When Kingdom Goes

Act II - Chapter 6

"Cem, can I ask you a question?"

Cem jolts up out of his seat.

"Oh! I ... didn't think you were awake." Cem says. He'd been sitting in a chair in the living room mulling over the events that had just transpired.

"I'm sorry if I startled you."

"It's fine, I was just lost in thought. What's your question?"

"Why does mo- Ms. Anri treat me the way she does?"

"What do you mean? Do you think she's treating you poorly?" He says while gesturing to the seat next to him.

Zero takes the seat. "It's the opposite really. She feeds me, clothes me, lets me live here with her, and doesn't ask for anything in return. Dr. Katse kept me around while I was still a test subject, and once I wasn't useful anymore, he kicked me out. But now, Ms. Anri takes even better care of me, but I'm not useful to her at all. Why?"

Cem puts his arm around him. "Well... Let's start with a different question. Why do you have to be useful to be loved?"

"Loved? I guess... it would be so the other person gets something for their efforts."

"See, your relationship with Dr. Katse was built upon an equivalent exchange, and your relationship with Anri is one built upon love."

"But why is it that way?"

"Hmm... Don't tell her I told you this, but when I initially asked her to take you in, she screamed and threw a fit."

"Really?"

"Yup. She did, not because of you, but because she knows that she wouldn't be able to imagine her life without you. She gets attached easily and fights hard to protect the ones she cares about. Her fuss was to shield her from the pain attributed to loving you. So to answer your initial question, she loves you because it's a part of her nature. Even with that, she finds something new to love about you everyday."

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Several years had passed since Dr. Katse's attack on Zero. He hadn't been seen in or near the village since then. Due to his sudden appearance and disappearance, Anri asked Cem to teach Zero how to fight, more for her sake than his. After their experience with Dr. Katse, she'd do whatever it took to keep him safe. Aside from training, they returned to their normal everyday lives.

"Zero! Are you up yet?! Cem is gonna be here any minute now!" Anri shouts down the hall.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm up..." Zero says, groggily rolls out of bed.

"You already made breakfast? You must really be excited." He says through a yawn as he walks into the kitchen.

"Morning." He says while hugging her.

"Morning." She turns to kiss him on his forehead. "And 'excited' isn't the word I'd use. More like, curious."

Zero takes a seat at his usual spot at the table. Once she finishes cooking, Anri makes three plates and sits at the table.

"He's late." Anri says while staring at the clock at the wall. "He said he'd be here at 8:00 sharp."

"Maybe he got tied up with something at work? He did say he'd be in Rahu today."

"If that's the case, it makes me wonder what could tie down someone that can teleport."

After a while, they decide to eat without him. Minutes turn into hours as they await Cem's arrival. Late in the night, they hear a knock on the door.