Bound- Red Threads of Fate Jaya AU

There's no reason that this life can't be electric

Note: Yes, the title is from the Katy Perry pikachu song. But we had the water related song reference already, sooooo...

This might be the bravest thing I've ever done, Nya thought as she bumped along in the back of a wagon, watching the sun rise over the farm fields.

It wasn't exactly a reassuring thought, especially seeing as it really wasn't that brave of her at all, but it was true. Unfortunately, for most of the journey she had been foolishly caught up on the fact that her soulmate, someone who up till this year she'd never thought she had, had just told her he loved her.

And I didn't say it back.

The thought made her stomach hurt, but it simply wasn't so easy. She wasn't even used to the fact that she could love someone like that. She'd always sort of thought she was incapable of such things, assuming that it came with the territory of her powers. That thread-mages weren't meant to have those kinds of soulmates. But here she was to prove all of that wrong.

Before she knew it, she was there. The village seemed strangely quiet–shouldn't the farm workers be going out to the rice paddies by now? She had left Jay's house probably around six that morning, but had waited over an hour before finding a wagon that would take her along to Ignacia. Then the wagon ride had been another hour, and, well, it must be around half-past eight. So why wasn't anyone leaving their houses, or already out working? Everything was so still . . . there was almost an ominous feeling to it.

Her heart picked up pace along with her feet as she hurried towards her brother's house. She was approaching it from the shop side, and even preoccupied as she was, it made her choke up a little to see how empty the old shop was. She and Kai had sold everything just to have enough to live on after their parents disappeared; it had all been gone for a long time now. But Nya had been thinking about her parents more lately, ever since she'd told Jay about them. What would they say if she could ask them what to do?

Nya shook herself out of her thoughts, and went quickly around the side to the door of the house. Just as she walked up to it and was about to open it, the door swung open by itself, hitting her in the nose as she jumped back in surprise.

"I'm so sorry!" Someone said from inside. "Are you alright?" Zane's head and shoulders appeared from behind the partially open door. "Nya?" He slowly opened the door once he saw she was out of the way. "Why are you here?"

"Just, you know, visiting home." She said meekly.

"I'm so sorry for hitting you." He said again.

"It's alright." She laughed awkwardly. "But Zane . . . why are you here? At Kai's house, I mean? Shouldn't you both be at work?"

He frowned, looking suddenly uncomfortable. "Oh, Nya . . . he hasn't told you?"

Her heart beat even faster. "What? What's wrong?" Had something horrible happened? Had she been too caught up in her silly romance to notice?

"Zane, who are you talking to?" A familiar voice called from inside. A moment later, Kai appeared in the doorway, eyes widening at the sight of his sister.

"You're okay!" She ran to hug him, noticing a white cloth bandage across his left temple.

"Yeah . . ?" He un-clung her from his neck and held her at an arm's length. "Are you okay? You didn't have some prophetic dream about me dying, did you?"

"Of course not. Besides, I don't have prophetic dreams. But Zane said–"

"She just asked why we weren't working at this hour," Zane explained. "And Kai–I think she should know. She's here, isn't she?"