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Genji took a deep breath, the cold mountain air barely registering through metal and scarred skin. He did not feel at peace inside- his chest ached where his heart should be, a dull throb that demanded what Genji could not give.
The monks had been so kind to him, patient when he was wrathful, kind when he was selfish, and now a sweet young thing had offered Genji his mediation spot. Genji had initially wanted to refuse- meditation had never helped him in the past- but it seemed cruel to refuse this gift. So he'd sat down and done his best to look peaceful.
Genji thought he should be bored, considering where he was and what he was doing, but something had changed ever since he'd taken residence in the temple. His mind could race and race all it wanted, but it ultimately had no choice but to succumb to the calm of the mountain. Not just the mountain's aura quelled his bloodthirst, but a certain Omnic who carried peace and serenity wherever he went.
It had been Zenyatta who had obtained the parts to redesign Genji, lovingly replacing the dark red hate of his Blackwatch prosthetics with a soothing green and grey body. Zenyatta had apologized, said it was all he could find. That if he could choose, Genji would have the finest parts in any design he chose. If Genji's tear ducts still worked, he would have cried there. As it was, he had to dry heave at the sudden onslaught of love and agony that those words brought upon him.
And now he was sitting in the temple, doing his best to look meditative, in a time of year his former captain- no, Zenyatta told him not to lie to himself- his former father's favorite time of year. Jack would always take the day off and throw some big party, inviting everyone who he could think of for any sort of Halloween activity that came to mind.
The last time Genji had celebrated with those people, it was a sight to see. Gabe and Jack, the two fathers of their little misfit crew, put aside their differences for the night. They had rented an orchard for apple picking, and the senior members would hide in the bushes and spook anyone who walked by. Ana had gotten Genji good, making the green ninja fly high into the air in fright. Fareeha had giggled and boasted that it was her plan. Genji felt a wave of nausea run over him at the memory and did his best to push it out of his mind.
As though summoned by Genji's negative thoughts, the telltale thunks of Zenyatta's footsteps descended from the stairwell behind him. Genji couldn't decide if he were grateful for Zenyatta's appearance, or resentful. He supposed it was better to be grateful, if only to remain polite to the few people who had treated him with love and kindness at this time.
As Zenyatta drew closer, Genji took off his visor out of respect and tried not to stare as the Omnic floated down in front of him. They were now both seated on the mountain top, neither cyborg nor Omnic bothered by the piercing cold, and Zenyatta seemed to be hiding something behind his back.
"Hello, Genji. How has your meditation been? I hope it has helped you somewhat." The Omnic said, serene voice filling the frigid air. Genji simply nodded, not knowing what to say. He didn't want to lie to his Master, but it was also no secret that his meditation never truly helped him.
"How have you been, Master? I hope your own meditation has gone well." He said, voice uncharacteristically soft. Zenyatta did that to him, made his gruff tone into a soft whisper, his deadly weapons into mere toys. Genji wished that he could see how he affected the monk… that is, if he affected Zenyatta at all. The thought greatly troubled Genji, so he swiftly shoved it into the deepest recesses of his mind and vowed to never think about it again. The green ninja knew he was lying to himself.
"My meditation has been well, although something has been on my mind for a while now. Would you like to help relieve me of my burden?" Zenyatta's tone was smooth and even, however it curved into a playful lilt as he asked the question. Genji didn't know how to respond. Of course, he wished to relieve his master's burdens, it would not even come close to repaying the debt he owes the enlightened Omnic.
However… Genji knew that Zenyatta would not want him to think that way. From the beginning, his master had told him not to hold himself to other people for the simple purpose of repaying kindness. The essence of kindness was that it was done with no intention to receive payment of any sort. Insisting on giving payment was not returning the act of kindness for kindness can never be returned, for returning kindness would imply you owe them that kindness and kindness could never be owed. Kindness came from a person's will to help someone at no reward. Kindness had no price for the people treated kindly to pay. Anything outside of these rules was not kindness- it was business.
Genji recalled all of those lessons and all of the restless nights pondering these words, and finally came to the conclusion that Zenyatta was joking. Genji nodded anyway, giving an amused smile. Just because he did not get the joke didn't mean he didn't think it wasn't funny. He became even more delighted when he saw what Zenyatta was holding behind his back.
Two large pumpkins thrice the size of his head were now sitting in front of the pair, and Genji was reminded of pleasant nights spent carving these orange beasts into the wackiest creatures imaginable. Jesse always liked to draw the coyotes he used to see on Route 66 and had claimed it was for good luck in the coming year. Himself and Tracer had loved to make fun of the cowboy, his southern accent getting progressively worse over the night from provocation and alcohol only fuelling their fire. They were pleasant memories.
"Ah, Master. What is the burden you speak of?" Genji swiftly refocused his mind, cursing at the unbidden memories now flowing through his head. Zenyatta hummed, almost like a laugh, and gestured to his sword.
"Well you see, the village nearby gifted us some pumpkins so we could celebrate an American tradition. Apparently they heard we had plans to celebrate Halloween that had been postponed due to unfortunate circumstances, so they wanted to make sure we had something nice. However, many of the monks were not interested, so we have quite a few leftovers. Some will be going to our food, but these need to be disposed of another way. Will you carve them with me?"
Genji was taken aback by the request. He had not been aware of any Halloween celebration plans, nor was he privy to any information that would cause such an event to be postponed. He didn't even know that the village nearby would, or rather could, offer them something like this. Regardless, he was grateful. The setting sun, the pumpkins, his sword, the tattoo on his arm, they all reminded him of better times. Times when his whole body did not ache from the pain that could not be healed. Times when he woke up at the crack of dawn not because of temple rules, but because he was playing a good-natured prank. However…
Those times did not have Zenyatta. These times were not so bad because of the Omnic. Genji felt warm and happy because now he could share such a thing with his master. He carefully picked up the pumpkin with his metal arm and gripped his sword with the flesh. The guffaws of friendly faces could be heard in the back of his head, all teasing him for using his katana and not a simple carving knife. It was his own little tradition for Halloween, and ghosts in his head making fun of him wouldn't stop him from carving this damn pumpkin with his sword. Just as he drew his glowing katana, he heard a telltale shink of another sword being drawn in front of him.
Zenyatta had pulled out his own katana, a lovely sword with traditional makings, and a beautiful scabbard. For a moment, Genji wondered where he could have possibly gotten a sword made with such ancient techniques before the reality of the situation dawned on him. He couldn't help himself. The green ninja laughed long and hard, his giggles and snorts echoing on the empty walls of the temple, metal and flesh gripping his stomach as Genji felt abbs beginning to come on from his laughter to the point where he could hardly breathe he was laughing so hard. Genji hadn't laughed like that in a good long while… if he had ever laughed like that at all.
Genji still let out bursts of giggles as he began to carve his pumpkin, the mere thought of what his master was doing sending him into another laughing fit every time. Zenyatta also laughed with him, a beautiful sound that Genji could never tire of hearing. He wanted to hear that laugh again and again, throughout his entire life. The thought scared Genji for a moment, only one moment before he forged ahead. Genji learned long ago that such thoughts weren't to be feared.
He slowly dug his Katana into the gourd, cutting out a neat and perfect circle on the bottom. It was a trick Jack had taught them all one year, that this way, as time went on, the pumpkin wouldn't collapse on itself. In honor of his wise words, they'd all carved Jack O Lanterns in the various grumpy faces of their beloved commander. Liao had taken one for the team and carved Jack's loving expression that he wore when looking at Gabe. Genji had never seen someone go through so many drills and come out conscious.
Slowly but surely, as the memories of his long-forgotten and painful past returned, he was no longer able to only call it forgotten and painful. There were many good moments too. The moments with his comrades that he remembered and cherished deep in his heart to this day. That was the nature of life. You could never have the bad without the good, never the good without the bad. Some peoples bad out-weighed the good and caused them to forget. Genji did not want to forget. He wanted to remember, to remember and live on with the Omnic in front of him. A question occurred to Genji.
"Master… what do you think someone should never forget?" Genji asked, tilting his head. Zenyatta pondered this for a moment, not pausing his movements with the katana, and finally spoke.
"The first thing a person learns is what it means to be a child in this world. There may be people taking care of you, however, in this case… you are powerless. You are a doll. You are helpless against the whims of people more powerful than you. The life of a child is not sacred in this world. The trauma of childhood is what many adults choose to forget, and what more still choose to perpetuate in their adulthood. I think you know this, Genji." He said, tone solemn. Genji did know. Perhaps no one knew it more than himself and his brother.
"The second thing you should never forget is the feeling of inequality. A poor man should never forget the gap between himself and the rich man, for instance. It is this gap that exists in our world that we must never forget- for there is no better person to aim your anger and frustration than the people above you who keep you below. This, I do not think you know so well as the last, but it is still something you are capable of understanding." Genji nodded, accepting this. He patiently waited for his Master to continue, but Zenyatta had no intention of doing so out of his own time.
"The final thing you should not forget… is that beauty can be found everywhere, so long as you look for it. Just like everywhere will have ugly scenery, it will have beautiful scenery as well. It is only a matter of what you look for, and what you do about it." Zenyatta said, a finality to his tone.
He turned his pumpkin around, startling Genji. They had barely started, yet Zenyatta had already completed his piece. It was a stunning picture, not a line out of place, but it's contents brought back the dry heaving of pseudo-tears. It was a beautiful depiction of Genji, his metal parts perfectly blended into his flesh, like some sort of statue that Michelangelo himself carved.
For a moment, Genji felt daunted by the talent in front of him, but as he met Zenyatta's kind eyes… yes, it was just for a moment.