Forever Young

[orphans]

Sleep didn’t come to Azza at all. Instead, a strange comforting haze did as her mind danced in and out of consciousness. The sound of raised voices outside the orphanage, floating in through open windows, did catch her attention, however. She paid no heed to them and continued to drift.

Then the door opened with its own telltale whine while the floor creaked with the sound of several people. Azza yawned and kept her eyes closed. Perhaps it was Mother Holly’s friends, but most likely, someone bringing in another orphan.

Voices and the sound of more glasses seemed to confirm Azza’s guess. Satisfied, she gave another yawn and continued to try and sleep. She had nearly fallen asleep when she heard excited movement rushing about the room. At first, it was in the opposite direction, but a call from Holly sent whoever it was rushing back and down the way towards Azza.

Curiosity got the better of the girl as she rose up to sit, rubbing her eyes to rid herself of sleep. All along the bed, she could see a few others sitting up, yawning, as they looked about themselves in confusion. A familiar shape was moving about the beds though, searching frantically.

Then suddenly, the person muttered something. “Shit, can’t see anything.” Instantly, Azza recognized the voice as Jensen’s and moved to rise, but something held her back. Surely this was a dream: A rather sick and twisted dream. However, as she blinked her eyes and rubbed them, she knew it was real. When he came close enough, they stared at each other for a second before Jensen moved first to hug her.

Confusion, joy, anger, and sadness all welled up at once inside of the small girl. She had never in her life wanted to hurt anything else, but it was as if something deep inside of her telling her to do so. At the same time, she was happy to be able to see her adoptive father once more and made to feel safe in his embrace. Yet, how long he was here for was to be determined. Did he come back to just say farewell?

Jensen pulled away and waited for her to say something. Seeing Azza starting to tear, he wiped it away quickly with a careful thumb.

“You came back…” Azza strained to hold back from crying, figuring that Jensen wouldn’t like vomit on his clothing. “Daddy left but came back.”

“Sure did.” Even in the lack of light, Jensen’s smile was visible to her.

She wanted to ask if he would take her with him, but after what happened today, it would have taken a miracle for Mother Holly to agree. Instead, she whimpered hesitantly, “Daddy… came to say goodbye?”

“No. We’re taking you home with us.”

Those words shocked Azza as she stared in disbelief. The sound of more footsteps behind Jensen made the small girl peek over his shoulders. Jensen turned as well to find Holly and Stephanie both smiling.

“Is it true, Mother Holly?”

Holly nodded, tired from the long day. “Yes Azza. I made them promise to take care of your forever this time.” She then looked to Stephanie for added reassurance. The smile Stephanie gave, gave Azza’s heart enough strength to finally embrace Jensen once more.

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It didn’t take long to gather the few things Azza had. In fact, everything she had could fit into the small cloth satchel she made herself (with some tips from Holly). Jensen and Stephanie were brought back to Holly’s office to finalize a few more things. While that happened, those who had awoken were wishing Azza well.

“Azza will come back and visit?” The small four-year-old whined softly. She had taken Azza on as her older sister ever since she had come to the small orphanage.

“Of course.” Ruffling the smaller child’s hair, she then guided her back towards bed. “If Mother Holly says you’re good, I’ll bring sweetroot.” Grinning, the four-year-old nodded and climbed into bed.

As those who were awake said their farewells and left, a boy came up to Azza decisively, though still obviously nervous. He was older than her by a couple of years. By law he would have to leave next year at 16. “I uh… made this for you.” He pressed something small and wrapped in paper into her hands.

She struggled to recall his name, as other than seeing him now and then, the boy spent the majority of his time at his blacksmith apprenticeship. Looking up and seeing the scruff brown hair reminded her suddenly. “Thank you, Coyo.”

“Azza, are you ready?” Holly called out softly as she stood by the door with Jensen and Stephanie. The pair turned to look at them before looking to each other a bit awkwardly again.

“You better get going Azza and I should sleep,” he offered abashed.

“Alright.” Bowing her head, as taught by Holly when receiving a gift, Azza then hurried to her adoptive parents' side.

Jensen lowered himself and then turned so his back faced Azza. “Come on, you get to ride home tonight.” Stephanie and Holly both chuckled as Azza climbed on, not entirely sure where to hold onto. Once Jensen felt Azza take hold, he held onto her legs and started out the open door. Stephanie lingered a little to thank Holly, who only waved her on. It was, after all, getting rather late.

The road back to Sei’s Tomb was uneventful as the group travelled under the soft glow of the moon. Azza had drifted to sleep on Jensen’s back while Stephanie made sure the girl wouldn’t fall off.

Once inside, Azza remained asleep and oblivious to the wondering and questioning eyes of some of the soldiers keeping watch or simply burning the midnight oil: Jensen, the enigmatic immortal, carrying a child on his back? Jensen himself could care less about what the others thought. Azza was his and Stephanie’s child.

Azza's room would have more luxuries than she could have ever dreamed; absolutely nothing broken or patched up. Jensen laid the girl's sleeping form down onto the softer-than-air bed, then stepped back. Quietly, he returned to Stephanie who was standing nearby.

“Do you think she’ll like life here?” Stephanie asked, a bit of worry now creeping into her features.

Jensen scoffed slightly. “She'd better, her room's better than mine at her age.” The remark earned him a slap on the arm, but he grinned at her. “I’m more worried about her getting lost.” A yawn from Stephanie signaled her own need for sleep. Her hand wandered down and held onto the immortal’s to squeeze.

“We should sleep too so we can wake up before her. It’d be bad if she ran into Remi, somehow.” Jensen nodded in agreement, especially after his bold move of slapping the Gisela Reaper in the face. They closed the door quietly and retired to their own new room right across the hall.

In truth, luxuries would be wasted on the small child. She would be able to appreciate them, but she would always secretly want simplicity. The soft bed would feel unnatural in time, and clothing would be another matter while she grew older. But for now, at the current moment, the girl had everything she could ever have hoped for. A mother, a father, and somewhere she truly felt happy and could finally call home.