Long Nights, Long Road Ahead

Episode gave me some great inspiration for a quick oneshot, so here you go. Set the night after the events of Episode 97, cause why not jump on the angst bandwagon with everyone else... Please Enjoy!

The kitchen of the Bounty was dark, empty, as the figure who'd been wandering the decks aimlessly for over half an hour slipped quietly inside. Jay was having one of those nights. The nights where he couldn't shake the horrific memories of past events from his head, no matter how hard he tried. Where his usually endless optimism wasn't enough. Thus, trying to sleep was pointless. Today had been one of the roughest days they'd faced in months. Not that he was keeping track. Though, he might as well have been. And it probably wasn't going to get better anytime soon; what with the Oni being so dedicated to ruining everything they held dear. Seeing family ripped away... fall away... like that had been... Devastating to say the least. And he hadn't been able to do a thing... Only watched as... Which was why he was currently refusing to even think about going to bed. Why? Why could they never seem to catch a break? When would it be someone else's turn to suffer? The ninja of lightning fumbled for the light switch, feeling the desperate urge to do something to keep the shadows at bay. A slight flicker brought some small amount of warmth to the desolate room. There hadn't been much time to admire the workmanship of whoever had been responsible for rebuilding their beloved flying ship, but a flood of nostalgia struck Jay as he glanced around. They'd made so many memories here. Shared so much. Become family. Unbreakable. Well, almost. He wasn't so sure anymore. It was going to take a long time for any of them to feel even remotely okay again. A really, really long time... Tomorrow,there would be plenty to keep him busy; Surely he could convince Kai to let him help in the forge, once they'd arrived back at the monastery... But for now, maybe... Food might help? If anyone had bothered to stock their supplies sufficiently (everything had happened so fast; they hadn't even been able to dine together before everything went south. Just one simple meal - that's all he'd have asked for). He wasn't really hungry, but he needed a distraction, so, with a sigh, he began exploring the various cupboards that framed the wall. Plenty of rice, canned goods, miscellaneous spices, and a few unidentifiable jars. Nothing appetizing. The fridge, then? It seemed as good a place to check as any. Jay pulled it open, shivering as a blast of cold air hit him. And immediately regretted it. Because someone had very well-meaningly left them a present - a ginormous, oozing with thick layers of chocolatey frosting, cake. Cole's... Cole's favorite. It was too much for him. Suddenly, his face was damp, tears flowed freely. Heck, he'd thought he was done crying... apparently his tear ducts were still functioning after all... Quickly forcing the refrigerator shut again, the ninja of lightning sank onto the nearest of the benches surrounding the table. The blue ninja buried his face in his hands, overwhelmed by the wrongness of it all. He missed Cole. Wanted him back more than anything... But he knew no amount of wishing could fix things now. Not that he'd even want to wish for real. He'd already learned his lesson about such things. It never worked out the way they say it will in all those fairytales with the happy endings... He stayed like that for what felt like hours, no longer having the energy to fight through the pain. It wasn't like anyone was going to see him like this, anyway... Except for whoever had just sat down next to him...

"Hey..." His girlfriend breathed. Jay removed his face from his hands. She hit her lip, seeing his tear stained face.

"H-hey... So... You too?" She looked like a disaster - ponytail even messier than usual, and very, very obviously puffy eyes. Nya nodded.

"I... Yeah." They regarded each other, silently, as if wondering how many sleepless nights there'd be to come. But they had each other, at least. Neither was alone in their sorrow this time.