to know. After all, she’d never know what a teenage version of herself would have been like in the modern world. In some ways that made her sad. She wished she could bond over old things the way Senku and Gen did sometimes. Though at least she had Doraemon with Senku. The thought made her smile.

“What are you grinning about, Princess?” Senku asked, a teasing tone in his voice.

“Doraemon,” she answered simply, “or I guess, actually, I was thinking about how it’s nice we both liked it.”

“Oh yeah?” he asked, looking off through the trees beside him.

“Yeah,” she smiled, looking ahead of her into the woods, “just cause…it gives us one thing we can talk about from before. You know? Since…otherwise we wouldn’t have had much in common.”

He nodded, “Sure…I get it. Well…glad my nerdy hobby is beneficial to you specifically.”

She laughed, bumping her shoulder against him. He stumbled and she reached to grab him quickly though he caught himself.

“You’ve got to remember you’re much stronger than me,” he sighed, grimacing at her though he looked a little more amused than anything else.

“Right. Sorry,”

They walked for a while longer in silence. She was sure she’d seen a bee hive up ahead. She’d gotten Kaseki to help her retrofit one of the bellows into a smoker. Her grandma had taught her as a girl that honey bees didn’t hibernate like wild bees did. They instead, stayed in the hive and flapped their wings to generate warmth and keep the hive alive all winter. Her theory was if they could smoke them and cut the hive down they could take it back to camp and build a box around it for safety. Then she would transfer the queen in the spring. With a little help from anyone less afraid of bugs than Gen. With them and the silkworms, she’d been closer to recovering everything she’d lost running from Tsukasa. She didn’t like thinking about it. She was sure her bees and worms would die without her care and, even though they didn’t express affection like the pack did, she still thought about them as her pets. It made her feel oddly bitter toward Tsukasa and she realized her feeling of fear was slowly becoming anger. Anger and what he took from her. At the ego he showed trying to tell her what to do. It annoyed her that he thought he had any right to talk to her about survival. 

“Your face is really going on a journey,” Senku said, voice as flat as ever.

She blushed, realizing how carried away she’d gotten in her thoughts, “Sorry.”

“Oh no,” Senku picked his ear, “You ten billion percent have to tell me what you were thinking about now.”

“I do not!”

“Yeah, you do. I’m giving up valuable lightbulb time to help you get bees that won’t produce anything until spring right now.”

She felt her blush worsen. Of course Senku would realize this wasn’t really the time for the bees.

“Well if we get them now they’ll be easier to ca-”

“Umeka.”

“Because in winter honey bees-”

“Umeka.”

“And then if we just already have then we get the honey from all sp-”

“Umeka.”

She flushed. Finally silenced by Senku’s calm repetition of her name.

“What’s going on?”

“Which part?”

He huffed, “Start with your weird face first.”

She put her hand on her cheek, frowning at the idea of him finding her face weird, “Well…I guess I’ve been thinking about all the stuff I had at my home and. I’m getting like…annoyed! You know? I had to run away from years of things and for a long time I was really scared of Tsukasa I think but now I’m just…I think he’s a jerk! And I’m angry I left my bees and silkworms and it makes me mad that they might be dead and. Yeah! I guess. I was thinking about that. Being mad at Tsukasa.”

He smiled at her, a soft understanding smile though still slightly amused, “Sure. I’m pissed too and I only left a few months of work. I mean. Granted the culmination of that work was the revival fluid which I think we could classify as a big deal but all your stuff is a big deal too.”

Somehow it calmed her. The fact that Senku immediately understood. That he validated her feelings. 

“So…then the bees in winter because?” he asked cautiously. 

“...I guess…” she could feel her face heating up. Would he yell at her if she told him? Maybe it was frustrating to have to make her feel better about her place in the village all the time. Maybe he wouldn’t want her around anymore if he had to keep convincing her that he did. She worried that it was mean of her to not be able to believe him and everyone else the first time. “I just want to help.” 

It was a lame offer and it was painfully obvious Senku didn’t believe her. Still, he didn’t press, instead, he put his hands behind his head, “Fine. Keep your secrets. But then I can’t let you help with operation lightbulb which is a shame because you are definitely my first choice for the project.”

“What is it?”

“Well I mean, you’ve got the bees to get so…I don’t think you’ll have time,” he looked down his nose at her. A devilish look on his face that made her pout. He knew exactly what he was doing and, unfortunately, it definitely worked.

“Ugh…! Okay! I will get the bees later,” she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. 

“Great!” Senku said, putting his arms around her shoulders and turning her back toward the village, “cause we’ve got a lot of work to do if we’re going to get this done and I’m only telling you so,” his smile spread wider making her lean away from him suddenly worried about what she’d agreed to, “I hope you’re ready for a workout, Princess.”

Chapter Text

Umeka was still laughing. Senku glazed at his watch, wishing he had the time to go ahead and make a watch so he could track how long this had been going on for. She gasped, clutching her chest with one hand, and wiping a tear with the other. He rolled his eyes, “Oh spare me with the theatrics.”

“No! I’m sorry. So sorry. Really I-” she sputtered, laughing harder when he deadpanned at her, “I’m not trying to laugh it’s just-”

“That you are? Completely laughing at me, in my face, I’ll add,” he sighed, rubbing his neck. Sure. She had a point. There was no world where he was going to get all the light bulbs in that huge add tree by himself. But that’s why he had freaks of nature like her and the others around anyway. 

She grinned, “I don’t think I really imagined you as a Christmas guy.”

“Don’t ever say that again.”

She laughed again, this time in a much warmer way. A softer way that almost seemed like fondness and that gentle sound melted into a very pleasant smile that Senku glanced away from, “Okay but still…it seems like a lot of work for…you know. Something nice. I mean…something that’s just nice.”

“That’s not all it is. Obviously, we would not be doing this if it was just going to be a little light show. We’re going to use the lightbulbs,” he shrugged. 

“Before or after we get them all back out from inside the gigantic tree?” she asked, smirking broadly at him, a smirk that only spread wider when he pressed his lips together and glared at her.

“Wooooow, I didn’t think you would be a Grinch. Unbelievable. A child that hated Christmas and also joy.”

“Haha! Wow. You really hate when people know you have feelings, don’t you?” she smiled, pushing his shoulder, “It’s okay that you’re just doing something nice. You don’t have to be so weird about it.”

He waved her off, turning up the path,  “Yeah, yeah. He muttered. Think whatever you need to, Princess. Now. If you don’t mind I’m going to actually get to work and if your heart grows three sizes in the next few minutes you can feel free to join me.”

She jogged after him easily catching up and appearing, smiling still, at his elbow, “Should I tell you now that I have no idea what you’re referencing, or do you have any more jokes you want to make?”

“How did you know I was making jokes?”

“I mean…I know what a joke sounds like.”

He huffed, rolling his eyes, “Maybe I’ll try and remember it and tell you sometime. I mean. It’s sort of a dumb story but. Super popular in America.”

“Did you go to America?”

“Eh. Once or twice. But I knew the story because my dad’s coworker gave it to me for Christmas one year. Totally not on my list but. I appreciate the effort nonetheless,” he shrugged, a half-smile pulling onto his mouth as he remembered his dad. A total geek at Christmas. Or really any holiday. Suddenly he felt so strongly that the old man would have loved Umeka. Then he wondered why he was even thinking about that at all.

“That’s nice,” Umeka said, unintentionally bringing him back from his dreamy thoughts, “What was your dad like?”

Senku paused, looking at her in disbelief, “Oh no.”

“What?”

“We’ve already gotten to that stage, huh?”

“What-Stage? What are you talking about?”

“You’re asking about my dad. What’s next? My five-year plan?”

Umeka stared at him blankly for a minute. So blank in fact that he wouldn’t have been shocked if she keeled over right then and there, “You know what? I don’t even know what most of what you just said means so. Never mind.”

She brushed past him, continuing up the path making him jog to keep up with her this time, something he accomplished much slower, “Do you know where we’re going?”

“I mean there’s only one tree in the area I’d want to cover in lights.”

“I knew you were the right person for the job.”

⛮⛮⛮

Standing under the big tree Umeka wondered in what world Senku thought he would get this done. Especially all on his own. She raised an eyebrow, turning to look at him but he was already giving her a flat stare, all but telling her to shut up.

“Hey, I know when I need help. Or I wouldn’t have asked you to help me.”

“I don’t think you asked so much as tricked me. Like a little bit less angry Son Wukong.”

“Not the Chinese Mythology,” Senku half-laughed, his head rocking back in exasperation. 

“It is actually a lot less fun if you also know everything that I know.”

“Very cute if you think that I’ve never heard that sentence before,” he said, smirking at her. 

She rolled her eyes away, her face heating up as she did. Sometimes when he would smirk his eyes would half-close and he would lean toward her slightly like they were sharing a secret and when he would do that her stomach would turn. But not like she was going to throw up. That was a very unpleasant sensation and this wasn’t. In fact, sometimes she caught herself seeking the feeling out. Hoping he would lean toward her or whisper to her. 

“You all right?” He asked, raising an eyebrow and looking her up and down suspiciously. 

“Oh! Yes. Fine!” 

“Mmmmallll right,” He stretched his arms above his head, rolling his neck as he spoke, “So. We’ve got two options. You go monkey mode-”

“Monkey mode?” she muttered, but he ignored her and kept speaking.

“And climb up there by yourself and I can try to direct you around the tree and make sure the cable gets to you safely or we build a pulley, you climb up and secure it and then me and the cable can come up that way and we can both work on it together. Preference?”

“Uh?”

“Which one would you wanna do.”

“Oh. Together.”

“Yeah I figured,” he sighed, pointing toward the tree.

Sitting just inside the shade where it was hard to see until she squinted were boards and a coil of rope, “Awww.”

“Oh please.”

She trotted over, “Okay,” she grabbed the rope and tied it around her waist, clipping the pulley to her belt and giving it a firm tug. 

She held it out to him and he glanced between it and her face, “You are ten billion percent stronger than me why should I-”

“Senku it’s basic safety stuff to have two people check things when you can,” she sighed, enjoying a rare know-it-all moment, “besides, what’s the word you told me like four days ago when we were working on the- OH! Leverage. You have better leverage right?”

He stared for a moment then sighed, “I need to stop teaching you things.”

He put his hand around the pulley suddenly yanking it before she could get her footing and she stumbled forward to keep from falling. When she looked up from the heavy step he accidentally forced her to take their noses almost touched, so close she wasn’t sure they didn’t brush. One of his hands was still around the pulley but the other shot out when she stumbled, now hovering near her hip but not touching. Her lips parted in surprise, a shaky breath escaping her as they both stared, unmoving. His expression was confusing, half shocked and half mesmerized. It was rare that Senku didn’t know what to say but right then she could tell his mind was as blank as hers. She looked down at his hand, pursing her lips, then she lifted her eyes to his without lifting her head again. 

Senku pulled his hand away, putting it over his mouth and rubbing his face, “Mm. Mhm. Okay.”

“Well…” she ventured, waiting for him to look at her again but he didn’t, “I think it’s good.”

“Yeah, I was gonna say.”

“So I’m going to-”

“Sure, yep. Go ape.”

“Please don’t say that again,” she sighed, turning to grab a branch and hoisting herself up, not daring to look back at him through the leaves.

⛮⛮⛮

Senku wasn’t one for believing in fate but at that moment he found himself so grateful for whatever forcing of the universe that intervened and ensured Gen wasn’t there for that moment. He lost sight of her through the thick branches of the trees and glanced down at his hand, listening to the rustling of Umeka ascending through the tree at incredible speeds. Somehow his hand seemed foreign. A traitor. He didn’t have time for those sorts of thoughts or feelings. He’d never even really had them before. Not that he could remember. It didn’t feel right. She had enough on her plate. They all did. Even if these feelings weren’t an illusion of hormones and stress and simple proximity there was nothing to be done about them. 

Say, theoretically, he liked her. He had no idea what she even knew. She’d been a kid in the modern world. Sure, she’d implied that she knew a good deal more than most due to her family situation but that hardly seemed like something to take advantage of. Besides that, he was one of the few people she was comfortable with. What right did he have to ruin that for her when she was just beginning to feel comfortable in the village? One unsettling move from him and she might go running off into the woods in winter with no supplies. Just like she did with Tsukasa months prior. 

But that look on her face, the stunned expression that melted into a sort of relaxed confusion before she pulled away kept recurring to him. He slapped himself. Wincing at his own strength. He rubbed his cheeks firmly, that wasn’t even a millimeter of possibility. And if, if, it were it couldn’t be until the world was back. Until he ensured she had all the opportunity in the world to reject him without feeling like she was risking her safety. He blinked. What was he even thinking? And since when? 

“Damn it, Gen,” he hissed through his teeth, this was all that idiot's fault. Of course, he was thinking like this when Gen was constantly whispering those thoughts in his ear. He imagined him leaning over him while he was asleep at night whispering ‘Umeku 4ever’ over and over like those all motivational tapes people would sleep to.

The seat of the pulley system crashed down into the floor under the tree, “Senku! Do you see it?!”

“A little warning next time, huh?! You coulda killed me!” he shouted up. Hurrying to grab the bulbs and get them situated on the tree, hoping that if he was busy working the thoughts in his head would stop racing. When he got under the tree and looked up he could see her grinning at him from sickeningly high up. He could feel himself break into a cold sweat. He’d always imagined himself following his father into space, wanting to explore every available inch of the universe but somehow this one admittedly gigantic tree felt insurmountable. He took a deep breath, straddling the seat and holding the coil in his lap, “All right, I’m ready!”

Then Umeka did the unthinkable. Holding the rope in her hand she jumped, “What are you-” he started to shout but when he lurched up he clamped his mouth shut holding onto the rope for dear life as he g-forces made it feel like he left his stomach on the forest floor below. 

Above him Umeka whooped with joy, holding onto her end of the rope with what appeared to be no effort as she skillfully ricocheted herself off of branches continuing her descent with a terrifying amount of confidence for someone who had never done it before. As they neared each other she began to push off of branches, effectively slowing both of them down until she hopped on a branch and stopped, grinning at him through her leaf-ridden bangs. She had the look of someone that had just ridden a rollercoaster, that windswept hair and red cheeks from the air ripping past them. Her eyes were wide and shiny from tears and adrenaline, “Pretty quick, huh?”

He groaned, suddenly aware of his stomach flipping in confusion as it seemed to finally rejoin him. He carefully tested his foot on a branch, moving his hand from the swing to the trunk and bracing himself as he moved, “The next time you test something I built for the literal first time please don’t do it with your whole entire body.”

She wasn’t deterred, “Oh come on, Senku. I trust you.”

“But you didn’t warn me,” he sighed, holding his stomach, “ugh.”

She flung the rope around the tree with enough force that it bounced back and looped itself around a knot, securing it in place and she bounce from her limb to his, “Oh did you get hurt?”

“Does my stomach switching spots with my colon count as being hurt?”

“Did that really happen or are you being snarky?”

“Guess.”

She rolled her eyes playfully, turning to gather the string of bulbs, “Here. Hold them here and I’ll get them around the tree above us.”

“Yeah, sure I’m not fighting you for it,” he grumbled, sitting down as he tried to calm his stomach. Before he was even situated on the limb she was shooting up through the tree. He laughed, shaking his head. Of course, she was. She did live in a tree before he met her after all but he’d never actually seen her climb, “You do know it’s not a race, right?”

“You think this is me racing?” she called back, suddenly dropping back and hanging upside down on the limb over him. 

He looked up at her, shaking his head in disbelief, his hand reaching out to swat at her long braid as it swayed back and forth just above his head, “That’s obnoxious.”

“And that’s-”

“Yeah, yeah, another word you don’t know.”

“Right.”

He tugged her braid, “Get back to work, would you, it’s cold up here.”

She laughed, flipping up and zipping through the branches. Dropping in and out. Somehow so sure of her footing as she moved. It made him oddly jealous. It was something he didn’t think of often. The athleticism the human body could reach. The same as Kohaku’s incredible fighting, Taiju’s strength, or really everything about Tsukasa. To think that there were people like them and Umeka. People whose bodies were just molded by the world around them instead of damaged. That every challenge they faced just gave them another chance to improve. He knew that was something far beyond his ability. He’d always been a little weak, even a little sick when he was younger. And he didn’t take any issue with that. He had other skills. Other interests too. Maybe he would feel differently if he’d wanted to be an athlete. Instead, it just removed it from his everyday thoughts, until a moment like this. A moment that reminded him of the beauty and power some human forms had. He smiled to himself, suddenly so proud. As Umeka sprung from a branch to one above it, easily pulling herself and the cable up before lithely jumping to another and racing along it he felt like he’d rarely even been more impressed with someone so adaptable and hard working. Maybe he should have found a way to hang the lights on his own. Then it could have been a surprise for her too. He’d have to figure something else for her someday, another little thank you for someone that worked harder than he’d ever be able to express his appreciation for.

⛮⛮⛮

It was finally time. She and Senku had finished the tree a day or so ago but according to Senku’s whisper that morning as Chrome and Gen still slept it was finally Christmas and Christmas was the day they were going to reveal the lights to everyone in the village.

She’d been all but buzzing the entire day. Barely able to get everything done. Even the dogs seemed to be hyper and restless because of her energy. Whining and getting up and down from where they huddled under the hut. 

“Would you chill out?” Senku said, elbowing her and they walked to the tree with Kaseki and Chrome. 

“I’m just excited!” She yelled back, bouncing on the balls of her feet, “you wouldn’t turn them on when we finished and then you made us wait for-”

“Shhh!” 

He pressed his finger to his lips even though he was smiling in that funny soft way he did when he knew everyone understood the real meaning behind his actions. 

“Why’d you wanna test the bulbs in a tree anyway?” Kaseki asked, adjusting the battery he was carrying. “Seems like a weird place to put them.”

“Oh, man! Is the tree somehow going to be part of the phone?!” Chrome asked. He pumped his fists, eyes wide and looking to Senku expectantly. 

“What? That doesn’t even make a millimeter of sense. Think logically,” Senku said, picking at his ear to make a show of what he thought of Chrome’s question.

“Oh come on, Senku,” Umeka said, “He can’t think logically about a phone he’s never seen a phone. Don’t bully him.”

“Yeah! What Umeka said!”

“Whatever,” Senku shrugged. When the got to the tree he looked at it proudly. Then turned to meet Umeka’s eyes, sharing a private look of accomplishment. He gave her a quick nod as if to say she’d done a good job, then he jabbed his thumb over his shoulder, “well. Get up there and plug in the power chord, wouldja? We’re losing precious daylight.”

“Oh if only we had some other source of lighting,” she said flatly, tying the chord around her waist just as she’d done with the rope days before and putting her hands around the tree to start the short climb to the bulbs, “what will we do…”

“Don’t really love that you’re learning sarcasm.”

She rolled her eyes, looking back at him, “Then stop teaching me.”

He huffed shaking his head and she turned back to work.

“What’s going on with you two?” Chrome tried to whisper below but, as always, he was far too loud.

“Oh shut up, I get enough of that from Gen,” Senku muttered, trying to be much quieter than Chrome had but it was too late. Her ear felt like it might as well be the size of Kohaku’s shield she was trying so hard to listen in on their conversation.

“No, no,” Chrome continued, “that was like. A thing. Like there’s been a thing the whole walk here and it was getting way more thing-y just then.” Then Chrome gasp. Then there was a loud thunk and Chrome whined. Umeka frowned, turning to try and look at them but in the dark and through the leaves she couldn’t make anyone out. She squinted in the last of the light, ensuring she’d secured the two cables together before flipping back down from the branch, dropping to the forest floor below.

“Everything together like I showed you?” Senku asked.

She glanced between him and Chrome. Tears pricked Chrome’s eyes and he held a hand to the side of his head, pouting at Senku who maintained a neutral expression despite how red his knuckles were even in the low light of dusk. She raised an eyebrow and looked at him but he didn’t react.

“Yeah…they’re all good,” she answered.

“Great.”

“Senku!” Kohaku called from up the path, “I brought everyone like you asked!”

Something brushed her nose. She blinked, looking up into the sky as another soft white puff fell on her eyelashes, “Oh.”

“Aw man,” Chrome grumbled, “it’s snowing. Should we hold the test of?”

“No,” Senku smiled, glancing knowingly at Umeka, “I’d like to do it today.” 

“Well all right,” Kaseki said from where he sat with the battery, “we’re all set.”

Without another word, Senku turned the switch and one by one the lights in the tree bloomed to life filling the night with an incredible amount of light that seemed to glance off the large flakes of falling snow. Umeka couldn’t take it. She’d known what was going to happen but in the moment, when the lights turned on and it was finally real she clapped a hand over her mouth as tears began to fall from her eyes. Behind her the villagers gasped, calling out about the lights but she could barely hear it. Instead she saw her family, the tears in the town, and every beautiful thing she’d seen during the holidays as a child. Suddenly twenty times larger right in front of her. Made from the hard work of an entire village.

“Heh,” Senku half-whispered beside her, “you big softy.”

She bumped her shoulder against his and stayed there, her arm pressed to his. He didn’t look at her but he didn’t move away either. 

“Man this took two whole months! Ugh that’s a long time isn’t it?” Kaseki asked.

“Nah,” Senku shrugged, “We’re right on schedule.”

“Wait a second,” Gen gasped, “don’t tell me today’s actually….Christmas!”

“Ph yeah, now that you mention it,” Senku answered, looking up into the tree with that confusing expression of his again, “it’s quite the coincidence.”

“You liar…!”

Senku looked at her, a small smile on his face. She could tell them. Admit that he knew. That it was his whole plan. That he’d even told her outright. But it was more fun to keep this secret with him and to know that he’d trusted her to do just that.

Chapter Text

It was cold. Almost unbearably so with all the snow that had fallen during their Christmas celebration. It felt especially miserable since she’d been sitting still for hours now. Even with Sentai curled around her back and her thick rope of hair wrapped around her neck and her fur hood up she was shivering. Going to hunt before the sun had emerged was miserable with snow on the ground but it was her duty as one of the more skilled hunters. Especially as many of the village hunters used spears which weren’t as effective when hunting small game which tended to be easier to find in winter. Not that that was their fault, spears were, after all, a good fishing tool and that seemed to be the main pillar of their diet. She wondered if she’d be able to teach them more farming skills come spring. She was sure with Senku’s scientific knowledge and Kaseki’s building they’d be able to make an entire field of produce in no time. 

Despite the miserable cold her morning hike had been somewhat bearable thanks to the flashlight Senku had made for her when she’d refused to simply not go. He’d stopped her before, nagging about how her fingers were going to get frostbitten and he ‘didn’t have the time’ to treat something that serious.  He’d frowned when her response was to pull out a pair of buckskin gloves that she could wear without losing her dexterity. The flashlight had been made as he grumbled about how stubborn she was and how he didn’t want to deal with a broken ankle either. She smiled and nuzzled down so her nose was behind her braid, glancing at the flashlight that was now off and tied to her belt. It was a bit cumbersome with the battery and all but despite that and the fact that she wouldn’t need it on the walk back, it made her smile. 

She heard a crash in the distance, branches and leaves snapping. The cry of animals, squirrels, and rabbits, and the howls of the pack. They were running animals to her. She sat up onto one knee to brace herself and knocked an arrow. Soon the animals burst through the clearing, Saiyan leaping to the side just as she’d trained them all to do, she caught the rabbit through the head. She shot two more in a similar fashion as the others scampered through the bush with the dogs still on their tails going for their own morning meals. She sighed, standing and stretching her neck.

“My you really are a terrifying girl,” Gen said from behind the tree she’d been sitting at. 

A chill shot up her spine and she turned to frown at him, “Gen. I have a weapon. ”

“Was that a threat?” he cooed, hiding his mouth behind his sleeve.

“No, it was a kind-hearted warning.”

He hummed at her, stepping out from behind the tree and affectionately rubbing Sentai between the ears.

“Why’d you come all the way out here?” she asked as she walked over to pull the arrows from the fallen animals and tie them to her belt. 

“I wanted to discuss something with you where Senku couldn’t hear us and,” he sighed dramatically, “you know he always comes over to hover nearby when I talk to you.”

She paused, eyes focusing up toward her brows as she thought. She’d never really noticed before but now that Gen said so she guessed he was right. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d spoken to Gen without Senku showing up with some task for her or Gen or just plainly asking what they were talking about. She furrowed her brows in thought as she died the rabbit's feet together, unsure of what to say.

“Wondering why?”

“Uh…well…I guess so,” she admitted, looking at Gen cautiously. She liked him a lot but she was never entirely sure of what he was up to. He reminded her of creatures from old myths. A clever fox with a beautiful pearl, a handsome face with teeth ready to bite out a throat. If she wasn’t certain she could bring him down in seconds she’d probably be afraid of him. For the first time in what felt like months, Tsukasa flashed through her mind. Her mouth went dry.

Gen was grinning, like always, “He’s just the jealous type. I know! I know. It surprised me too but. I suppose I can understand. You’re a popular girl, after all.”

“Me? What?” she turned, going to the next animal, “I don’t get whatever you’re talking about Gen.”

He laughed a happy friendly sound that calmed her nerves slightly, “Don’t worry about it. I’m just teasing you. I didn’t come to talk about anything serious. Or. Well! It is serious but not in a dangerous way.”

She yanked the last arrow from a squirrel’s skull, turning to look at the now horrified Gen, “So…in what way?”

“In a fun surprise way.”

“...fun surprise for me? Because…I’m not having a lot of fun right now.”

“Senku is rubbing off on you in a way I don’t like.”

“Gen please,” she whined, “just tell me what’s going on.”

“Senku’s birthday.”

She blinked. Tilting her head at him which made me chuckle. Of course, he had a birthday but she hadn’t thought about that before. She hadn’t thought about anyone’s birthday, not even her own, “What about it?”

“It’s coming up soon. It’s on the 4th. And he’s going to be gone on that silly mineral trip for at least all of today and given his general wretched luck potentially even longer,” Gen said, putting his arms inside his sleeves.

“Aaand?”

“Well,” he smiled, “I think we ought to do a little something for him. I figured you might be eager to help too.”

She blushed, a little unsure of what he was trying to say even if he was right. She tied the last of the animals to her belt and pulled her whistle from inside her shirt, blowing on it hard. Sentai barked, wagging his tail and circling around her, “Okay…well let’s talk while we walk back.”

⛮⛮⛮

It was almost time for the exploration team to head out. Senku had already decided that the last member should be Magma. It made the most sense. He was by far the physically strongest person they had, even if his temperament left something to be desired. In an ideal world, they could have built a sled for the dogs and brought along Umeka and her pack instead but without knowing how narrow the cave would be or if it would require climbing that the dogs weren’t capable of that would stop all their progress in their tracks. Part of him still regretted not making a sled though, even if it was just for the walk back from the cave but he didn’t want to borrow the dogs from Umeka and somehow he doubted they would listen without her there and she was very unlikely to sit idly by waiting for them to return because idle was simply not a word that fit Umeka at all.

He frowned, finishing the last headset and looking around. She’d left with the flashlight that morning against his wishes, going out to hunt in the still-dark morning like she often did. Now the sun was well in the sky and she still hadn’t returned. Just as he began to struggle to disguise his concern he spotted her, walking up the path with Gen close at her side. Gen was grinning at her with his eyes half-lidded, an expression that looked secretive, maybe even sultry if Senku wasn’t so sure that Umeka didn’t notice. Umeka nodded and smiled back at him, talking even though Senku couldn’t hear what she said. Then she spotted him and her eyes went wide, mouth clamping shut tightly. She glanced at Gen and then glances down at the flashlight. 

He frowned. What was that about? Why had Gen gone out with her? He stood, rubbing his neck. Talk about a pain he didn’t need when he was trying to mentally prepare for a dangerous cave exploration. He met them halfway through the field. Gen smiled as though nothing was wrong but Umeka still looked oddly nervous and wouldn’t meet his eyes no matter how hard he stared and that only made him stare harder. 

“Oh heyyyy, Senku,” Gen drew out, seemingly picking up on how nervous Umeka looked. 

“Hey,” Senku said shortly, still looking at Umeka who was now wide-eyed staring at the ground. Umeka didn’t say anything so he squatted down into her field of vision which made her yelp, “Hello. Earth to Umeka.”

“H-Hi!”

“...what’s going on?”

“Hmm?”

Senku frowned at Gen who smiled blankly at him which only irritated Senku more, “Umeka?”

“Nothing! Uh…I was just out hunting and Gen came to get me c-cause uh…cause…you’re leaving and..you need this, right?!” she asked, pulling the flashlight bulb from her hip and pressing it into his hand.

He frowned, squinting at her. Gen had absolutely ten billion percent coached her to say that. And the way she wasn’t looking at him made his stomach twist uncomfortably. What had Gen done? Was he trying to follow this ridiculous ‘love’ idea of his and decided to talk to Umeka directly? Maybe she wasn’t looking at him because she was uncomfortable. He scowled at Gen but it did nothing. The illusionist was unbreakable. 

“Well!” Gen chirped, “I’ll let you two say your goodbyes!” Umeka’s head snapped up, eyes widening into a pleading stare that Gen ignored as he quickly walked away to where the villagers were gathered around Chrome and their other supplies. 

Umeka didn’t turn her head but her eyes slowly wandered over to Senku finally looking at him with the most ridiculous and guilty expression that was as funny as it was alarming.

“Is…everything okay?” He ventured, frowning because this whole interaction was making him break out in a sweat and reminding him why it was so important to maintain a certain level of detachment at all times. It was just far more comfortable than whatever this was.

“Oh…uh…yeah! Of course! I…you’ll be safe, right?” she asked, nervously fumbling as she tried to detach the battery.

He watched for a moment but eventually the slow clumsy speed of her movements annoyed him and he put his hand over hers. She looked up at him in surprise, a pink tinge to her cheeks that reminded him uncomfortably of what had happened at the tree. He pushed her hand away gently, “just let me do it.”

“Oh…okay.”

She sighed, untangling the wires and carefully removing the battery from her side, slowing down as he finished the task, “Hey.”

“Yeah?”

“Are you…sure that you’re okay? …Has anything…happened?” He swallowed. Unsure of how to ask because he wasn’t really entirely sure what he was even asking. He just knew he didn’t like how unhappy and nervous she seemed to be alone with him.

“Yes! I’m fine. Maybe…I’m just tired. Yeah. Tired,” she said. She wasn’t convincing at all but if she didn’t want to tell him there wasn’t much he could do. 

He sighed, picking up the battery and turning, waving a hand over his shoulder, “Whatever you say, you big liar.”

“What-I’m not-”

“Yeah, right!”

“Senku!”

“Tell me the truth when I’m back, all right? I’ve got to leave and now I’m going to die worrying about whatever you’re lying about.”

“If you’re going to die how can I tell you when you’re back?”

He turned. She looked a little proud of herself, as though she caught him in a logical fallacy so he dropped his head down and scowled at her comically large, the best mocking face he could pull without the use of his hands to contort his features further, “You’ll have to tell my ghost so it can move on to the next plane.” 

Then he turned and continued walking to the group ignoring her as she called out behind him, “Senku! That’s not funny!”

⛮⛮⛮

“And you’re telling me that this…will be like a drum?” Kaseki asked, turning the paper in the wrong direction yet again.

Umeka forced his hands back the right way, “No, it will be an instrument, which is like a drum because they’re the same thing but they aren’t the same because they’re different.”

Kaseki looked at her, raising an eyebrow, “But they both have a barrel with stretched skin.”

“....okay,” Umeka sighed, letting her head drop, “clearly I don’t know enough about this to argue with you but that’s just not the point can you make it?”

“Hmmm….well…it’ll be a challenge but-”

“Please don’t-” she began but she was too late, or perhaps he just didn’t care because he ripped his shirt wide open exposing his chest to the cold.

“I love a challenge!” he yelled, ripping into his materials at a speed that made Umeka back up for her safety.

“Ume?” Gen called, attracted by the sudden fire sparked in Kaseki, “What are you doing over here.”

“Ah well,” she smiled bashfully, “I know that everyone’s really busy with the observatory and your telescope but…the little ones are pretty bummed that they can’t do much and I was thinking…” she trailed off as he looked at the plans.

“Oooh,” she grinned, “you can play one?”

She flushed, “Not…not very well and probably much worse now but…well. I could. I thought I could teach the kids a song I mean. What’s a birthday without music?”

Gen smirked, “That’s reaaaal cute.”

She could feel her blush getting worse, “Please don’t tease me.”

“How can I not when it’s osay easyyay?”

She rolled her eyes, turning to look at the observatory. If Magma did like he was asking they’d all be back tomorrow night. The building was nearly done, the telescope would be assembled tomorrow just before Senku arrived which wasn’t going to give her much time to test it and find a ‘good spot’ as Gen had asked her. She was admittedly a little nervous that her plan to play a song wasn’t going to work but even if it wasn’t done in time for Senku’s birthday it would be nice to start teaching them some music. The soran songs had really been a big help to them in making gold and, though she wasn’t quick to bring it up, it gave her a lot of comfort to know that every time she taught one of these ancient things to someone in the village she was honoring her grandparents' spirits, wherever they were waiting for her now.

“Done!” Kaseki called out.

Gen locked eyes with her and they both turned to look at Kaseki in shock.

“You are not,” Gen said flatly.

“I’m pretty sure I am!” Kaseki called holding up a shamisen proudly. 

Umeka blinked rapidly, forever stunned by Kaseki’s overwhelming skill. Then she couldn’t help but laugh, “What would we do without you?”

“Ah,” Kaseki grunted, swatting his hand, “you’d figure it out just fine. Now come take it so I can make this little fan pick…thing!”

“It’s called a ‘bachi,’” she said, taking the shamisen from him and running her hand along the neck, “it’s important that it’s flexible but strong.”

“Why’s that?” 

“Uhm…well..it’s sort of hard for me to explain but it’s sort of like…I push it with my thumb when plucking the strings so if it can bend a little then that’s easier. A hard one sort of…can feel…I dunno clunkier? Or like…it’s harder to handle and play but it’s studier which…can be nice. It’s expensive to have instruments if you don’t know the craftsperson.”

She pulled out the strings she’d made, carefully applying them to the front and tuning them. She’d practiced making strings from sinew for a while. Even back when she was alone, she’d hoped to one day figure out how to make an instrument to pass the time, but she’d never had the time. She wondered how different they would sound. She bet Senku would immediately want to upgrade it. He’d probably be able to do it in a few hours too. She smiled softly at the thought, imagining her playing while he got to look through his new telescope. 

“Hellloooo,” Gen called right by her ear in his freakishly good Senku voice making her flinch, “Earth to Ume?”

She frowned at him for imitating Senku, especially so close to her ear, “Senku doesn’t call me that.”

“Oh right! Sorry!” he chirped in his normal voice and then leaned into her ear and, imitating Senku once more, whispered, “Princess.”

All the muscles in her body went taught. Her face felt like it was on fire. She squeezed her mouth together to keep herself from making a noise because somehow she knew it would be a bizarre squeak and she couldn’t bare to give Gen the satisfaction. 

Gen laughed hysterically, throwing his head back as he did, “You look like you’re going to explode!”

She pulled her whistle out. 

“....Hey.”

She put it between her lips.

“Ume I was just teasing you a little! It was a joke! Come on we’re having fun!”

“No, you’re being a bully and being mean and I’m about to have fun,” she said, and then blew the whistle.

Gen shrieked and turned, running at top speed to the science hut as the dogs emerged from the woods and raced toward her. She pointed to the hut and they took off, just missing Gen’s heels as he climbed the ladder, his feminine shrieks echoing across the clearing.

Kaseki squinted at her.

“I’ll call them off in a little bit,” she shrugged, “they can’t climb.”

“Well that’s true I guess,” the old man sighed, handing her the bachi, “now will you play it a little for me?”

She nodded, sitting down and readying herself. It had been so long. Did she really remember it all? Maybe she was just going to make a fool out of herself. She remembered a lot of music, a lot of songs. After all, singing to herself was how she’d stayed calm in the blackness of the stone but that also meant it had been thousands of years since she’d held an instrument. She took a deep breath and plucked. It sounded familiar. It sounded good. She looked at Kaseki and smiled.

“Is it right?” he asked, perking up.

“Yes!” she grinned, and then suddenly it came rushing back and she played a quick tune. Shutting her eyes and enjoyed the moment. Remembering her grandma playing and teaching her when she was small. It wasn’t a classic by any means. It was the theme of Sailor Moon, one of her mother’s favorites as a girl that Umeka had begged to learn in order to impress her despite her grandmother’s focus on traditional pieces. But Kaseki didn’t know that.

It wasn’t a long piece and when she opened her eyes again the villagers working on the tower had stopped. They were all staring. Some even came closer to see what she was doing which made her flush in embarrassment. 

“I uh…” she stood, holding the instrument nervously, “I should find the kids! The drum kids! I’ve got to teach them a song so…I uh…I’ll be back!”

⛮⛮⛮

Senku went on high alert when Magma started to rush them so he wasn’t surprised so much as annoyed when a blindfold was thrown over his eyes and he was picked up and runoff. It all made sense. Umeka’s nervousness. Gen’s shady attitude. They’d finally realized he was working them too hard. That their chances with him were far too narrow a margin when turning him into Tsukasa was guaranteed survival. That’s probably what had Umeka so nervous and weird. If they were doing this then she was probably going to have to be the one to bring him there. She knew the way and she was the least likely to be in danger.

He sighed. All of that work and he still couldn’t do enough to keep the village happy. Even Umeka and Gen who knew what Tsukasa’s world was going to be like were choosing that over him. Gossiping together in the woods and thinking he wouldn’t figure it out.

Magma shoved him up through a hole, forcing Senku to climb up the remainder of the ladder by himself. The science hut, he guessed. Then Magma climbed up behind him. Senku could hear shuffling but couldn’t quite tell who was in the room.

“Aww…you’re back Senku,” Gen cooed, “Welcome home.”

“Eh,” he said, trying to sound as though he hadn’t already figured it out, “What is all this?”

“Heh,” Kohaku scoffed, “don’t waste your breath by crying out for help. Everyone is working together with Gen.”

“So you sneaky bastards finally figured out the hack didja? All ya gotta do is present my head to Tsukasa, tell him science is dead, and the village is safe. Perfectly logical,” he said. He wanted to sound strong. Maybe he had at the beginning but he could tell he lost his edge toward the end. He prided himself on being a logical guy but he was still human. He still had thought they had an understanding. That he’d formed bonds that were valuable and precious to the villagers. At least, they’d felt that way to him. He sighed, sweat dripping down the side of his face. He was afraid.

“I honestly don’t have a clue what you’re talking about,” Gen said.

Then Kohaku pushed him forward, pulling the blindfold off at the same time. It took a moment for his vision to focus. One eye was normal but another was looking through something. He blinked, shutting his other eye instinctively to focus. At the end of the tube was Saturn. He backed up, blinking, “You…made a telescope. No, you…made a whole observatory.” He looked down again, gazing through the telescope and remembering his past. His father. Trying to control the tears that pricked in his eyes because he refused to let them fall. 

“Hoho!” Kaseki laughed, “Today is stone day!”

“Today’s your birthday isn’t it, Senku?” Kohaku asked happily, “This is your gift!”

“And everybody chipped in to help make it!” Suika added.

Senku looked out of the tower at the people gathered below. Almost everyone in the village that wasn’t in the tower with him was there. Though, when he looked he realized Umeka was nowhere to be found and he felt an uncomfortable pang, far more emotions than he typically liked to feel at any given time. Hell, this was more emotion than he liked to feel over the course of an entire day.

Gen placed his hand on the telescope, “I just kind of remembered that you could put two lenses in a tube and make a telescope. A lot of the setup stuff to get it right was Umeka’s work. Since after you, she has the most telescopic know-how. Still, I’ll admit it’s half-assed But whatever, the whole village worked really hard to put this together but I trust you can handle all the fine-tuning yourself.”

Ginro slid up to him, poking him repeatedly in the chest, “Uh-oh! What’s wrong, Senku?! Are you actually moved by all of this? Even you’re allowed to cry you know! You don’t have to hold it in! So! Go on! Huh!? Cry!”

Kinro sighed, putting his face in his hand, “Why you do always have to be like this, Ginro?”

Senku smirked. Time to turn on his hyper-focused personality. Things were getting way too sentimental, “Excellent job, everybody! This is extremely practical! We can use it on our watch tower to keep an eye on Tsukasa!”

“Uh…yeah,” Kohaku said flatly, “that’s true.”

“Good to see you can still keep your emotions in check,” Gen sighed.

Senku laughed softly, setting a hand against the telescope, “I’m not the type of guy that would ever bring up his own birthday, not my style. How did you know it was today?” he asked, and then suddenly remembered something Gen had said back when they were walking home from the Christmas lights. When he’d mentioned his internal clock and Senku had said how long he’d been alive.

He frowned, despite how impressed he always was with the mentalist, “So you baited me with that question but still you couldn’t know that if you didn’t know when I revived.”

“Don’t you remember? You wrote down when you broke out of the stone. It was carved into a tree right outside of the miracle cave. Come to think of it ever since the beginning even before we met I was a big fan, regardless of what side I was on. And I’m not the only one. The whole village agrees. You might think that’s kind of lame to say though.”

Senku stared at him for a moment. He felt a flash of guilt for doubting them all. For thinking any less of their support and determination. Sometimes he was just so amazed to have found all the right people for this task. A whole village of people dedicated to a cause they couldn’t even fully understand. He didn’t know how he’d ever come to deserve it. Or how he would repay them, “Yeah. Just a little bit.”

“Called it!” Gen sang.

Senku laughed softly, shaking his head and looking out into the crowd of villagers. He frowned. Where was she? Gen had mentioned her. She’d been involved with making the telescope so why wasn’t she around for the unveiling? Maybe she was hunting again but it was late and she didn’t have a light. Besides that, they must have planned the time for him to come home so why wasn’t she there?

“Looking for Ume?”

Senku frowned at him. Perturbed that Gen always knew. Gen pointed out the window with a nod of his chin making Senku turn, eyes tracking through the parting crowd to where Umeka and some of the youngest and oldest of the village with gathering. He laughed, grinning broadly, “No way.”

“Way. It’s a special birthday concert performance,” Gen grinned, leaning out the window on the other side of the telescope from him, “Ume planned and taught it all herself.”

Umeka looked terribly nervous. Senku pressed his mouth together to keep from smiling too much at it. She hadn’t said but he’d already gathered that she hated crowds. She didn’t like being the center of attention or addressing too many people but here she was, the whole village looking at her, and even though it looked like she was shaking she was managing it, “Uhm…Kaseki…helped make all these so! I wanted to uh…thank him first an-”

Someone from the village cheered, starting a series of hoots and hollers for Kaseki that made the old man shake his head but seemed to settle some of Umeka’s nerves, “I thought that Senku would think the birthday song was ‘10 billion percent’ lame so,” she looked up, finding him in the window, “I thought you might like this instead!”

She turned and nodded to the drummers, counting to them and then, all together, they began to play. It was a quick jaunty tune and Senku knew it immediately. Tears pricked his eyes badly and he covered his mouth, pretending to have a sniffle when he wiped his face. It was the stupid Doraemon theme. He kept his hand over his mouth shaking his head in disbelief at it. He could tell Gen was watching him gauging his reaction but he didn’t care. When they finished there was a long moment of stunned silence. The villagers had never heard anything like it, they probably thought Umeka was magical or something silly like that now. Some it seemed were even crying which Senku could understand. They’d lived a life without art and they’d just heard the best show opening known to man, at least in Senku’s humble opinion.

Senku grinned, leaning from the window, “Nerd!”

“Senku!!” Gen yelled, swatting him, “What’s wrong with you?!”

But Umeka laughed, holding her shamisen proudly as she smiled up at him. He knew she understood it as the compliment it was intended to be. 

The villagers seemed to come to their senses, bursting into cheers. It startled Umeka and she looked around at them, smiling bashfully but looking a little proud of herself. She didn’t shrink or try to hide. Instead, she smiled and nodded her thanks to the joyous people around her, “Play more! More!”

She laughed, raising her hands, “Okay! We can do that. Right?”

The drummers around her nodded enthusiastically and soon the cold night air was full of another song that Senku was almost entirely sure came from Digimon.

⛮⛮⛮

It was late into the night before Umeka was able to convince the villagers that they’d heard enough music for one night. She had to promise numerous times that she would continue to play for them, promising to teach others. She sighed, looking to the observatory where she’d seen Senku climb earlier. She set the shamisen down in the grass and climbed up the ladder.

“I don’t get a private concert?” Senku asked as her head crowned through the floor.

She rolled her eyes, “I couldn’t if I wanted to. My hands are sore.”

He offered a hand to help her the rest of the way up that she didn’t need but took anyway, “Gen said you helped with the telescope.”

“Only making sure it was focused and pointing at something interesting,” she shrugged, unwilling to claim any credit for all the work Gen had done.

“Why’d you pick Saturn?”

“Hmmm….well,” she sighed, walking over to look through the sight, “Saturn is the furthest planet you can see with the naked eye. I guess I just thought it would be cool to be able to have the direct comparison. And…” she smiled, standing to look at him, “grandpa always said it’s the planet of wisdom.”

“Is that a compliment then or an insult?”

“A compliment, Senku,” she sighed, rolling her eyes.

“Is that why…” he paused, looking away into the night sky. “You were so weird…right before I left.”

“I wasn’t weir-”

“Oh don’t lie,” Senku scoffed, “you were super strange. Like, abducted by aliens weird. Like,” Senku made himself rigid and then shook, “look at me I’m totally normal like Umeka before Senku left for a dangerous trip.”

“I was not like that!” she yelled, pouting at him.

He laughed, smirking at her with an affectionate crinkle in his eye, “Well maybe not exactly like that but not that far off.”

“Sorry that I worried you,” she smiled, enjoying how his cocky expression vanished.

“I didn’t say-”

“You didn’t have to.”

He blinked, looking at her for a long time with an odd look on his face. It was warm. An affectionate and soft look she didn’t think she’d ever seen on his face before and she couldn’t bring herself to look away from his eyes.

“Okay,” he finally admitted, “I was a little worried. I thought…you’d all decided to give up.”

“Yeah,” she said, “Gen mentioned what you said to me.”

“...Yeah well…” he sighed, picking at his ear, “pretty shitty of me, not gonna lie.”

She rolled her eyes, “I think it’s normal to worry like that. I think…I’m even a little glad that you do. It just means you take what you’re doing really seriously but,” she smiled at him, “I’m not going anywhere. I’m team Senku all the way.”

“...Team science you mean,” he corrected in a soft voice.

“No,” she grinned wider, “team Senku.”

He scoffed, looking out the window with a smile on his face as he shook his head.

“Hey, Senku?”

“Yeah?”

“...can I hug you?”

He looked at her with wide eyes, taken aback by her question, “Hug me?”

“Yeah.”

She could see sweat on his brow. He looked tense the way he always did when someone did something that made him nervous. Sometimes she felt like Senku would rather be a cloud of gas that could talk so he could still do science but never have to have anyone touch him but sometimes he would make an exception and she was hoping this would be one of those times even though she was trying really hard to play it cool.

“...Yeah, you can.”

She smiled and stepped around the telescope into his open arms, wrapping hers around his torso and pressing her cheek to his chest. She could hear his heart beating hard and fast. His arms wrapped back around her shoulders, holding her surprisingly tightly for a moment, and just when she thought he was going to let go she felt his cheek rest against the top of her head. Maybe Senku knew how long they stood like that since he was still in the habit of counting time but she had no clue. All she knew was that it was oddly blissful and when Chrome called out looking for them they pulled apart, looking at each other with the same open confusion before going down the ladder and walking side by side in silence to the science hut where Chrome waited for them.

Chapter Text

“Haaaa,” Umeka sighed, collapsing to the dirt by the new cell phone. The party a few days before was supposed to be in honor of Senku’s birthday but now it was starting to feel like it had been a send-off for their rested bodies and minds. After packing 800 batteries with Ruri and Gen and watching Gen lose his mind over it and then helping hammer out copper stoves for the villagers with Senku she was exhausted. She frowned at the cell phone. What a load of work for a mess of wires and metal. And which part was what? And none of this looked the same. Wouldn’t they need two? Didn’t cell phones use to use towers? She definitely remembered big towers. She squinted into the sunny sky at the birds above. If only she could find the right kind, bird messengers would definitely be better than Senku’s cell phone. Not that she was gonna risk actually telling him that though.

Everyone was gathered around waiting and Senku proudly smirked before turning the handle releasing streams of electricity from the top of the cell phone’s tower. Everyone cheered except her and Gen who squinted at each other uncomfortably. So he must be thinking the same thing, she realized.

“Our voices will dance on the sky,” Ruri said in her usual beautiful dreamy way, “and travel far into the distance.”

“It’s kind of weird when you think about it!” Suika chimed.

Kohaku smiled, a sort of dazed expression on her face that made Umeka think maybe she’d just begun to figure it out, “Sure is! It’s amazing that we’ll be able to send our voices out so far. But I wonder how anyone will be able to hear them.”

Senku turned, his face twisted into the least sincere shocked expression Umeka had ever seen. She sighed, laying on her back and staring into the sky, already knowing what was coming. A tense silence set in over the villagers as Kohaku’s words made the realization spring into their minds. 

“Oh! Whoopsie!” Senku called, rubbing the back of his head in false innocence and speaking in a voice much higher than normal, “Guess we’re going to need another one!”

The villagers seemed to collapse under the weight of realizing how hard they were going to have to work again. 

Gen’s expression was flat, “You kept quiet about that on purpose, didn’t you? Cause if everyone knew we needed two of ‘em they may have been less willing to help out.” 

Senku didn’t answer. Instead, he just gave a small light giggle, trying to keep an excessively innocent expression that didn’t suit him at all on his face. Umeka pushed herself up, “All right, battery boy, let’s go.”

Tears pricked his eyes, “No, please, I’m not ready.”

“Oh come on I sort of liked your weird little song,” she said, looping her arm through his.

“Well, hold on,” Senku said, finally returning to normal, “We don’t have a cellphone just yet but…we do have something cool. We might as well enjoy it for a second. Besides, I should give them a little more motivation.” He pointed his thumb over his shoulder at the stunned villagers.

“How are you going to do that?” Umeka asked, raising an eyebrow, “Does the cell phone have Candy Crush downloaded already?” she smirked, leaning toward him slightly.

“Didn’t take you for a tablet kid,” he smirked right back, “Anyway, your lame joke aside, obviously no buuuut,” he rushed to the cell phone and grabbed a long roll of cable, “grab one of the speakers, Princess. If we run a cable to the village we can make it function like a landline.”

She hopped up and grabbed the metal cone, hustling after Senku who was already walking along the bridge backward, carefully unspooling wire, “Hey, Senku. Why did you jump all the way to a cell phone?”

“Huh?”

“Well…I mean,” she sighed, glancing up as she thought, “there were other things first right? The tappy thing? And…I’ve been thinking about this a lot. Carrier pigeons and stuff. Right? Letters and things I mean. Even the dogs could deliver letters…if they had a smell I mean. I think I could teach them.”

“Heh,” Senku huffed, smiling at her slightly, “ten billion points for having a scientific mind. I think when you say tappy thing you’re talking about a telegraph machine which, oddly enough, would be harder for us to set up in the stone world. They worked by sending messages through electric lines so…in their time it made more sense to invent that first but in our time without the infrastructure, they would actually be harder to make and use. Besides, I don’t actually know how they work. I mean, I know how the parts work but the language they use to translate dots and dashes to the written word isn’t something I ever bothered to use. So we’d have to make them and invent a new language.”

“Oookay,” she said thoughtfully, frowning as she tried to understand yet another Senku information dump, “...then why not the dogs? Or pigeons?”

“Have you…seen pigeons?”

“...I have.”

“....recently? In the Stone World?”

“........”

“.....Umek-”

“No.”

He laughed, halted at first but then he doubled over and cackled making her blush terribly, “So what you’re just daydreaming about a menagerie of pets to serve you?”

“No!” she protested though it didn’t do much to stop his laughter, “But weren’t they like really good at sending messages and stuff? It just seems easier!”

He sighed, wiping a tear from his eye, “No, you’re right. But…not much we can do if we can’t find them. I mean…I don’t know if you’ve noticed but…the fauna of the stone world seems to be ten billion percent less impressive than it was even in our time. My guess is that with so little green space and so much pollution, a lot of species died out. I mean…humans have had a lot of severe impacts and even made some animals completely extinct without proper guidelines in place but…animals that had gotten used to living beside humans and then they suddenly lost that. Not to mention all the trauma the planet must have gone through from our society collapsing I mean…roads, bridges, oil rigs, nuclear plants…all of that…”

He trailed off which was probably for the best because that train of thought was starting to get far too depressing, tears were pricking her eyes at the thought and even Senku himself looked like he wished he hadn’t spoken.

She shook her head, “Okay well what about-”

“The dogs are a no because I can’t let anything happen to them,” Senku said in his most matter-of-fact tone.

“What?”

He shrugged, “Tsukasa has met the whole pack, yeah? And I’m sure the rest of his bad little crew saw one or two of them when he tried to put you in his scary little tower, right Princess?”

She frowned, “Okay an-”

“And. If he saw them around there’s not even a millimeter of doubt in my mind that he would capture them or worse.”

She swallowed at the thought.

“I know you could train them and then we could get messages back and forth with less evidence even if it was way slower than instant but,” he shrugged, “it’s just not worth the risk. Besides,” she smirked widely, trying to hide his kindness like always, “we can’t have our Princess Mononoke going without her vicious dogs.”

“They aren’t-”

“Yeah, yeah,” he waved his hand, setting down the coil and climbing up into Ruri’s hut, “hand me those wires, yeah?”

She handed them up and then climbed the ladder with the speaker still in hand, “Okay…but if I did find a pigeo-”

He sighed excessively loud, “Yes, by all means, if you find pigeons you can absolutely go for it. Raise the Stone World’s own Cher Ami for all I care.”

She furrowed her eyebrows at him, tilting her head to make it clear she had no clue what he was talking about.

“I’ll tell you later,” he said, then glances from the window, “what’s taking them so long?”

She sighed, sitting by the speaker he’d just set up, “Maybe they’re trying to go nice and slow to take advantage of the break.”

“No,” Jasper said as his head popped up through the ladder opening, “it just took a while for everyone to recover from the shock.”

Ruri and her father and attendants and some of the other villagers joined them, eagerly waiting around for the speaker to switch on from the science side. Carbo leaned toward her, elbowing her slightly for her attention before whispering, “Chrome’s on the other side.”

She gasped, turning to him and trying to keep her voice soft, “Oh yeah?”

“Mhm,” Carbo hummed, nodding knowingly, “Maybe this time he’ll finally say it.”

She sweated slightly, glancing away, “Somehow I doubt that.”

‘Ruri,’ Chrome’s voice crackled through the speaker, distorted but recognizable. The villagers fell quiet in shock for a moment even Umeka thought he might do it. She’d heard enough from Gen when she helped the battle team train to know their whole love story. Besides that it was obvious they loved each other. If Chrome wasn’t so dense it might have even been a storybook romance. Ruri looked stunned and Umeka wasn’t sure if it was just from the science or if a small part of her hoped Chrome would say something kind to her too but all those hopes were dashed by Chrome’s shrieking voice, ‘this is some pretty bad stuff, huh?! Science is awesome!’

Umeka’s hand flew up to smack her forehead, “Of course, that’s what he would say.”

She could hear a chorus of groans from the other side and Chrome yelling in protest but despite that, a small blush was dusted over Ruri’s face that made Umeka smile. It must be nice to like someone like that, so much that you support all their interests and don’t mind the weird ways they express themselves. 

⛮⛮⛮

It wasn’t long before the whole village crossed the bridge to marvel at the new telephone, excitedly chattering about how they might be able to make the second cell phone even faster.

“It’s just like a speaker, huh?” Ruri smiled at the other villagers who nodded in agreement. 

Senku smiled, “It’s not almost like a speaker, it is one.”

He heard Umeka beside him just faintly speak, “...wait, Senku-”

“With microphones and speakers sounds convert to electricity and back again-” then he stopped, realizing what Umeka was trying to get his attention on. He blinked, looking down at her. 

She nodded rapidly, “She said it…!”

“Ruri…what you said just not almost like a speaker?”

“Yeah,” one of the little kids marveled.

“So is this a bee or what?”

“Wow, this thing is exactly like a bee!”

Senku raised an eyebrow. Now he was ten billion percent confused and from the way Umeka shrugged at him she was lost too. 

“Uh…how is a speaker like a bee?” Gen asked.

Ruri blushed slightly, seeming to pick up on the confusion from the three modern people, “Well…I mean. I thought speakers were a certain…variety of bee?”

“What gave you that idea?” Senku asked, barely able to disguise his own disbelief. 

“Uh…well the fact that it was in the hundred tales…?” Ruri offered, still confused and maybe a little shy about sharing now.

Gen leaned in slightly, “You’re saying that it was passed down?!” 

“Yeah!” Ruri said, perking up to tell the tale, “it’s a wonderful little story. It centers around an extremely talkative bee called Speaker and when he pokes gravestones with his needle he’s able to speak with the voices of the dead and tell their stories!”

“So there’s a speaker…a needle on a gravestone…and dead voices?” Senku asked, wheels turning in his head as he tried to piece it together.

“Do you,” Umeka offered, “do you do that?”

“Huh?”

“I mean…have you…seen a speaker be doing that? Or…do you…have a speaker bee?” Umeka raised an eyebrow, trying to ask her question kindly.

“Well…no?” Ruri answered, growing even more bashful.

“So that tale isn’t transferring any actual knowledge,” Senku said, realizing what Umeka was trying to ask, “so then I don’t quite understand its purpose.”

“What could it be?” Gen wondered, “It’s izzare-bay. The tale uses the word speaker to communicate something only those from our time would understand. Plus the tale’s number is 14. Or rather 1-4. The date of: stone day.”

Realization shot through him so hard it made Senku gasp. It couldn’t be. 

“Which is also your birthday,” Gen mused.

The grave marker! That had to be it! It wasn’t a grave marker at all!

“My old man’s gravestone! Let’s go!” he shouted before hopping out of the hut and booking it to the hillside as fast as he could with most of the village hot on his heels.

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka had never heard a record before. It was old tech well before she was born. She thought maybe her grandfather had had a player somewhere in the house. Or maybe that was a CD player. Either way, she knew what they were and it felt bizarre that now, the first time she was listening to one, the world was stone and she’d been on it in some form or another for nearly four thousand years.

Senku didn’t look bothered when he dropped the needle on the bottle end. His ability to stay calm always amazed her, he didn’t even flinch when a voice echoed through the phone or when the villagers squealed in response. 

“Shut up, will ya?” he said, finger deep in his ear like it always was when he was trying to play something off, “I can’t hear anything!”

The man in the recording introduced himself as Ishigami Byakuya, an astronaut. He sounded kind. Funny even in the dire times he must have lived. He spoke to Senku directly and Umeka felt tears fill her eyes. No wonder Senku could have such a fighting spirit. His father believed in him so much. Gen glanced at her and she flushed, trying to hide her tears by turning her head. He chuckled slightly, flinging an arm around her a pulling her into his side, “Senku’s cornered the market on being the unemotional one so you’re just going to have to be okay with everyone knowing you’re crying.”

“Gen!” she whined, his words making the tears finally leak from her eyes as Lillian’s song played on the record. Gen laughed softly, wrapping his other arm around her in a tight hug. Other villagers began to cry, the same as they had when she first played music for them. The villagers had missed out on so much and now they were going to be able to bring it all back thanks to their hard work and science. How long had it been since she’d joined them? Half a year? Longer? Now as Gen patted her back and turned to explain what the villagers just heard she realized she really wasn’t alone. Somehow the realization had never fully hit her before. Her time with the Kingdom of Science had always felt temporary. Some part of her always told her that she was only here until Tsukasa wasn’t a threat. That one day, she would no longer be of use or she’d do something that angered them and she’d have to leave and go back to her life alone with the dogs. Maybe before, in her first months with them, she’d thought that would be for the best. She had worried that she’d been alone for so long that she couldn’t join a group like theirs. That her life had made her wild, more animal than human. A creature maybe even Senku’s science couldn’t explain. But as Senku swore to the villagers he would do everything to bring the world he knew back to them and share in all the cool amazing things they’d enjoyed before she realized she didn’t want to leave. Even if she wasn’t of use all the time. Even if she needed things or had problems she couldn’t solve by herself these were the people she wanted to work with. She couldn’t sleep without Chrome’s impossibly loud snoring and she couldn’t become stronger without Kohaku’s training. She even realized she’d miss competitively hunting with Magma and Gen’s near-constant teasing. 

Senku turned away from Gen and caught her eye, snorting softly at her red-puffy face, “What’s going on with you? Were you a Lillian fangirl or something?”

She sniffled, “No, she was to mature for me.”

He chuckled softly, patting her on the head, “Then quit yer crying, it’s killing the mood.”

She frowned at him, “It’s just…your dad…! He seems really nice…! I asked before and you didn’t tell me much but he just sounded so-”

Senku’s teasing grin softened, his eyes relaxing from their usual sharp and focused look to an expression that showed how kind he really was to all of them. His hand paused, stroking her hair gently instead of patting her roughly, he brought it down, just brushing his fingers over her cheek and removing a tear before taking his hand away, “Yeah. He was.”

She sniffled, wiping her face now that Senku reminded her of her tears. She took a deep shaky breath and drew her shoulders up. She breathed heavily out of her nose and tried to set a determined expression but it only served to make Senku laugh, arms crossing over his stomach as he did, “Don’t laugh at me! We have work to do! Come on! Cell phone two, let’s go!”

The villagers cheered, everyone hurrying back to the jobs they’d done for the first one, still eagerly chatting about what they’d heard on the record.

“Whatever you say, princess,” Senku teased, turning back to his chemistry things.

She looked at him one more time, watching his back as he worked, thinking of when she’d sent him to hide from Tsukasa’s hut and how his back had vanished through the trees. So much had changed since then and they still had so far to go but for the first time it all felt enormously possible and that feeling filled her with joy no matter how challenging Tsukasa and his army might be.

Chapter Text

“Okay,” Umeka said, ignoring Senku’s sigh, “just one more time explain-”

“I really cannot explain it any more simply than I already have,” he sighed, eyebrow quirked in an at least somewhat amused expression. 

She frowned, her long braid hanging over her shoulder and down into the observatory from where she sat on the roof, “I just don’t understand how you can take the water out of ramen. It’s soup! It’s mostly water!”

He tugged the braid like the rope for a bell, “Look come down here will you, you’re stressing me out sitting up there.”

“But I can see the sky better from the roof.”

“You can see the sky better from the telescope,” he chided, frowning and tugging her braid again, “why’d you bother building this damn thing if you were gonna sit on it like the king of the hill.”

“I actually didn’t help with this at all.”

He paused, frowning up at her.

She blinked, taking in his serious yet somewhat pouty expression before sighing and sitting up. She swung her legs around dropping them through the opening and then slipping down into the observatory right beside him. He looked at her from the side of his eyes momentarily before leaning back into the telescope, “Much better.”

She hummed in response, rolling her eyes slightly. The new star chart was coming along pretty well. They’d finished about everything the naked eye could see from the small vantage point of the village. She wondered if it would even be possible to rechart the stars now. All around the world different constellations glittered down on the earth and all throughout time different people told stories about them. She wondered how many of those stories were lost for now, locked away in the stone mind of someone that spoke a different language.

“We don’t have much more,” Senku said, pointing toward the chart, “Not here at least.”

“Hey,” she said thoughtfully trying to turn her thought into a question Senku could understand, “...if…we were going to see other stars. How far would we have to go? I mean, I know we’ll see more if we wait but…”

“You mean,” he said, standing up to look at her but leaving a hand thoughtfully on the telescope, “how far to the Southern Hemisphere, right?”

“Where the other stars are, yeah.”

“Heh,” he laughed, turning to look out into the sky, “how poetic.”

She rolled her eyes, “Don’t tease me just tell me how far we’d have to go!”

He sighed, looking out above him like he did when he was trying to think through a math problem, “Off the top of my head? In the world, we’re living in right now where a boat is gonna be the first thing we could make and there’s no modern infrastructure I’d say our best bet would be to go directly south to Papua New Guinea. Maybe somewhere like Sorendiweri on the island of Supiori. That would be the first habitable island I know of that we’d reach from Japan that is fully in the Southern Hemisphere.”

“Okay,” she laughed slightly, “a good part of that was definitely just you showing off but anyway how many kilometers are we talking.”

“Answering your question thoroughly is ten billion percent not showing off and it would be 4,070 from Tokyo,” he smirked at her. Obviously confident with his answer and knowing that he was showing off just ever so slightly.

“Sounds far.”

“Heh,” he laughed before sighing and rubbing his neck, “It is. Boats measure distance with nautical miles one of which is equal to 1.85 kilometers. They also measure their sailing speed by knots which works out the same as km/h people used to use for cars so if you were in a boat going five knots the boat is traveling five nautical miles an hour. You with me?”

“Uh…I think so?”

“So, if we built a sailboat that was 15 meters and sailed it all day and night with rotating crews the way we would have to if we were trying to sail in the Stone World we would be able to pick up some time but a 15-meter ship averages to about 180 NM a day. So to get to Supiori we’d have to sail for 23 days,” he answered, voice going flat right as he finally revealed the days.

Her eyes widened, jaw-dropping at him as though he should end the joke and give her the real number, “No way.”

“Way. The world is huge. The internet, phones, hell, even writing and boats did huge things to help shrink it,” Senku said, that achy look passing over his face again, “We never knew what the disconnected world was like, after all, right? Tablet kid?”

Her face fell, a blush rushing over her cheeks that made Senku snicker at her, “Don’t make that a thing.”

“Sure thing, your highness.”

She frowned as he laughed again, turning to look over the star chart and try to deal with the flush on her face. He’d taught her how to read it as she’d been helping him with spotting stars. She traced her finger over them fondly, remembering the stories as she did and all the sarcastic comments of scientific corrections Senku had given as she’d told him. But even with his correcting and explaining she felt he’d really listened to each story. That the myths of the past and the beliefs ancient humans had before they understood the science didn’t make him scoff or see them as lesser than. It only ever seemed to interest him that people had always been like them. It was human nature to want to know. 

Senku had returned to his telescope but when he spoke his voice was much colder than it was when they spoke alone and it startled her into turning back toward him, “Just come up already. Tell me what you want.”

She heard feet on the stairs and then the door swung open to reveal Gen who didn’t notice her at first in the dark corner of the room. He walked to the telescope, leaning in front of the lens as he spoke, “Heya.” He straightened and smiled, his light and friendly voice sounding dripped in honey the same as it did when he tried to convince Umeka to help him with a chore he hated, “Sorry, I just don’t want the innocent pure-hearted ones to hear this. Kinro and Kokuyo wouldn’t approve.”

Senku chuckled again, looking tense as he shut his eyes, “I can sense an underhanded scheme brewing here but I hate to have to tell you,” then he jabbed his thumb over his shoulder pointing her out, “you failed to notice that the best of us is in the room.”

Gen’s eyes lifted to her and he sighed dramatically, “Oh of course I should have known that Umeka would be with you on another star date.”

She stepped forward into the moonlight, “What did you come to talk about?”

“Well,” he smiled, “You know me,” then his smile dropped and his voice became less cloyingly sweet and far more serious, “all we need is the record and our pair of cell phones. With my plan, we can defeat the Tsukasa Empire and save seven billion people with a bloodless siege. But if God really is watching us…then surly Ishigami Senku and Asagiri Gen will be keeping each other in hell forever.” 

Umeka frowned glancing between them because she was most definitely in the room and suddenly felt like she might as well not be.

“I’m not worried,” Senku’s eyes were hard set and focused, he looked braver than ever, “God hasn’t been a part of the world of science for practically ten billion years. So whatcha got, eh, mentalist?”

“Uh…?”

They both paused, looking at her for a moment suddenly seeming to realize that they ignored her. It was the closest they’d ever looked to bashful. 

“I’m…also here?”

Gen glanced at Senku but Senku seemed to make a point of not looking at either of them.

“My name is…Yamaguchi Umeka…if…you just didn’t remember it.”

“No, I,” Gen laughed softly, sweat forming on his brow, “I know your name it’s just-”

“Just you don’t want me in on the secret.”

“No,” he said quickly, “I didn’t say th-”

“Gen.”

He sighed, “I just…I don’t think you’ll…like it. What I’m going to suggest is…not nice.”

She crossed her arms over her chest, “Is it nicer than arrows going into people?”

“Yes! Obviously yes!”

“Okay then it’s nicer than what I can offer,” she shrugged, “So I wanna hear it too. Cause…no offense. You two can’t use any weapons. I mean yeah I know you can probably make something scary with science but. Like…arrows, knives, spears. If things get really bad…you two aren’t the ones that’ll have to do it.”

The room got somber. She imagined they all thought about it sometimes but now, as the morning air began to smell like fresh wind and small flowers once more the realization was setting in. Lately, she’d been having nightmares of bloody arrows and mangled people. If Gen had thought of a way to win without blood then she didn’t really care how mean it might be. She’d rather people be mad than dead.

Gen sighed, “Fine. Then,” He held up a finger, “Quiz time! Can you name the key to the Tsukasa empire? Which of the following is the unifying force that holds the people within it together? A. Food. B. Hot Chicks. C. Tsukasa himself.”

“C. Obviously,” She and Senku said at the same time though she noticed he sounded far more confident than she did as confusion coursed through her about why Gen would ask something so obvious.

“Bingo! Ten billion points! Tsukasa himself. He was already a charismatic, popular celebrity,” Umeka blinked at this, remembering the shock the reporter woman and Tsukasa had expressed when she didn’t recognize him. Did everyone else know who he was? Somehow that made her feel embarrassed again. Was he trying to rely on that when he first showed up at her home? Had it been that big of a help to him even in this world? It was hard to understand why people would prioritize his fame in a world that no longer existed over the fact that he could kill a hibernation-ready bear with just one knife. But maybe that was something about adulthood in the past that she would never understand now. Like driving a car or getting a loan.

Suddenly she heard a woman’s voice that snapped her back to attention, mouth gaping when she realized the voice was coming from Gen himself, “Hi! I’m Lillian Weinberg, y’all!”

Senku spit in shock, clearly sent into as much of a tailspin as she was. 

Gen coughed, fingers still held to his throat, “Not bad, eh? I can fake it somewhat. Far from perfect, though.”

Somehow it was hard to believe that he could get better. She felt like she’d all but seen Lillian in front of her dressed in Gen’s clothes, much less just heard him using her voice.

“You know,” Senku said, trying to regain his composure, “that was close. Very close, actually. Even so, it’s still ten billion percent obvious that you’re a dude. So that’s a problem.”

“Obvious…to who?”

“Yes. It is,” Gen said in a light airy voice before dropping back into his serious demeanor, “however, over a phone with poor sound quality like ours…”

Senku flinched, his eyes widening as he realized what Gen was implying, “And with the voice on the record as authentication.”

“Bingo! A hundred billion points! They’ll hear the raw power of Lillian’s live singing over the phone. A voice so unmistakable ovely-lay it could only belong to her.”

“Well yeah,” Senku said, grinning now, “it does belong to her.”

“They won’t have a choice! They’ll have to believe that Lillian’s alive on the other end of the line.”

“I see,” Senku said, a wicked expression that Umeka didn’t think really fit with what they were talking about at all casting over his face, “You’ll deceive everyone on the other side with false hope, offered by a zombie Lillian created to tell a big, fat lie. Heh. Oh yeah, we’re definitely going to wind up in hell for this.” And then, as he did, he plugged a pinky into his ear and spoke with a nearly childish voice that made a puff of laughter escape her, “Okay. Got it. We’ll settle the details later. Let’s go with that plan.”

“That quick?! No way!”

“I’m sorry,” Umeka finally spoke, both of the boys turning to look at her in surprise, “this is your…hell plan?”

Gen sighed, frowning sympathetically at her, “I know you might not lik-”

“No,” she rolled her eyes, waving him off, “What I mean is it just…I mean you do know our current other options are like…killing people right? I mean. You saw me hunting did it look like a fun way to go?”

“No,” Gen shuddered, “it definitely didn’t.”

“So who cares if lying isn’t nice?” she frowned, feeling like she was missing out on something important by not understanding how bad Gen’s lie was. “If we lie everyone lives.”

“Well,” Senku muttered, resting a hand on his hip, “It’s less the lie and more the…false hope. If they think Lillian is alive they’ll think there’s another civilization in America. It will be a…rough thing to find out was a lie.”

“...a lie that kept an arrow out of their head though so-”

“Have you always been this scary and we just didn’t notice?”

“I’m not scary.”

“Oh,” Gen interrupted, “you are ary-scay.”

The floor seemed to crack away beneath them as Chrome shoved up through a loose floorboard making Senku fall over and Umeka and Gen yelp and grab each other in surprise as he screamed, “Well, I don’t GET IT AT ALL!!!” 

⛮⛮⛮

Luckily it didn’t take Chrome too long to catch on. Once Gen fully explained the plan he seemed to understand, expression growing serious as Gen reflected, staring out the observation bay doors, “Naturally everyone in the Tsukasa empire is going to hate our guts for playing such a cruel trick on them. There’s no helping it, though.”

“Keep this a secret from the rest of the villagers, okay? I don’t think we need any villains besides us old world-ers,” Senku said. He could see Chrome processing, seeming to struggle with the idea of keeping a secret. He wished he hadn’t woken up. Wished he’d noticed that his snoring had stopped beneath them. He wondered if Umeka had. Glancing at her she seemed equally stern, arms crossed as she stared down at the floorboards. He wondered if he should have asked her to leave. Maybe a lie like this was too much to ask, even if she was talking about using her weapons now that they fully beat the plan out she could be having doubts. He imagined this was harder for her to think through, after all, she’d only just gotten comfortable with friendly human relationships and she was an absolutely horrible liar as he’d learned firsthand.

“Sure,” Chrome said, a serious frown on his face now, “great idea. Except now that you’ve told me I’m an accomplice.”

Senku frowned, why was Chrome being like this? “Hey, you were the one who barged in on our private conversation.”

“Quite literally,” Gen muttered.

“Well, I’ll be the one carrying out the plan, anyway. You’ll need a technician on hard to set up that giant-ass cell phone, won’t you? They’ll recognize you, not me,” Chrome said, holding out his fist to them. 

For a moment they all stared in silence, the only sound in the room the soft patting of snow as it touched down on the wooden boards.

“I’m going to go too,” Umeka said suddenly, looking up at them, “For protection.”

“No way,” Senku spat, frowning at her, “are you seriously forgetting Tsukasa is basically you’re own personal Bowser?”

She frowned at the suggestion, “Hey…I’m…I’m not dumb. You know?”

“I didn’t say-”

“When I first came here,” she said, frowning down at the corner of the room, “when I told you how Tsukasa had acted you guys had all these funny looks and,” she looked up, a strange stern expression on her face that made Senku feel guilty, “I’m not stupid. I know what you guys think and I know you might be right. Okay?”

Senku swallowed hard. He didn’t have any proof that Tsukasa had feelings for her, he’d never even really seen them around each other but it at least hadn’t sounded like Tsukasa was having a rational response to her. Maybe he didn’t know Tsukasa that well, after all, he’d wanted to like him and Tsukasa had actively broken a vertebrae in his neck but he’d never seemed irrational. Unless it was a story Umeka told. The idea of sending her back toward that made Senku feel ill. A heat raced up his spine and a cold sweat broke out on his brow, “Okay then…you know it’s not safe.”

“You’re wrong, Senku,” she said, suddenly giving him an odd sad smile, “I mean. Princess Peach is never actually in danger the worst thing that happens is-”

“She’s imprisoned?” Gen asked, putting his arms inside his sleeves again and furrowing his eyebrows, “You think being imprisoned is fine? Umeka I-”

“Look,” she said, frowning at them sternly, “I know you guys just want to keep me safe but. I know that I’m right. I know the way there. I’m not saying I’ll walk beside Chrome because I don’t need to. I have a bow and arrows, I’ll stay in the forest. I just want to be there for coverage. Just in case. If the team gets trapped someone has to make it back to you, after all. Why not me? The one least likely to be killed by Tsukasa. You said so yourself.”

Senku went quiet. He frowned at her, huffing and looking out the window. She had a point. He crushed statutes and killed Senku himself. Who's to say he wouldn’t kill Chrome if he found him? At least with Umeka there they could have a chance, even if Tsukasa had an absurd ability to catch arrows. If she was imprisoned there was always a chance she could escape, or they could rescue her. Death wasn’t as easy to escape, he’d gotten lucky once and that was probably all the luck he had left in life given his history. He sighed and then that sigh became a growl, “Fine.”

She smiled, putting her first against Chrome’s, “If it makes you feel less guilty I would have gone even if you said no.”

“That makes me feel so much worse,” Gen sighed, reaching his fist out.

“Yeah, why would you even say that, Umeka?”

“Oh, be quiet, Chrome.”

Chrome nodded, looking from their hands to each of their faces in turn, “Then we’ll go to hell together. The four of us.”

Umeka and Gen said nothing, just left their fists in the circle, taking in the solemn promise of the moment. Senku’s eyes fell on the top of Umeka’s hand, glowing in the moonlight beside the two cricked fingers he’d put in and when he felt the impulse to reach out and brush a finger against her knuckle softly he didn’t fight it. She looked at him as Gen and Chrome pulled away, saying something Senku didn’t pay attention to. What did it mean that she knew Tsukasa likely wanted her for more than he skills but she was still willing to go back? Was she stupid? Brave? He couldn’t fight the feeling that something terrible was going to happen, after all, he was involved and he was terribly unlucky but she looked so resolved. Her expression didn’t betray any fear, not even a hint of concern and he knew instantly there was nothing he could do to stop her. She was hard-headed a trait from her childhood he imagined, something that had become deep set in all her time alone and that meant that he wouldn’t be able to do anything but put his faith in her and try his best to hide the fear and guilt gnawing at his stomach and ignore the mental image of Tsukasa hiding her away in a stone tower where Senku couldn’t save her.

Chapter Text

The woods were incredibly quiet or at least they would be if not for all the human noise. There were no calling birds, no scampering vermin, not even a rustling leaf. Umeka was glad she’d changed into her softest moccasins and wrapped her pant legs even tighter around her calves than usual. Walking just inside the treeline she hoped she could go unnoticed as she guarded the three men walking out in the open and arguing. Loudly. She rolled her eyes when she heard Magma’s voice booming over the soft snow, “Why do we have to sneak around like this anyway?”

Sometimes she thought it would be less stressful to take up weights and become stronger than Magma just so they wouldn’t have to trust him with delicate jobs any longer. Luckily she didn’t seem to be alone in her annoyance since Gen sighed and answered him with a pinched sound to his voice, “Because if she spots us she’ll likely follow us.”

“And then our whole top-secret cell phone plan would be blown to pieces,” Chrome nearly grumbled.

But Magma, ever thick-headed, just continued to press, “Well if we’re so worried about that scout, Homura, or whatever, all we gotta do is catch or kill her and our problem’s solved!” 

“We don’t even know where she’s hiding, Magma!”

“So loud…” Umeka muttered to herself before clapping a gloved hand over her mouth. She was supposed to be the quiet one! If only they weren’t so irritating. 

“That is true…” Gen said, thankfully speaking with at least a normal volume, “However, right now, with all the noise they just made, she’ll have to leave her spot to see what’s happening. After all, they’re worried about our gunpowder supply. Her job is to keep an eye on us, so she can’t ignore the assive-may explosions going off.”

Umeka frowned, looking off toward the village behind them. She was sure Senku had more of a plan than he’d revealed to them, that was typically how he operated after all, he loved to keep just a little bit of secret but she hoped he would be okay without her there. She knew Ginro and Kinro were there and, if she was being honest, more importantly, he still had Kohaku, but she couldn’t help but worry. That pink-haired woman had a scary energy about her when they’d met at Tsukasa’s camp and that had only been briefly in passing. She swallowed, turning back to the expanse of snowy forest before her. She didn’t have time to worry about anything but keeping herself quiet and ready in case Homura or someone worse found them on their way.

⛮⛮⛮

“Heh,” Senku laughed to himself, they’d just barely had time to set off the sonic bombs and already Homura was rushing toward them with Kohaku hot on her tail. Senku grabbed his equipment, hurrying forward to catch her at the perfect moment. He wasn’t strong but he was grateful he at least spent enough time surviving on his own to build the muscle mass that allowed him to launch the end of the device in the air just in front of Homura as she was midleap, “Curious aren’t ya? Turn your peepers over this way and take a real good look. Check out my shocking science gadget, level two,” he pulled his eye guard down as he yanked the chord pulling the pin out, “It’s a flash grenade.”

Even with his eye guard on the light emitted was incredibly bright. He almost felt bad for not making enough for everyone but at least if he had one his vision would remain intact for the next part. Homura cried out slightly, losing her sightline and failing to land on the branch she’d been jumping for. Thankfully, the snow was quite thick so when she fell it didn’t sound like anything was broken and that meant Senku didn’t have to have many qualms about throwing his entire body weight onto her back.

“Senku’s weak as a flea but look!”

“That was awesome!”

Homura turned her head to look at him over her shoulder, “Watch where you’re touching me, okay?”

He couldn’t help but laugh at the implication, “Sorry, but that old trick’s not going to work on me. Once we rebuild civilization, though, I can pretend to be a sweet, innocent little boy all you want.”

“Hmph,” she huffed, turning away and pouting in a way that reminded him ever so slightly of Umeka and made his grip loosen just the tiniest bit.

He felt her shift below him and managed to get out a brief, “huh?” before he was suddenly falling over backward, flicked off of her like a piece of dandruff. 

“That was a total fail!”

“He is weak as a flea!” Ginro repeated. 

Senku sat up on his knees, watching helplessly as Homura flipped through the air, knocking villagers over as she went. He swallowed hard, this could be bad. When she finally stopped she was standing on a tree branch, “Kinro. Ginro. Kohaku. Suika. Kaseki. Jasper. Kokuyo, Turquoise. Mantle. Argo.”

“How the heck do you know what all of our names are?” Suika asked.

“If she job has been to keep watch on us this whole time,” Kaseki said, “it appears that she’s taken that task very seriously.”

“But no Chrome, Magma, Umeka, or Gen,” Homura continued, “All most all of the able adult villagers are here but those four as missing. Something’s wrong. Where are they?”

Senku frowned, taking his eye guard off finally. Maybe in Ginro hadn’t outright said he was weak she wouldn’t have tried to push him off but that was neither here nor there now. Suddenly she dropped down and pushed off the branch, she must have realized the only mission those four could possibly be on together. 

She started launching through the trees again, headed back toward Tsukasa’s base. “She must have figured it out,” Kinro said, putting a hand on the hilt of his sword, “she knows Chrome and them are on the move.”

“This is bad!” Ginro cried.

Kohaku pulled Umeka’s whistle from inside her coat and blew on it hard summoning the entire pack in minutes with Chalk desperately trying to keep up, “They couldn’t help with her in the tree but maybe they can find her scent.”

“Heh,” Senku grinned, crouching down to work, “not a bad idea.”

It wasn’t long before the dogs whined, Chalk pathetically circling around Suika’s legs and Umeka’s pack lay dejected in the snow, “I guess we can’t count on following her scent, huh?,” Kohaku sighed, “Chrome’s team got a head start and right now they’re headed to Tsukasa’s based but Homura’s in hot pursuit. If she finds them and Umeka can’t intercept then she finds the cell phone. Not good. If she destroys it or reports it, we’re so done for.”

Kaseki cried, “And that also means all of our hard work will have been for nothing!”

“W-Well I mean! They’ve got Umeka! She’s scary! I bet she can get Homura,” Ginro cried out, desperation making his voice waiver. 

“Even with Umeka’s talent,” Kinro said, frowning as he crossed his arms over his chest, “I don’t know that she can stop someone moving like that. So we’re going to have to catch her.”

“Homura’s chasing after Chrome and the others and now we’re chasing after her?! That sounds hard!” Ginro whined.

Senku grinned at his work, it was a little annoying that Umeka had been right. He’d be ten billion more percent stressed if they didn’t have her with the cell phone team as a fail-safe. Still, he’d much rather save her the effort and possible murder by stopping Homura himself and thankfully he had just the thing, he stood up hoisting the invention to his shoulder, “It’s time to bust out our ultimate weapon. AKA our surprise science gadget–level three.”

He flicked the switch, unable to contain his grin when everyone gasped at the glowing purple spots in the snow, “I hope you guys are ready for this because we’re about to begin a fun little race within a race.”

⛮⛮⛮

“There’s no other way,” Umeka sighed, “I walked a good ways and it only gets worse. More trees, more rocks.”

“Wouldn’t the trees be good?” Chrome asked, raising an eyebrow, “Like for us to brace ourselves.”

Umeka shook her head, “No, I don’t think so. Not in your case, I mean. Trees mean roots and roots mean tripping. In the snow on a steep cliffside? I think it’s way more likely that you’d fall there. Or break an ankle.”

“Okay but then how can we get down the cliff safely?” Chrome asked.

Umeka grinned, “Just watch,” she called as she hurried to the cliff edge setting her bow across her lap like a rollercoaster bar and using her heels to pull herself forward. As she slipped over the edge she heard Chrome cry out in surprise but she couldn’t help but laugh slightly at the sensation despite how cold and wet her butt and legs felt already. When she got to the bottom she stood and waved her bow over her head.

Chrome and Gen looked at each other apprehensively but then sat down as she had and slipped off the side, floundering slightly as they slid down. Everything looked like it was going well enough, at least until Magma squatted down and leaped into the air, seeming to block out the sun and making Umeka stumble back to get out of his way as he landed between Gen and Chrome who were still waving their hands as though they could gesture him into stopping.

“You idiot!” Chrome yelled, grabbing for the pack off of Magma’s back which he relented despite being clearly confused. Chrome immediately started to work on unpackaging the cell phone, putting it together as quickly as he could despite trying to be safe. 

“If those tubes are broken we’re in big trouble,” Gen said.

“It looks all right,” Chrome muttered as he twisted the final piece into place, “but I think we should check it every now and then just to make sure.”

“How would we-” Umeka began to ask but she was cut off by the cell phone ringing which made her and Chrome both yelp in surprise. 

Chrome immediately grabbed the receiver, “Is someone there?”

“Stop!” yelled Gen, flailing his arms, “I don’t think we should answer right now!”

“But why not?”

“It stopped ringing.”

“Why would they call if they know our phone isn’t supposed to be put together yet?”

“I can only think of one reason that they’d want to contact us at this stage of the plan and with only one ring…Homura must have spotted us, and we’re being followed,” Gen explained, “She’s from our time,” he continued looking at Umeka, “so if she saw us talking she’d realize we’re carrying a cell phone. The best thing to do is to just keep going and act like we don’t have a clue about her. Worst comes to worst we’ve got a pretty good trump card up our sleeve, assuming you’re ready?”

Umeka nodded, turning back to the forest, “I’m going back to hide, but I’ll be following along,” she gripped her bow tightly, “and I’ll be ready.”

⛮⛮⛮

“Bad news,” Kohaku called from the tree above him, “the light spots end at this river.”

Dang, she musta washed off the tracking powder. Probably noticed it this morning,” Senku said, his eyes not moving off his map.

“By the way, Senku,” Kinro called, turning to look at the ever-ringing cell phone on his back, “how come this thing won’t stop ringing like this?”

“Oh, that? Nothin’ to worry about at the moment, It’s Gen sending us a message. He’s using something called Morse Code. We can’t use voice so that forces us to text each other! It makes sense if you think about it that way!” Sometimes he knew it was a little wicked to bring up things from the past, especially when Gen and Umeka weren’t around to provide the context he delighted in leaving out but that was part of what made it so fun to say now. 

“Yeah? Not to me, Senku.”

“We’re not from your scientific era, you know,” Kohaku added.

“Gen’s reported locations and Homura’s route have synced up for the past several kilometers,” Senku said, laying his map on the group to show them.

“So you’re telling us Homura has caught up to them and now she’s right on their tail?!”

“And that information’s worth its weight in gold,” Senku grinned, pressing the call button to send a message back, “Cause with Homura directly in front of us, and with us communicating our positions via the cell phones, we can see where every piece is on the board…and pull off the pincer move.”

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka was crouching on a branch, an arrow sitting loose on the string just in case. According to Gen, the plan was for Magma and Kinro to cut a tree down after they bait her into climbing it. Then Kohaku could restrain her until they could actually tie her up but just in case Umeka needed to be out of sight to take a shot if all else failed, or worse, if she got away and they needed her to stay a surprise to protect the cell phone from Tsukasa. 

It all happened incredibly quickly, Homura was up the tree and then with one hit from either side Kinro and Magma had the tree coming down. Homura fell back, her arms out with no apparent attempt being made to catch herself. 

“Now go!” Senku yelled as the tree crashed down.

Kohaku leaped forward and so did Umeka; Kohaku wrapped her arms around Homura from behind and Umeka drew her bow. Homura seemed stunned, her eyes were wide and staring without seeing for a moment as Kohaku talked, “You may be crazy fast and nimble but if we know right where you’re going to be and exactly when you’re going to be there, then we can still capture you unharmed.”

Homura sighed, hanging her head and Umeka loosened her draw, lowering her bow but keeping ready just in case. She figured with Senku’s medical knowledge he could fix an arrow through a leg and that would show Homura down enough they could catch her without killing her if it still came to that.

“Hell yeah!” Chrome yelled, running over to them.

“Get excited, you guys,” Senku called out, “this is information warfare brought to you by the kingdom of science.”

Umeka put her arrow back in the quiver and laid her bow in the snow. Then, eyes not moving from Homura, she pulled a rope from her bag and started to wrap it around her, “Just so you know…” she nodded her chin to the pack that circled around the clearing, “those big dogs know what you smell like now.”

“Was that a threat,” Homura asked, scowling.

“Just information,” Umeka said, pulling the rope tight enough to make Homura grunt. 

“Heh,” Senku laughed, walking over, “we will have to untie her eventually, you know?”

“I don’t wanna take any chances,” Umeka said, frowning at him.

He smiled softly, “Well that probably is a good idea. But now that Homura’s dealt with…you could come back. Be her jailer.”

“No,” she said, handing the rope to Kohaku, “you’ve got Kinro and Ginro for that. And the dogs. And everyone else.”

Senku sighed, laying his head back and slowly rolling his head back to look at her as he groaned out, “Fiiiine.”

She smiled softly, feeling her face heat up ever so slightly because of the look on his face but more so because she could feel everyone else’s eyes on them, “I’ll be careful though.”

“Oh please,” Senku rolled his eyes, putting a hand on her head and roughly mussing her hair, “No you won’t.”

“I will!”

“Liar.”

“Senku!”

“What?”

“I’m not lying!”

“Ten billion percent, yes, you are.”

She frowned which only made him laugh, “We’ve gotta go. And more importantly, you’ve gotta go but…thanks for saying you’d be safe. Totally takes a huge weight off my conscience.”

She rolled her eyes, picking her bow up out of the snow and turning to hurry over to Chrome and the others, ignoring Gen’s pointed smirk as she did. 

“Let’s just go,” she sighed, “it’s a long way yet.”

⛮⛮⛮

For the past few days, she’d been far away from the boys. Once they’d gone down into the crag during the final leg of the journey to Senku’s fake grave she’d stayed up above, so far she couldn’t even really hear them. Even as they worked to dig the cell phone down into the grave she’d stayed high above, thinking keeping watch was better than going down to help with a task that had enough hands working on it already. 

Now she was glad she had. The kind-eyed man from Tsukasa’s side was here. Ukyo. Like her he was an archer, unlike her, he had incredible hearing and terrible ideas about who to ally himself with. He also wore bright yellow clothes which was the only reason she could spot him in the rocks occasionally as he moved.

She grit her teeth. There was no way she could tell the boys without drawing his attention to her. Luckily it seemed like they were hiding aware that someone might have come to check on all the noise they were making. For a moment she’d hoped they hid well enough until an arrow shot out from between two rocks across the way and lodge itself just above Gen’s head in his pack. They all scurried off and Ukyo jumped down into Umeka’s field of vision. Would it be worth it to fire an arrow? Maybe if she could sneak it in where he wasn’t looking it would make enough noise to distract him. But what if he was so good with his ears that he heard the snap of the bow and knew it was another archer?

Thankfully he was moving fast with an arrow drawn and he didn’t take another shot unless it was to herd the three panicked men in one direction or another. Umeka raised an eyebrow, following along at a distance. He could definitely take another shot, even if he wasn’t sure where they were if he got close enough they might cry out again. That made it seem like he was trying not to. Still, he ran them until the sun came up, and when they finally stopped they were in tall grass. Umeka frowned. She could see Ukyo up above her, or at least, she could when she leaned out. But having to hide lower down in order to keep an eye on him and the boys while also being able to hide put her at a major disadvantage. She couldn’t do all three things at once. If she hid she could see the boys but not him, if she didn’t hide she could see him and the boys but then she was very shootable. She swallowed dryly. She hadn’t had water in over a day. Her arms and legs felt shaky. Her head rocked with fatigue. Even the thought of drawing her bow again made her back ache. 

Suddenly smoke started pouring out of the grass. Umeka sat up, panicked but unable to do anything without drawing Ukyo’s attention. Did they do it intentionally? Was it an accident? She could hear Chrome and Magma yelling but it didn’t sound scared, it sounded more… intentionally extremely loud. They were trying to draw Ukyo’s attention. He shot an arrow into the smoke and she drew on instinct, shooting it down as soon as it passed into the smoke on his side. Maybe if nothing else she could intercept the arrows and just hope they could get away in the meantime. Then, that would just leave her.

Or it would have if she didn’t see a white flag waving in the air a ways off. Chrome, she realized, beat her to it. She jumped down and hurried over to Magma as Ukyo led him away tied the same way she’d tied up Homura days before.

“Magma,” she said softly from the side of the cliff, waving trying to get his attention.

“Hey!” He shouted, pointing at her accusatorily, “you didn’t help at all!”

“Shh!” she hissed, “Go back to the village. Tell them.”

“Tell them what?!”

She felt like her eyes were going to come out of her skull. How dumb could you get? “Chrome turned himself in, idiot! I’m going to try and get him but you need to tell them. ”

Magma looked up, apparently seeing Chrome somewhere on the cliffside above her because he, instead, shouted, “You stupid bastard!”

“ Magma,” Umeka hissed again, “if you don’t go back to the village I will shoot you myself. ”

He frowned at her, starting to move but then he hesitated, “...You should come.”

“Yeah,” she sighed, “I know,” then she turned to climb the cliffside all the while imagining how annoyed Senku was going to be when Magma told him what she’d done. She’d broke her one promise.

⛮⛮⛮

Senku’s little friend was…spirited, at least. That was something Tsukasa could respect. He walked into the camp without a trace of fear, moving like someone who was completely sure of himself and his convictions, “I know who you are. Yeah. No introductions needed because I can tell right away. You’ve got a different aura. So, we finally meet in person. I’ve heard a lot about you, Tsukasa!”

Tsukasa smirked slightly. There was a lot of venom to his words, “Ha. I like your spirit, man. You’re one of Senku’s new friends, aren’t you?”

“Oh yeah! You’re damn right I am! My name’s Chrome. I’m a scientist from Ishigami Village.”

“So why did you make the decision to tell me that you’re a scientist? Senku must’ve explained the situation, so I’m sure that you know that was quite a risky move.”

“You bet I do! And I know that you’re a science-hating jerk! Sounds like you need to be taught a lesson to me. And I…can teach you how cool science is! I hope you’re ready cause first….we’ve got rainbow flames!”

It was all Tsukasa could do to not laugh. How primitive. He sighed a waved his hand to Hyoga who grabbed Chrome roughly by his arm. 

“Why don’t I show you a little science then too,” Tsukasa said, looking down at Chrome who was breaking out into a sweat, “About water pressure and terminal velocity.”

“Terminal…” Chrome echoed as he was shoved out of the cave.

It wasn’t a long walk to the high cliff by the waterfall and Chrome was fortunately light enough that Hyoga could hang him from the end of his spear without breaking the pole.

Hyoga began the questioning, “Would you like to tell us what really brings a scientist like you here? Of course, if you don’t, you’ll just end up dead.

Chrome was silent.

Tsukasa wanted to be reasonable. The way he saw it, Chrome didn’t need to die. In fact, there was a certain appeal to a scientist born in this time. Someone that didn’t remember guns or addictive drugs, “Now Chrome, it’s not that I’m completely opposed to a scientific civilization. I mean, we have fire and tools here, of course. Those are excellent ways to use science. But you have no idea how things were before. The world I lived in was tainted by powerful forces who used weapons of science for unspeakable crimes. It’s why we need restraint. Our miraculous and beautiful world was purified by someone–for some reason–and now Senku is trying to tarnish it again.”

“This is a golden opportunity,” Hyoga continued, “the perfect time for you to join us, Chrome.”

“If you bring us Senku’s head,” Tsukasa offered, “I promise you’ll have all the colored fire and science tricks to keep you happy. Plus, my guarantee that all the people in your village will be safe.”

“Well, that does sound a hell of a lot better than dying,” Chrome mused for a moment before smirking back at them, “that is what you want me to say, right? Just drop me, hurry it up.”

“So be it,” Hyoga said, dipping his spear and letting Chrome fall.

Immediately, Tsukasa gestured for Ukyo to fire an arrow but just as he shot another arrow caught Chrome’s hood just before Ukyo’s; the force of the two arrows pinning Chrome to a tree across the way. Tsukasa turned quickly staring above him into furious amber eyes he never thought he would see again.

“Umeka…” he breathed, ignoring how Hyoga glanced at him.

She didn’t respond. Her arm was shaking and her hair was mussed. She looked exhausted and furious.

He frowned, “I’ll have to throw this tree, you know, his hood will only hold for so long. You don’t look like you feel well enough to shoot an arrow into stone.”

She frowned but held her conviction, adjusting her grip and never moving the arrow away from where she’d aimed it, ironically, directly at his heart.

“I won’t be able to do that until you stop pointing your weapon and come down here,” Tsukasa said, his point emphasized by a rip from Chrome’s hood that made him yelp. Immediately Umeka dropped her arrow, the thin wood clattering down the cliffside and she made her way down helped by Ukyo who offered her his hand. Tsukasa managed to turn away, gripping his fingers into a tree and pulling it from the craggy stone before throwing it over into the Y-shaped split in the tree Chrome was hanging on. Chrome landed roughly, face first and straddling the tree. 

Tsukasa looked back at Umeka again, “There’s no point in pushing him any further. He won’t turn for neither carrot nor stick. And I already know the choice you’ll make, Umeka, you’ve already made it once, after all.”

She turned her chin up at him proudly, maintaining her silence. Somehow that was worse. If he could just hear her voice, even if it was briefly hateful it would be a relief. How long had it been since she’d run from the camp? Half a year or more now? She didn’t look so different, beyond the clear exhaustion on her face and her charming winter clothes. Her braid was wrapped loosely around her throat like a long scarf and somehow that small quirk of her outfit tugged at his heart even though her eyes stared at him with hatred. 

“Well, despite your intense silence,” he smiled, moving slightly closer to her, “I’m glad to see you again. You look tired, though. We’ll make sure you can rest well. I promise.”

“And Chrome,” she said, finally breaking her silence, “Chrome will be safe too. Now that you played your little game.”

“Of course,” He nodded, putting a hand against his heart, “I promise.”

“Where did you say you found him?” Hyoga asked, turning back to Ukyo.

Ukyo turned his head, smiling softly, “He was at the miracle cave, just scouting it out by himself. Or. Well,” he said, glancing at Umeka, “I thought he was alone. You’re awfully quiet, you know?”

“Yes,” Tsukasa smiled softly, looking into her face again, “we’re lucky to have her back.”

Chapter Text

“Someone’s here,” Kinro called from the telescope before gasping, “it’s Magma!”

Senku looked up, his body tense. Gen had come back alone. He’d been in a rush to get back and play the part of Lillian as they’d planned and he hadn’t had much time to explain what happened to everyone else. Once Nikki was on their side he’d finally explained that Magma and Chrome made a distraction and they hadn’t seen Umeka for a few days. Senku tried to tell himself that was to be expected. She’d been on a mission to watch over them and protect them so, theoretically, it was good that they hadn’t seen her. However, it could also mean that she’d been captured and had no way to alert them. He was trying his best to keep an impartial expression. To act like he wasn’t desperate to hear that Chrome and Umeka were following behind but when Kinro turned Senku knew the truth before he spoke.

“He’s alone.”

They climbed from the observatory and met Magma in the clearing as he panted, gesturing for a cup of water and unable to stand upright much less speak, “Come on, someone. Water.”

It was Ruri that moved first, bringing a bamboo cup and watching him, the question of where Chrome was clearly painted on her face.

“Captured,” Magma said between gulps, “Chrome got captured.”

Senku grit his teeth. It was always a possibility but he’d foolishly let himself hope that they’d all make it back and the plan could progress without any hitches.

“Umeka stayed behind,” he held the cup out for more water which Ruri poured silently, “told me to come back and tell you all.”

“And you just let her?!” Kinro yelled.

“Hey! Have you tried to tell that girl anything?! I did! I told her she should come and she said I know and then she started climbing up the cliffside! If I stayed there arguing we woulda all been caught and then you wouldn’t even know! So there!”

“Magma’s got a point,” Senku sighed, picking at his ear to distract himself, “Ol’ princess is impossible to tell anything to. She just does whatever she wants and we’re all just lucky that normally she wants to help.”

“So you mean,” Suika said, her voice shaking, “Chrome really got caught by Tsukasa’s Empire? And Umeka’s just out there trying to save him by herself?”

Magma ignored her, finishing his water and setting the cup on his knee, “Well what’s the plan now, twig?”

There was a moment when the reality of the situation hit everyone. A silence that lay on their minds in the face of the Kingdom of Science’s first disaster. Then Kohaku drew her sword and started running, growling as she did.

“Kohaku!”

Senku sighed, rolling his eyes and heading back to the tower. Honestly, Kohaku was just like a louder Umeka. Headstrong and impossible. He climbed the ladder and went to the phone, switching the wires to turn it into a speaker and taking a deep breath before shouting, “Get back here! Right now, lioness!”

Kohaku stopped, raising a fist and screaming back, “I’m not a lioness!”

“She stopped!”
With her father holding her back now Senku climbed from the observatory window, the same way Umeka did so many nights that she sat with him. He paused for a moment, thinking of how her thin fingers gripped the hay, leaving little pockmarks on the roof. He touched one, realizing she wouldn’t be there that night to tell him a story he’d heard twenty times already. He swallowed, shaking his head. He didn’t have time to reminisce. He didn’t even have time to be angry. He only had time to do something. He stood up, pulling the flag free and turning back to everyone else, “If Kohaku can’t go on her own why don’t we all go together? We can’t leave all the heavy lifting to Umeka, after all.”

“We all go?” Ginro asked with a shaky voice.

“The kingdom of science is mobilizing our army. Now that Homura the scout has been taken care of, there’s no reason for us to wait any longer. So let’s move out and set up camp near the Tsukasa Empire. From there we’ll have a better shot at bringing Chrome back in one piece and keeping Umeka from playing the big damn hero.”

The flag whipped heavily, making his arm ache but he held it high for a moment trying to convince himself that everything would be all right. As he climbed down he used the finger holes Umeka had worn into the roof, trying to ignore the burning sensation in the back of his throat and the dread that Chrome wasn’t the only one in Tsukasa’s clutches.

⛮⛮⛮

“Take him,” Tsukasa said casually as they entered the camp, directing large muscled men to grab Chrome by either arm and drag him away from the small party. 

“Wait! No!” Umeka yelled, trying to get to Chrome and being stopped by Tsukasa’s heavy hand on her shoulder.

“Nothing is going to happen to him,” Tsukasa explained in an infuriatingly calm voice, “but…I’m sure you can understand I can’t let you two be together. And…” he reached quickly, pulling her bow from her shoulder and the quiver from where it hung at her hip. He handed them to Ukyo, “I’m sure you understand I can’t let you have these for right now either.”

Umeka pressed her lips together, glaring up at him. He towered over her. That was something she’d forgotten. Just how big he was. Or maybe she was small because even Senku who everyone called small was still half a head taller than her. But Tsukasa? She didn’t even come up to his shoulder and coupled with his strength it really did make him incredibly imposing.  He looked away from her, eyes scanning over her bow in a way she didn’t like. Suddenly she felt very protective of it. Senku had put so much effort into making it for her and Kaseki had craved such beautiful details in the wood it was precious to her and she never let it out of her sight even amongst the villagers.

“That’s a new bow, isn’t it? It’s unique…I’ve never seen anything like it,” it sounded like he was trying to offer a compliment but his voice sounded tense, “Senku made it. …I mean…I’m assuming. Right?”

She stayed quiet, refusing to give him anything. Afraid if she said yes he would break it out of spite.

He sighed, “Umeka…you don’t need to be so guarded, I’m just asking a question. You have my word nothing is going to happen to you here.”

She looked away. She could feel his stare boring into the side of her face. His large heavily-lashed eyes searching for something she refused to let him find even though she wasn’t entirely sure what it was. She looked back at him, staring up into his face trying to figure out what he wanted. What she might be able to use to escape. Was Gen right? Did he have some feelings for her? If he really did would it even be safe to try to play to them to escape? Perhaps more importantly, would she even know how to do that? She swallowed. The severity of the situation was starting to dawn on her. She had no idea how long she would have to be there. She didn’t even know if Magma had made it back to the Kingdom of Science safely. Anything could happen on that long road and truth be told they didn’t even know for sure that Ukyo hadn’t been working with someone.

“Umeka…would you like for someone to draw you a bath?” Tsukasa asked suddenly.

Beside her Hyoga turned, for once revealing nearly snakelike slivers of his dark eyes, “Are you sure that’s a good idea, Tsukasa? She is a prisoner, after all.”

“No,” Tsukasa shook his head, “let’s not say that…Umeka is…she’s different from that other one. We’re old friends she’s just…she needs a little more time. TIme to understand.”

“I don’t want to take a bath with you all just hanging around,” she grimaced.

Tsukasa sputtered, a charming boyish laugh, a small tinge of pink on his face that embarrassed her more than him, “Of course not, we have a cave with a warm tub. You’d be there alone. A woman would guard the door, of course, but. It would be private.”

She thought for a moment. Maybe it wasn’t a good idea to take him up on the offer. Maybe it would seem like she was agreeing to join them. Then again it would be time alone to think, to come to terms with what was happening. And letting him think that she was agreeing to join them might earn her enough freedom to make it run for it later on.  More importantly, her body was cold and achy. She wasn’t in any state to try and escape. Just the trek home would be miserable like this, much less if she was being actively pursued. A bath would be a step in the right direction of getting herself fully functional so she could save Chrome and get back to Senku and the others.

“...And no men will be anywhere near.”

“Not a one.”

“You won’t be around either. Right?”

“Well…I am a man.”

“...Okay.”

He smiled warmly, “Ukyo, could you go find Nikki? And…I’ll put you in charge of Umeka’s bow for now. You’ll be able to take better care of it, after all.”

“...Sure thing, Tsukasa.”

“You go with Ukyo, Umeka,” Tsukasa smiled, “When you’re done…I’d like to talk. It’s been a long time.”

“....Yeah….all right.”

He smiled then. A jarring smile. Not because it was intimidating or frightening but because it was so warm. A beautiful smile on his beautiful face that betrayed no ill intent. She looked at him for a while longer as she followed Ukyo, waiting for the facade to break, for some wicked intent to break onto his face but even when she turned away and looked back he was still gazing at her with the same boyish affection. Despite everything he’d done and everything he stood for, she realized, he really was just a boy who meant what he said. As she followed Ukyo up to Nikki and then Nikki to the bath she couldn’t decide if his apparent honesty was a good thing or not. As she finally sunk into the tub’s warm water all she could think about was her own exhaustion and how long she was going to have to endure this deep gut-wrenching confusion before she could see Senku again and apologize.

⛮⛮⛮

It was a long time before word came back to Tsukasa that Umeka was done with her bath. Not that he was surprised, she had been filthy with ripped clothes and mud smeared on her face. Surely Senku didn’t have her living in squalor. Cleanliness, after all, was a major part of having a healthy society. Besides, Senku hadn’t seemed like the type to enjoy being dirty. Neither did Umeka so for her to be that filthy she must have been doing something too important to pause and clean herself up. Something she and Chrome and the other one that ran all had to work on together. Now he just needed to find out what.

He sighed, rubbing the side of his head. He’d spent a long time trying to dismiss thoughts of her from his mind. Of course now, right before things got underway, she showed up again. Just like in the fall she always managed to appear at moments of great tension. Still, he wouldn’t complain. Getting her back like this was far better than after they defeated Senku. If things shook out the way they had before, if he had to kill him again, it was better that he could keep her away from it. The less she knew of the burden he was bearing the better. 

He stopped at the edge of the cave, “Umeka?”

There was no response. He could hear her though, humming? Or maybe…talking to herself?

“Umeka? They said you finished up. Is it okay for me to come in?”

Again she continued to make some sort of noise but didn’t answer so Tsukasa leaned down carefully and peeked into the cave, blinking in the dim light before finally spotting her sitting on the floor.

He could feel the air escape his lungs, leaving a cavern behind in his chest that he wanted to fill with her. She still hadn’t noticed him, she was too busy with a knot in her hair. She was wearing someone's winter clothes, the loose cape making her look like a small tent with a woman’s head and arms rather than a person for how it swallowed her. It must be Nikki’s, probably passed to her when they realized her clothes were too soiled to put back on when she was fresh from a bath. Her hair was unbraided so long and thick it cascaded down the folds of the coat and pooled on the floor like spilled ink. She reminded him of the old paintings, a noblewoman of Edo or a goddess visiting the humble peasants below. 

“Umeka…” he ventured softly, sad to give up his private reverence but afraid that if he waited he would scare her.

She jolted slightly, head snapping up to look at him, “Oh…I-”

“Sorry,” he broke in, holding up his hands, “they said you were done.”

“Well…I am I just…” she sighed, gesturing to her hair, “it was too messy to not fix it. I got it wet and if I leave it it will get matted and Nikki took my clothes to wash them and-”

“Are you not warm enough in that? We can get you-”

“No, I-” she started, looking away from him, “it’s just…she didn’t give me pants.”

“...Right.”

“I’d rather wear pants. It’s winter. My legs get cold like a normal person.”

He smiled, “I’ll make sure you have some pants before you’re done with your hair.”

“...Thanks.”

She only let the silence linger for a moment before she turned back to her hair. Working at a knot near the bottom. He sat at the edge of the cave. Cautious like trying to befriend a woodland creature, aware of how she was tracking him in her periphery. A true hunter.

“Would you like help?”

She blinked at him.

“I mean…my hair isn’t as long as yours but…”

“You…I thought your hair just-”

He laughed, “Well, yeah. It did this when I broke out of the stone but I mean if I didn’t take care of it it would be a huge mess by now. I don’t have to help you I just thought…you have a lot of hair.”

Her eyes scanned him; moving from his face to his hair to his hands. Then she sighed, “Okay.”

He stood, moving to sit off to the side behind her to ensure he stayed in her periphery. He picked up a lock of her hair and began to quietly untangle it. What was this? The fourth time he’d ever touched her? Maybe only the third? It was hard to believe how taken he was with her. He’d never harbored these feelings for someone before, for a while he’d thought he would never be able to. After all, he’d risen to a somewhat extreme level of fame when he was just a boy. Being a celebrity at eighteen had earned him a never-ending list of fans and admirers. Sometimes as he walked out from a fight or a tv appearance women would throw things at him, flowers, gifts, underwear; anything you could imagine. People would grab at him. They tore his shirt and yanked his hair. People that saw him more as a novelty than a person. People he would have never been able to trust enough to form a relationship with.

“Why do you keep your hair so long?” he asked, almost absent-mindedly.

“...It just never occurred to me to cut it.”

“I’m not stupid, Umeka,” he sighed, waiting for her to look at him before he continued, “look, if you don’t want to tell me, you don’t have to. But…don’t lie.”

She was silent for a moment, almost chided, but then she took a long breath and answered.

⛮⛮⛮

“I had long hair as a girl,” she said, holding up the strand she kept at the front, decorated with beads, and showed him the highest one, “my hair was here when I was petrified.”

“...so…you keep it long because it was long then?” Tsukasa asked, his head tilting to the side as an eyebrow arched toward his hairline.

“No, I mean. Sort of. My…mother…she had long hair. And my grandma too. I guess…I wanted to be like them. They liked to celebrate tradition. Old school styles and practices. I guess…having our hair long was just part of that. Like…a ritual,” she ran her fingers over the beads thoughtfully. She wasn’t sure why she was saying so much. She’d sworn not to mention her family to him before when he was like a ghost haunting her house before she ran to the Kingdom of Science, so why was she talking to him now? 

“So it’s long to honor them?”

“I guess,” she nodded, continuing to try and brush out the knots in her hair, hoping she could finish soon and get some space from him to think.

“Hmm…I guess we’re similar then,” he said, fingers combing through a lock of her hair before setting it down gently and moving on, “I stopped cutting my hair as a boy…probably…six or seven years before we were petrified, I guess? …For my sister.”

She blinked, looking back at him. It hadn’t occurred to her before that while she’d decided not to share things about her family with him she’d never asked about his. And, until now, he’d never offered anything.

“My sister was five years younger than me,” Tsukasa said, focused on her hair and no longer looking up at her almost like she wasn’t there, “when I was a kid…she got very sick. She…well. She was in a coma. There wasn’t anything we could do at the time.”

“Did she…?”

“No,” he spoke quickly, suddenly looking at her, “no she…she was on life support. Waiting for a cure. I started fighting to make money to support her. My…my mother…” he took a shaky breath and in the dim lighting his eyes seemed to move more than natural, light refracting off his eye in a strange half-moon shape that that she suddenly realized was a large tear he was just managing to hold back, “she wasn’t a very…good person so.”

She nodded, “Sure. I…understand-”

“I thought you-”

“My dad,” she said quickly, “I don’t know him but. He was a bad person. So…I know sort of what it’s like. But…at least I didn’t have to grow up around him.”

Tsukasa took a deep breath, acting as though he was wiping his nose like he could trick her from seeing him wiping his eyes. She waited for a moment and then reached for a lock of her hair. This is what she remembered being so scary about him. He was strong and imposing like a comic book villain but he wasn’t. He was just a person doing what he thought was right. Even if he and Senku were much older than she had been they were all just children trying to build society. That was something that would stump most adults. Still. It wasn’t like she could just be okay with crushing statues. Even if she understood him, even if he was kind to her she couldn’t agree with his methods. But what could she do to change his mind?

“I’m…very glad to see you again,” he said, making her shoulders tense. 

She stared forward, refusing to turn and face him afraid of how he might react to her sour expression.

“I know you’re…probably angry with me, For whatever reason, I guess you want to go back to Senku and his team but…even knowing that I…I really am just glad to see you,” he breathed, hands finally releasing her hair again as he waited.

She began to gather her hair up, working it into strands to braid. She could feel the heavy weight of his words. The pressure of his eyes on her as she worked on her hair.

“Why…did you run? Back when I let you go. When you said you’d come back the next day. Why did you run instead?”

She took a deep breath through her nose, the braid well on its way now, a feat of muscle memory that had her finishing as she finally faced him, “Why did you let me go? You said yourself; you aren’t stupid. You must’ve known I was going to.”

“Yes…I did.”

She waited, staring at him and braiding her hair. As she finished and tied the end she stilled her hands, resting them on the cold cave floor below her. His eyes were soft and sad. He looked like he wanted something or maybe needed something. Like a puppy in a shelter. The only sailor left behind when the lifeboat took off.

“I don’t know why I let you I guess…” he breathed then, deep and ragged as he shut his eyes and when he opened them again he looked to the opening of the cave instead of her, “I guess I just didn’t want you to hate me.”

She sighed. That would be much easier, wouldn’t it? Just hating him. But she didn’t. As furious as he made her and little as she agreed with what he did she couldn’t hate him. Now, as he stood and offered her a hand that she absent-mindedly took she wished she did. Maybe learning to hate him was the first step to getting home.

Chapter Text

Tsukasa’s Empire was way bigger than Suika had originally thought. She shook her head, trying to lessen the dizziness from all the rolling as she moved places. She’d been to the miracle cave, to their cooking grounds, and even to the field Magma and Gen had described but she couldn’t find them. Her eyes watered, the lingering thought that Umeka and Chrome might both be gone growing more and more real in her mind. 

“No...no!” she muttered to herself, slapping her hands against either side of her helm, “I can’t think like that until I’ve checked everywhere.”

“Did you say something?”

Suika shot down, hands flying to her mouth as she did. The voice had come from just over her shoulder but now she was too afraid to turn and look. They must have heard her pep talk. She was so stupid! If she got caught while on a recon mission no one had approved of she’d only add to Senku and the other’s troubles. 

“What?”

It took everything Suika had to not turn around. She hadn’t recognized the first voice but the second one was unmistakable. Soft and light but pointed, a voice that made Suika think of the silky thorns of a watermelon vine. Umeka’s voice.

“...Nothing, I guess,” the first voice responded. Suika thought it was a man. And she thought, just for a moment, that he sounded sort of nice. A kinder voice than she expected to hear in this place. 

“Why did you bring me out here?” Umeka asked, a suspicious edge to her voice.

“I needed to talk to you without the others around,” the first voice responded. Suika blushed. She wondered if this was the voice of Tsukasa. If it was he sounded way less scary than she’d thought he’d sound. Maybe he was going to tell her he had feelings for her. Suika had heard Gen telling Kohaku as much during the trip. Explaining why he thought at least she would be safe. He was smart. Maybe he’d been right. 

“And why is that?”

“I just…look I don’t know much about this Senku guy but,” the first voice sighed, “I know some stuff about Tsukasa and Hyoga and it’s not stuff I like. I’m…think what you want but…I don’t want anyone to get hurt.”

“Well…you picked the wrong side for that.”

The man paused. Taking a long breath before speaking, “Well…I didn’t get to choose. I was woken up in a nightmare and I had to survive but…if you can honestly say that Senku and his team are different then…maybe I can make a choice now.”

Umeka sniffed, “Well…yeah. I mean. We haven’t hurt anyone yet. I think a lot of the others don’t even imagine a world where they have to hurt someone. Senku is pretty stubborn like that. But…I wasn’t there but…Hyoga already…he’s already killed people so-”

“What? When he attacked your group-”

“I…like I said I wasn’t living with Senku and the villagers yet but. I’ve been able to sort of figure out there was some…dangerous gas? It was just coming from the ground, I think. Apparently, to test it Hyoga kicked someone in, to see if Senku was telling the truth? I…I don’t really know the whole story it didn’t sound good so I thought maybe they wouldn’t want to tell me about it-”

The man was quiet. She knew it was maybe stupid but Suika couldn’t help but tilt her head. She wanted to see his expression, get some explanation for the incredible tension she was feeling. The man didn’t look much older than Umeka but his hair was already completely white. His yellow outfit reminded her of a bird. He had his brim low over his eyes but from the ground she could see his disturbed expression well. When he sighed, shutting his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose Suika tried to look at Umeka but the light bounced from her lens flashing brightly for just a moment. Umeka didn’t turn her head but her eyes flashed to Suika’s like one of her dogs. For just a second Suika got a taste of what Umeka’s prey must feel, it was a miracle she didn’t scream but as soon as Umeka recognized her the kindness Suika had always felt returned. Umeka rubbed her eyes, turning away slightly.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah just,” Umeka mumbled, rubbing her eyes still, “got something in my eye.”

“...Oh…” the man breathed, “well…look. I’m serious and…I believe you. I mean…no offense but you don’t really seem like a good liar.”

“...So people have told me.”

“And…from the way you talk to Tsukasa, I can tell you’re a pretty honest person so…if you think you can trust me. I wanna help you get out.”

For a moment Suika wondered if Umeka would point her out. What if it was a trap? Umeka slipped her hand from her face to her neck, rubbing it anxiously in a way Suika had never seen before.

“Okay,” Umeka nodded, “Chrome too.”

“Of course,” the man nodded back, “but…look. We should go back…but…I wanted to tell you to…make sure you stick around me or Nikki or…even Tsukasa but…don’t wind up alone with Hyoga. I can’t explain it but…”

Umeka dropped her hand, “I know what you mean.”

The man nodded and turned, “Come on, before people start to notice.”

He began to walk through the trees but Umeka paused for a moment, her hand dropping loose to reveal the thin bone whistle she always wore. She must have snuck it from around her neck. Suika carefully unfurled her hand, letting Umeka drop the necklace through the thin underbrush right into her palm. 

“Can we check on Chrome? Over on the other side of the mountain?” Umeka asked, turning toward the man without looking back.

Suika clutched the whistle so tightly she worried she might break it. Chrome. Umeka found a way to tell her where Chrome was. She’d given her a memento to take back to Senku and the others.

“I know where he is,” the man said, his voice light and amused and he led Umeka away and out of Suika’s sight, back to the dangerous world of Tsukasa’s Empire.

⛮⛮⛮

They were so close. Though Senku tried to hide it, sometimes the reality of the power of science still mystified even him. It had been 1,094 days since he’d broken free from the stone. There were some things he’d adjusted to over time; length of travel being one of them. Taking a full day to hike 10 miles had become the norm for him over that time. It was easy to forget that he used to travel to Guinea in just over 22 hours. Not even adjusting for the numerous hours of layover involved in a flight all the way to Conakry Airport, Stone World travel times still came to a mere thousandth of what they were capable of before. But now with the Steam Gorilla, they were unpacking right across from Tsukasa’s Empire in just a few of hours. A time that would have been far shorter had he bothered to make a double-cylinder engine, or if they’d been able to clear the path before traveling. Still, they were close enough now that even without the telescope, they could see the strange rock formation that made up the majority of the base. Senku sighed, hefting the heavy pot of raw materials up against his chest. He knew Kohaku was the best person for the job, her cheat-code eyesight could get way more from the telescope than he could but still, he wanted to see for himself. If he looked would he be able to find Chrome? Umeka? Would they be unharmed? 

He set the pot down, pausing to wipe the sweat from his brow. He hated feeling powerless, maybe that’s why he loved science so much. For someone as weak as he was it evened the playing field. It provided a sense of control that he was otherwise lacking and allowed even a sickly kid like he had been to have equal footing with those around him.

“Senku!” Kohaku gasped as she rushed up to him.

He snapped to attention, the hair on the back of his neck standing on end in fear that something had happened at Tsukasa’s camp, “What?” 

“It’s Suika she’s…she went to Tsukasa’s camp earlier and-”

Before Kohaku could finish her thought Suika popped out from the grass at the edge of the clearing, “Don’t worry Kohaku! I’m already back!”

“Suika!” Kohaku cried, rushing to her and dropping to her knees in order to hug her, “Don’t scare me like that! What if something had happened!”
“Well, something did!” Suika smiled, turning toward him and holding up a leather chord on which a fine bone whistle was hanging. Senku felt his stomach drop as he reached out for it. He turned it over in his palm, remembering how the chord always poked out just a little even from under all the layers Umeka piled on in winter. He ran his thumb over the carving and looked at Suika as she explained, “I looked everywhere and I couldn’t find either of them! I was starting to get a little scared but then Umeka came into the woods with some white-haired guy and he asked about you!”

“A white-haired guy asking about our Senku, hmm?” Gen mused, arms tucked inside his sleeves, “Well that doesn’t sound so good.”

“What about me?”

“He asked if you were going to hurt anyone…! He said he didn’t want to and Umeka said you didn’t either and so he said he wanted to help her! He was wearing a hat…! And…he wasn’t very tall!”

“Mm. That was Ukyo then. Far less Ary-scay than Hyoga,” Gen said, “though…I don’t know that I like the idea of Ume immediately working with him. He’s one of the ‘big three’ as Tsukasa’s folks call them. Ukyo, Hyoga, and Tsukasa himself. Even if he’s reasonable he doesn’t keep the best company. For our purposes at least,” Gen spoke in his normal thoughtful tone, eyes casting over Senku as he spoke, lingering on the whistle that Senku’s thumb still traced over as he thought.

“How’d you get this?” Senku said, lifting the whistle slightly.

“Umeka saw me!” 

Kohaku and the others gasped slightly at the thought.

“I’m sure that was surprising!” Kaseki called.

“Well,” Kinro said, “maybe but…it might have been comforting too. To know we’re already on our way.”

“I bet Umeka was just pissed to see Suika all by herself!” Ginro said.

“Well,” Suika spoke a little louder to get everyone’s attention, “either way. She noticed me because the light bounced off my mask. Then she snuck her necklace off and dropped it in my hand. I thought maybe he wanted to help us…! With the whistle maybe the pack will listen to us better.”

Senku snorted, “Doubtful. Those big beasts are just hanging around waiting for their princess to come back. Bet they’re pissed at us for losing her too. They’d probably bite our heads off if we used it.”

“Well, then why-”

Senku shrugged, “Maybe she was just showing off. Or she wanted you to have proof. It is a little unbelievable that one day in and Umeka is already organizing a coupe in Tsukasa’s Empire.”

Gen wiped a fake tear, “Honestly it makes me feel a little proud.”

Senku rolled his eyes, “Did you see Chrome?”

“Oh! Yes! That was the other thing. Umeka mentioned where he was when she was talking to the guy and I was able to go and see. She’s free and wandering around but Chrome is in a cell with bamboo bars! He sounded annoyed but…he was okay. And I’m sure if either of them were hurt Umeka would have found a way to tell me…!”

Knowing that they were at least both alive was a huge comfort but Senku couldn’t shake a weird feeling. The fact that Tsukasa was going so far as to let Umeka just wander around with minimal supervision made him uneasy. He had to know she was ten billion percent not the type to be afraid to get out on her own. Surviving in the wilderness by herself was, after all, her specialty. Everyone else in the Tsukasa Empire was kept there out of need or by bamboo bars so why was she special? Was she really safe there?

He swallowed. Agonizing over it wasn’t going to help. Even when it was all said and done Tsukasa’s feelings and thoughts weren’t really any of his business. He just needed to protect Umeka and Chrome and get them both back to safety before anything irreversible happened. He looked at the necklace again and then the pack. Maybe they’d listen if he blew it but he didn’t even really know the notes Umeka used. He imagined she’d trained them to respond in certain ways to certain things. Without knowing that or being here there probably wasn’t much point in him having it. Still, he couldn’t set it down. He’d have to give it back to her when she was home so without thinking about it any further Senku slipped the chord over his head and dropped the whistle under his shirt. Then he headed back to work, ignoring Gen’s pointed stare as he adjusted to the strange feeling of the bone swaying back and forth over his sternum.

⛮⛮⛮

Umeka wrung her hands together, staring out from the cave opening of her barless cell or, as Tsukasa generously called it; her room. Without the dogs, her bow and arrows, or a bizarre science project she was surprisingly bored. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d spent the day just sitting around, at least, she couldn’t remember she’d sat around without being incredibly ill. She frowned, glancing over all the hard-working people below. If she helped she’d probably be treated suspiciously, or worse, actually locked up like Chrome was. Moreover, she didn’t really want to help, not that she wanted anything bad to happen to Tsukasa’s people but if she did have to help them she’d probably end up feeling like a traitor.

She flinched, a sudden uneasy feeling making her turn just in time to see Hyoga’s lean frame appear around the edge of the cave opening opposite her. Her stomach dropped. More than anyone else in the empire she wanted to avoid him. Ukyo had even warned her outright. 

“A hunter’s instinct is such a fascinating thing,” Hyoga said, tilting his head back at her as though he was looking down his nose though his eyes remained shut.

She stepped back, turning to face him squarely. He had his spear. She’d never really seen him without it, to be fair, but bringing it to her room when he knew she didn’t have any weapons seemed intentional, “A hunter’s instinct wouldn’t make you more noticeable. Unless you’re some sort of…little rabbit.”

He twitched, a tiny moment of surprise that barely changed his expression before he laughed, a tiny huff of amusement, “No, I’m no rabbit.”

She pressed her lips together, glancing quickly out of the cave. Running could result in her being shot down with an arrow or speared, even if Tsukasa had given orders not to hurt her. Worse, she’d have to turn her back on Hyoga to do it and even if she probably had a physical advantage on the cliffside terrain due to her smaller size she didn’t know the cave paths as well as he did, and with his surprisingly agile movements and long limbs she was sure he’d catch her nearly instantly. 

“I’m sure someone like you is bored sitting around here,” Hyoga hummed, “aren’t you?”

She wanted to tell him she’d rather be bored than talk to him. Stick her tongue out. Lie and say she actually loved it but she couldn’t bring herself to. Not because she was nervous but because she’d already caused Senku and the others enough problems just by being caught, she couldn’t also be severely injured. Plus she needed to find a way to protect Chrome and get him out of his cell. The only way she could think to keep Hyoga passive was to remain silent.

His eyes opened, locking on her with a sort of insulting squint, “Did you not hear me?”

“I heard you.”

“But you have nothing to say?” He mused, “Well, I suppose you do have the mind of a child.”

Her mouth hung open. Blinking hard one time in surprise, “What did you-”

“That’s why,” he continued, completely ignoring that she’d begun to speak, “it surprises me that Tsukasa is so…taken with you.”

The hair on the back of her neck stood up. This couldn’t be good. Why would he be bringing that up? Actually, why was everyone mentioning it but Tsukasa himself? It was starting to feel like some huge misunderstanding. Tsukasa wanted to collect useful people, if there’s one thing she’d learned while with the Kingdom of Science, it was that she was useful. Maybe that was it and everyone else was just blowing it out of proportion or making assumptions.

“What are you talking about?”

He laughed, a mean sort of laugh that made it clear he thought she was stupid, “I’m sure it’s all very new to you, the little kids on the playground were probably still pulling on pigtails and gifting strawberry milk, but you can’t honestly expect me to think you’re so dense you can’t notice the difference between your treatment and Chrome’s.”

She swallowed, “I’ve been here before…and…even if I left Tsukasa and I-”

“Had gotten quite close,” he said, adjusting the grip on his spear so subtly she was sure he thought she didn’t notice, “I’m well aware.”

“...What do you want, Hyoga,” she said, eyes urgently scanning over him. She’d seen it for nearly a decade. The way an animal's eyes focused before they attacked. The tensing of muscles that are about to lunge. Hyoga was going to attack her. With his size and reach advantage the only option she would have is to dodge and hope.

“Umeka!” 

Hyoga looked first, his body going suddenly lax like a fox that got caught at a hen house. Tsukasa appeared at the mouth of the cave, tense and protective, moving to Umeka’s side in just one stride. He didn’t ask but the intense look in his eyes made it clear he wanted to know if she was okay. She looked toward Hyoga, frowning and trying to hold her head high despite the fear that was still coursing through her, making her feel hot and her senses half fuzzy. Adrenaline, Senku had explained once before.

“We were only chatting,” Hyoga said coolly, resting his spear in the crook of his arm shamelessly.

Tsukasa stared at him. Glancing up at him from the corner of her eye, Umeka could see how deeply his brows were furrowed, a tense frown plainly painted on his face. Though Hyoga’s eyes were shut again and his odd cape covered his mouth, Umeka could tell he was amused and that seemed to only add to Tsukasa’s annoyance.

“I see,” He finally breathed, an irritated twitch settling in on one of his eyebrows, “I hope you don’t mind my butting in then.”

“No,” Hyoga said, lifting his spear to his shoulder as he turned, “We were almost finished anyway.”

Umeka shuddered, more like she was almost finished. Hyoga had some nerve making jokes like that. Worse, if he was willing to undermine Tsukasa so much that he’d kill her why was he even here? Should she try to explain to Tsukasa? If she did would he believe her or would he accuse her of trying to trick him? If he didn’t believe her he might lock her up like Chrome. If he did he might be unwilling to send Hyoga away but need to protect her which would make escaping infinitely harder. Maybe it was best for her to keep it to herself for now. She could tell Ukyo later. If there was anyone in this camp she was starting to trust it was him. All of this was too stressful and complicated for her to handle on her own. Though that realization reminded her of Hyoga’s words; ‘you do have the mind of a child’ . Did she really? The thought made her stomach feel sour. Still, she breathed a long sigh of relief as Hyoga walked away leaving her and Tsukasa standing alone at the dark edge of the cave.

⛮⛮⛮

“I don’t like that guy…I mean,” Umeka said, frowning up at him, “he doesn’t seem very nice…or pure of heart.”

Tsukasa couldn’t help but let out a small mirthful laugh, “I understand but…he is strong. Maybe that’s becoming more of a problem than it’s worth though…did…he didn’t hurt you, did he?”

She shook her head quickly, as though she knew what he would do if she said yes, “He just…creeps me out. I guess.”

Tsukasa frowned slightly, his brows pinching together as he studied her face. There was something else, a more cogent thought she was clearly having about Hyoga that she wasn’t sharing. She wasn’t a good liar, and her face spoke more of her thoughts in place of her mouth. Still, if he pressed it she might panic and try to run from him or worse hide something more serious later on so he didn’t press it.

“I was…actually looking for you for something…that wasn’t just a lie to run Hyoga off,” he offered, slowly trying to improve the lingering tense mood.

She tilted her head, interested but cautious. A suspicious glint in her large amber eyes that made his chest squeeze.

“Would you come with me?” he asked, holding out a hand she didn’t take as she answered.

“Okay.”

It wasn’t a long walk and though he hadn’t been on the path for months she seemed to remember it well as she followed along but she didn’t say anything. She didn’t guess, nor did she ask why they were walking away from the group at such a crucial time. He couldn’t tell if that was a good thing or not. To his mind, it could mean she was relaxing. Growing accustomed to life with him in their world. But it could also be the solemn resignation of a prisoner. Someone trying to draw as little attention to themselves as possible and get through each day unnoticed like a ghost. Maybe she didn’t know how she felt either, given the tense expression she carried on her face.

When they broke through the clearing she took a long breath before looking up. Tears welling into her eyes in an instant. He wanted to comfort her. Pull her into a hug and help her to allow the tears to fall but instead, he watched her, glazing briefly at her tall tree house in the distance before he looked back only to find her staring at him.

“Why-”

“Why are we here?”

“No,” she shook her head, looking between him and her former home as though she wanted to see them both and didn’t know which to look at, “why…did…did you keep it? You did all thi-”

“Yes,” he nodded, looking toward the rope ladder as it swung in the gentle breeze, “I can’t garden like you can…or make pots or…heh well I can’t really do anything you can do but hunt…but…I hoped you would return one day and thought…you would want your home to be safe in the meantime…”

She started to step forward but paused, looking at him for permission in a way that filled him with guilt. How long would it be until they trusted each other? Until he knew she wouldn’t run and she knew he only meant the best for her. He nodded, gesturing for her to go as she pleased and she turned and ran full-tilt to the swaying rope ladder ahead of them. He smiled. She looked so free and she moved so quickly through the tall grass. She leaped onto the ladder without stopping making it swing wildly for a moment but still, she climbed with a child-like eagerness that made him laugh to himself as he followed after her. All of the cold winter walks. All of the snow clearing. The cleaning. The enormous amount of work he did on his own after the rest of his people had gone to sleep had been worth it for the joy it seemed to give her to be home.

He paused at the ladder. Looking up at the hatch but was unable to see or hear her. He wondered if he should let her revel in her home alone for a little longer but he wanted to be with her. He wanted to experience her joy firsthand. He wanted her to know he’d done it for her out of affection. So he climbed the ladder and looked for her as soon his head cleared the hatch. 

Umeka had curled into her macrame chair. She was swinging gently, eyes shut in bliss as the sun from the window cascaded over her face. Her legs were drawn up to her chest, arms wrapped lazily around them like she was jumping into water. Her long braid swished over the floor as she swung and her smile reminded him of someone half-drunk. A comfortable wobbly expression that seemed deeply at peace with the world.

His face grew hot. He pulled himself up and sat on the floor before her, staring up at her face as she leaned her head back against the ropes. Without thinking his fingers reached out and tangled in the chords of the chair. He pushed, trying to maintain the gentle swing of the chair, wanting to ensure the expression on her face lingered as long as it could. Slowly she opened her eyes and looked at him. She flushed, a charming redness spreading over her cheeks and ears that made Tsukasa push up onto his knees, tangling his other hand in the ropes. He stopped swaying the chair, instead holding it still where the sunlight spilled across Umeka making her tanned skin and beige deer hide outfit seem to glow. How did anyone stand feeling this way? How was this even a common feeling? Maybe it was egotistical but it was hard to believe anyone else had ever felt something so strong. It felt pure and divine, a feeling from beyond human experience that some graceful deity was allowing him to experience.

“Umeka…” he breathed.

Her blush worsened, clearly affected by the tone of his voice. Some small part of him, a conscious not overtaken by her beauty in the glowing sunlight was embarrassed. Ashamed of the husky tone of desperation in his voice. Embarrassed to be so earnest with someone. So vulnerable.

“Thank you,” she said softly, her arms tightening around her legs, drawing herself in more as she did despite how gently her eyes looked at him.

He blinked, swallowing slightly, realizing she wasn’t yet going to meet his strong emotion with anything other than polite reservation, “Of course…I...it…was hard for me to accept that you’d run but I was never really angry at you I always…felt you’d come back.”

Her eyes widened for a moment and then cast down to the floor. Sad looking and ashamed in a way he didn’t understand. Before he could speak she slowly unfurled herself, feet touching the floor gently just in front of his knees but she didn’t make an effort to stand, nor did he remove his hands from either side of the swing. He gazed at her face, hoping against common sense that the moment might extend a little longer or that she might throw herself forward and wrap her arms around his neck. He wished she would allow him to support her, to hold her in his arms and protect her. To provide for her. Despite everything he was unsure if her resistance was out of disinterest in him or the natural effect of so many years providing for herself. He felt unprepared to find out. Ill-equipped to handle either outcome due to the trauma of his past but still aching for a better future to share with her.

They sat there for a long time. Tsukasa kneeled before her and Umeka’s eyes traced around on the small bit of floor between them as she thought. It seemed as though millions of thoughts almost passed through her lips and stopped just short leaving her soft mouth half open and then closing as her eyebrows tinted in confusion. Despite his desire, Tsukasa didn’t feel impatient. He felt as though he could watch her and wait forever, even as the temptation of her lips grew strong in the darker parts of his spirit.

“Shouldn’t we…go back…” she suddenly offered, her voice just above a whisper, clearly aware that she was saying something he wouldn’t want to hear.

Slowly his hands slid away from the sides of the chair. He leaned back, his head falling back slightly. He shut his eyes. It had been stupid of him to dream that this would be the moment. That here, in her home where they’d first spoken, where he’d first realized how much he longed for her, he might be able to tell her and be truly heard. Worse, he couldn’t escape the feeling that she knew and she was doing her best to spare him and that thought alone kept him from insisting they stay. From blurting out that he loved her. From taking her face in his hands and drawing her mouth to his own as he’d done in hundreds of dreams. Instead, he nodded, unwilling to speak and betray his feelings any further. Suddenly the bright noon sun seemed dimmer. The shine of the light bouncing off of her only making him realize how dark the shadow he sat in truly was.