Ori and the Spirits Within: Revitalized

Chapter 20: Origins

A soft sunlight glistened from the blue skies above, shining down on a young owl and spirit as they walked up towards the small cave in the Wellspring Glades, a place that the lost soul once called home. His anxiety was really getting to him. He assumed that Naru and Gumo had returned from the Spirit Willow and were waiting for him and Ku to return. He could imagine the look on their faces once they entered, knowing how he lied about his identity and Ori's condition.

Ku could notice the fear in his stance and slow shuffle up the hill. She gently brushed his arm with one of her wings, giving him a quiet yet genuine smile. He gave a forced smile back, trying to show a happiness that couldn't overpower the fear in his heart. Despite their understandable fear, Ku knew that they were overthinking the whole situation. Ku knew her adoptive parents, and she knew that they weren't going to be so abruptly malignant towards him out of nowhere. They'd tackle this like they would any dilemma: With an open mind.

The two of them finally entered the cave, and it didn't take long for them to find Naru and Gumo talking to each other. Sein was also there, but she was sitting on the stone beside the kids' nest, patiently waiting. Soon enough, they all noticed him and Ku entering the cave. It didn't take long for their conversations to fade and for all attention to be directed towards them. The cave became quiet...

"Mm...!" he could swear he felt his heart beating out of his chest as he saw everyone staring at the two of them.

"Is everything alright, Ku?" Naru spoke first, walking towards the both of them. "I didn't expect you to leave after him."

"Y-Yeah, everything's fine," Ku nodded. "I... Well... I-I think there's a lot that needs to be said, but... I just wanted to make sure he was ok."

"Good on you," Gumo nodded with a soft smile.

"Are... you ok?" Naru asked the spirit, kneeling before him and placing one hand on his shoulder.

"I... uh... I'm fine... I-I'm fine..." he stuttered.

"..." His body was shaking and his eyes were trembling. Naru could tell the lost soul was scared to confront them. She had to comfort him somehow but didn't know how best to approach it. Knowing she had to at least try, Naru leaned forward and picked up the spirit before cradling him into her arms.

"A-Ah...! U-Umm..." His quivering only worsened after being cradled in Naru's arms, having little route in getting out of this scenario. Despite his nervousness rising, Naru gently carried him over and sat down next to Sein, who attempted to help Naru comfort the lost soul...

"It's ok..." Sein whispered gently. "Just breathe..."

"*sniffle* *pant* *sniffle*"

"Kid, calm down..." Gumo spoke up, quickly sitting next to Naru to aid her in soothing the soul. He gently reached out a hand in an attempt to pat the spirit's stomach. However, once he made contact, the spirit quickly swiped the hand away before curling himself up into a ball, shielding his gaze from the judgemental eyes around him...

Oh, dear... "There's... There's no reason to be afraid..." Naru spoke in a gentle voice. "Everything's ok. We're not mad at you..."

"N-No... y-you are..." he muttered quietly. "I-I know you are..."

"Wh... N-No, kid," Gumo replied solemnly. "We're not upset with you at all. Why would you think that?"

"*sniffle* I-I...!"

"Because he lied to us," Ku explained, trying to sound a bit optimistic so as to not give the soul the wrong idea. "He thinks we're mad for keeping the truth about Ori from us."

"But you didn't know any better," Naru said. "You lost all your memories, so all you could really do was believe what Seir said to you. This whole thing isn't your fault..."