Chapter Twenty-Two
Alex
Soroya talks silently with Okoye on our way back to Wakanda. I can tell she's asking how Okoye has been holding up since the arresting of her husband. It's clear how torn she is; between wanting justice for what he did during Killmonger's reign of terror and the love she has for her him.
I figured any words of sympathy from me wouldn't bode well, so I stole Soroya's iPod and listened to some music. Fall Out Boy is amazing and as I scrolled through the library Shuri gave her, I found that I really enjoy My Chemical Romance as well. If there's one thing that the 21st century is doing right, it's rock music.
After talking with Okoye, Soroya comes back over to me and listens to the music as well, but I can tell she hates it.
When we reach Wakanda, in front of the palace waiting for us are T'Challa, Shuri, Khari, and the other Dora Milaje. Soroya carries a box off the jet and one of the Dora's takes it from her, gesturing for the others to help the general get the rest and take them to our rooms.
Soroya and I walk up to the king and princess, who look pleased to see my sister again, but only give me a nod of acknowledgment. They ask her how the visit with our aunt went. I let her explain it to them, while I move over to talk to Khari.
He smiles at me widely. I'd be lying if I said I hadn't missed that smile over the last few hours. "How was it?"
Before we left, I finally told Khari what happened to our parents and what we were about to go do. I felt it was time to try to let him know me better, however hard that task might be. "We got everything from our aunt and we even found out they had a funeral for us."
"Must have been quite the ceremony."
I scoff. "Yeah I know. But they have graves for all of us, including our parents, so it was nice to finally...finally get to say goodbye."
Khari places a hand on my shoulder. "I am sorry, Alex."
I nod to him. "I'll be fine...what's been going on here?"
Khari's smile returns and Shuri starts to join the conversation. She forces a smile my direction. "I have been making some designs for the new transportation route between Jabariland and the city. General Chikere says you plan on helping?"
I nod to her, forcing a smile as well. "What plans do you have in mind." I ask. Shuri looks to her brother, who gives her a nod, and with that she starts to lead us towards her lab.
"The General told me of the secret entrance in the mountain, one you have seen, and I plan to make that the entrance to the station. The station here will be in the field near the lake, right outside the city."
I crease my eyebrows. "Station?"
"I plan on the transportation being by train."
And all of the sudden, I am an eight year old boy; running around my house with the tools I stole from Papa, making and tearing apart my own toy trains. "I am definitely the man to help you."
Shuri raises her eyebrows. "Oh really? Why is that?"
"Because for fourteen years of my life I wanted to be a train engineer."
Shuri lets out a laugh. "Wow. What a coincidence." She says, a bit of sarcasm in her voice.
I turn to Khari. "Are you going to be helping make trains?"
Khari shakes his head. "M'Baku put me in charge of the whole operation, so I'll be overseeing the trains as well as the merging responsibilities of our armies. I'll be going back and forth."
I smile, and this one isn't forced. "This suits you."
"What suits me?"
"Being a leader."
Khari glances away, a small smile on his face, before turning back to me. "So, you really wanted to be a train engineer?"
I nod, feeling like today has just been a day of nostalgia. "I did, yeah. Ever since I can remember I wanted to do nothing else but play with my toy trains. I would take my father's tools and tear the toys apart and try to put them back together."
"Did you succeed?"
"After breaking fifty toys I eventually figured it out," I say, remembering how angry Papa used to get over my broken trains. "I swear childhood me would be cheering with glee right now."
"We'll be prepared," Shuri says eyeing me. "I need all hands on deck, so I'll be putting you to work."
"Yes ma'am." I say, and this is when her dislike of me really shines through.
"Don't call me 'ma'am'."
I lean towards Khari. "And I thought we were getting along."
Khari shakes his head at me, but a hint of a smile shows through, and that makes the comment worth it.
-
Soroya
"I'm worried about her," I tell T'Challa as we take a walk through the market. "She was quiet the whole trip."
"Did you talk to her at all?"
I nod. "On the way back home she told me she knows he needs to pay for what he did when Killmonger ruled, but W'Kabi is also her husband. She loves him."
T'Challa nods. "I know how she feels. He was my best friend..."
"Has preparations for the merging of Jabariland and Wakanda gone smoothly?"
He shakes his head. "Not yet. There is so much to be done, so many years of division between us," he says, and I can really see how stressed out he is. "But tell me, what items of yours did you recover?"
"All of our family photos, our toys, my mother's jewelry, our documents. We found everything we needed. But we also took a trip back to Hamburg, because apparently there's graves for all of us there."
T'Challa raises a brow. "Even for you and Alex?"
"Well I assume HYDRA covered up our disappearance. Probably made it seem like just an accident. Our aunt was really freaked out when she saw us. I would think it's for that reason."
"Were you finally able to say goodbye?"
I tuck a piece of hair behind my ear, smiling softly. "I really did. I think one of the hardest parts about losing my parents was the lack of closure. We never got to bury them, or truly honor the sacrifice they made for us..."
"I don't know how I can have closure now," T'Challa says sadly. "After what he did...how can I think of him the same way again?"
"I agree he did a terrible thing, but one mistake doesn't make a person bad."
"I can't bring myself to forgive him. He left a child alone, he left him to become a monster."
"It will be hard to get past. I can't imagine having to deal with having that knowledge about my father, but I'm sure you'll move past it."
"How can you be sure?"
"Because your father was a good man," I say, linking my arm with his. "And you love him. Family forgives each other no matter what."
T'Challa squeezes my arm. "Your kind heart still amazes me. Which is exactly why I am appointing you to help Okoye deal with the merging of our armies."
My eyes grow wide. "Seriously?"
He nods. "You said you wanted to help and Okoye is more than thrilled to have you by her side."
"I appreciate the responsibility, T'Challa. I promise I'll do my best."
"I know you will. Now tell me, what music did Shuri assign you on the trip?"
I let out a noise of disgust. "I had to endure hours of Fall Out Boy and My Chemical Romance."
T'Challa gives me a shocked look. "For Bast sake, you're very picky with music. What music do you like?"
"I love any music from the 20's through the 60's. Alex is a hardcore 70's, 80's, and 90's fan. He loved the music we listened to today, which makes sense since they're rock bands."
T'Challa lets out a laugh. "At least you liked Beyoncé. I think Shuri would have killed you if you didn't."
I laugh as well. "She warned me before hand. Who knew Beyoncé fans could be out for blood?"