Back to the Way We Were - ch 5

Back to the Way We Were
Chapter 5

"Talking in English,"
'Thinking'
"<translated from japanese>"

        For the next hour and a half, the doctors asked questions and they were translated to Brinley and Alex. Questions about pre-existing medical conditions, what they could remember,and where they had been. No one really could understand why they just popped out of nowhere. Brinley and Alex knew exactly where they'd been, but just played dumb for the time being. There really was no way to explain without sounding crazy.
        Another woman and two men joined the screaming lady, and they stood outside the door, watching Brinley and Alex through the windows. They wore worried expressions and looked like they truly cared about the two teens. Said teenagers regarded them with a certain degree of disquiet. As ninja, your bonds with your family and friends were sealed; a degree of loyalty only known on the battlefield. Through war, you had no doubts about whether they would back you up in a pinch. These new people were a mystery and therefore untrustworthy.
        Chatter chatter chatter.
        "<Some good police officers are going to come here, along with some T.V. producers to talk to you, okay?>" the translater- his name was Jeff- told the girls. They just nodded.
        Chatter chatter.

        Nine cops later, two T.V. hosts and two FBI agents later, the two haggard children were left alone in silence.
        The door slammed open. So much for that idea.
        "<Your parents are bringing in some laptops and some programs to help you understand more English, okay?>" Jeff told them, handing them two notebook computers. They once again nodded.
        "<I'll leave you two alone,>" he said, walking out. The ninja waited a few moments and then Brinley broke the silence.
        "<Ookami-aneue, what the heck are these?>" she asked in her sarcastic tone. Alex frowned at the laptop.
        "<Uhh...I don't know Tora. I don't know,>" she sounded perplexed. Brinley managed to open it up and a bright blue screen popped up.
        "Oh!" she yelled. Japanese text started scrawling across the page. "<Oh! Ookami! Look!>" she shouted, pointing at the screen. Okami looked closer.
        "<Kon-nichiwa! Welcome to your Japanese to English computer program. Today, I am going to be teaching you basic English!>" a pleasant burst from the computer and the girls screamed. "<To say hello in English, say,> 'Hello'," the voice said.
        "Hello?" Brinley responded. The microphone built into the computer picked up even that sad, quiet response.
        "<Very good! Now, to say goodbye say> 'Goodbye'," the woman informed them. This time it was Alex that spoke.
        "Goodbye," she said. They got more praise from the screen. The battle-hardened warriors giggled like school girls and kept up with it for the rest of the day.

        "Hello," Brinley said when the two couples entered the room. "Thank you for the computers. We have learned much from them," she told them in a robot-like voice. Alex nodded. The parents were unsure about who these strangers were. Then their resolve broke and they ran to them. Once again, the two teens were unresponsive, not exactly pushing them away, but not clinging to them in tears.
        "We missed you two so much," the other woman said. They all nodded. When they stepped back they each ave proper introductions.
        The shorter woman had longer blond hair and blue eyes like Brinley's. She had fair skin and called herself Tammy. She announced herself as Brinley's mother. Her father had black hair with some white streaks due to stress. His eyes were green and his name was Greg.
        Alex's parents were younger. The woman's name was Laura and she had brown hair striped with blond. She had hazel eyes like Alex's. The man was tall and had warm blue eyes. He had brown hair that was a little longer than normal. He was tall. They both were more tan than Brinley's parents but, so was Alex.
        All in all, both sets of parents looked very nice and hospitable. But, still, the ninja were uneasy in their new surroundings.