Unfortunately, the punches didn't stop after Bob and Natasha were discharged. 

Admiral Tom "Iceman" Kazansky had succumbed to his cancer. 

A funeral was quickly arranged, with everyone on base required to go, along with a number of people coming in for the final farewell. 

While Malina didn't want to let Bob out of her sight at the moment, she didn't have a choice. He was getting ready when he made the suggestion. 

"Why don't you call Reyna and hang out with her and Mari today? That way you aren't alone. They had fun yesterday, and Mari seems to have taken a liking to the dogs." 

It was perfect. So Mal did just that. After setting a time, she went to grab Carter. "Up and at 'em Cal. We are meeting Rey and Mari for lunch." 

The man groaned, enjoying his limited time off by sleeping as much as humanly possible. "I don't wanna," he whined into his pillow. 

Mal only smirked. She knew how to get him up. She left the room, letting Carter assume she gave up. But really, she went to the dogs, grabbed their favorite toy and threw it into his room. 

Carter was then, unceremoniously, woken up by two fully grown German Shepherds leaping onto his bed. He let out an "oof" before Nala realized he was there and began locking his face. 

Carter finally got her to stop. "Okay, okay, I'm up, girl! I'm up!" 

Malina was in the doorway, filming it all. She just gave him a shit-eating grin. He rolled his eyes, flopping back onto his bed. 

Just another morning with these two.

☽☆☾   ☽☆☾   ☽☆☾

The four met up at a little cafe, not far from base. There was some outdoor seating so the dogs could join as well. 

"Oh," Malina said, as she went for her phone. "I finished editing those photos from the other day. Take a look." 

The sisters scroll through the photos on her phone, each more amazing than the last. "I wish I could see the world like this," Mari comments, in complete awe. 

Mal smiles. "It's a good way to see the beauty in the world, even if so many are determined to show the ugly." 

Carter claps his hands. "My best friend, the poet." Mal shoves his shoulder. 

The sisters laugh at the friends before Reyna brings the mood down just a bit. "We could use that right now." 

Mari looks down, not meeting anyone's eye. 

The friends look at each other before Malina speaks. "You don't need to tell us, but does this have anything to do with what brought you here in such a state?" 

Reyna looks at her sister. She wouldn't say anything if Mari didn't want her to. After all, it affected her more than it did Reyna. 

Mari took a breath before looking up at the two adults. "So I got into karate recently. It's kinda always been pretty big back home but it recently resurged in popularity. My best friend actually grew up learning it, as her dad is one of the big sensis in the area." 

Mal and Carter could tell this was difficult for her. Reyna was quick to grab her sister's hand, giving her all the support she could. 

"Long story short, a karate war started, people keep getting hurt and it's now out of control. My boyfriend kinda went off the rails for a little while and just came back to his senses. But his old dojo wanted revenge, even with a sort of cease fire called between the three main dojos." 

Mari takes a pause, needing all her strength for this next part. 

"Well he had to get a touch up done to his tattoo and, being the loving girlfriend I am, I went with him. We didn't know his old dojo was planning an ambush. It was 6 on 2. Two boys held me back as two others held him down to a table. An old 'friend' if you can even call him that," Mari sneers at the thought of Robby Keene. "Shaved Eli's head while he was restrained. And after they finished with him, one of the boys holding me suddenly got hold of scissors and chopped my hair as well." 

Malina is practically holding Carter back from attacking the air when Mari finishes her story. Neither Gonzalez sister had seen such a look of anger on his face before. 

Reyna continued the story. "After she got home that night, I packed our bags and drove straight here. We needed to leave the city for a few days and Jake has always been our rock." 

Malina quickly grabbed a hand of each sister. "Both of you are brave. Mari, I can't even imagine what this situation is like for you. And Rey, not being able to help your sister the way I know you want to? That sucks." 

Carter calls himself down enough to speak. "You know you can press charges if you want, right? As long as there are security cameras, I can access those and that footage is proof that the two of you were attacked, seemingly unprovoked and restrained before being violated." 

Mari shakes her head quickly. "No. No charges. This issue between all the dojos is out of control but the people in charge of Cobra Kai have more connections and money than all of us combined. Nothing would actually happen." 

Risky, having sensed all the negative emotions around the table, let out a whine before moving between the Gonzalez sisters. Mari leans down to pet his head. 

"I just want things to go back to normal. No more karate wars, just normal high school drama, like who's taking who to the prom."

Reyna, always quick to help her sister, fills the void. "They will, Mari. I promise. It's just gonna take some more time. As much as I'd love to be able to fix this all for you and all your friends, I can't." 

Malina, thinking through the matter, adds her two cents. "It's definitely gonna take some time. But all things eventually come to an end. This 'karate war' as you call it will have an end. The two biggest questions are when and who will be the victor." 

The group lapses into silence for a few moments before Carter brings up a good point. "There is only so much you can do, Mari. You are a teenager, you don't have the power to make these massive changes on your own. And honestly, you shouldn't have to. The adults should be facing the fact that pitting a bunch of teens against each other is a bad idea." 

The teen just takes a sip of her drink. He was right, there wasn't much she really could do. 

Carter wants to cheer her up. Clearly, reliving this situation is taking its toll on the girl. "You remind me a lot of my baby sister. A pain in my ass and a fighter until the end." 

Mari looks up at him. "She passed before she was your age from cancer. But she never let it stop her from doing what she wanted and living her life. No matter what life throws at you, you stand back up and keep fighting. Never forget that." 

She can't hold it anymore as she lets out a small sob. Carter is quick to stand and pull the teen into his arms. It didn't matter that Mari always had Reyna and Jake. As much as she loved it, she also hated the fact that they had become more like parents instead of siblings. That was just the nature of their situation. But Carter didn't have those strings. He could be an older brother without the complications of also being a guardian. 

Mari pulls back, wiping the tears from her face, giving Carter a small smile of thanks. 

Malina reassures them both of one very important fact. "You aren't alone. You never were. Now, you just have some more people in your corner. Lucky for you, one of them has a badge and can legally carry a gun." She tries to get a laugh, and it works, to an extent. 

"No, but seriously. You both have my number and I'm sure you'll have Carter's before we leave here. If you ever need anything, do not hesitate to call or text. You've got a support system outside of your city, please use us if you need to." 

After that, they tried to keep the conversations light. There had been too much sadness that day. 

And when it was time to finally go their separate ways, as Reyna and Mari had to head back home, hugs were given in the fiercest way. Arms tight around one another, squeezing each other to show they had support. 

The events that led to this meeting may have been unfortunate and bad. 

But the results had formed an unbreakable bond between people who more than likely would have never met otherwise. 

A new family was formed that day, one that would have each other's back for the rest of time. All they needed to do was ask. 

✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈

Word count: 1,526

So now you've got Mari and Reyna's story!! The reasons as to why they came and in such a hurry. 

It may be sad and infuriating, but I've had this in mind since I decided to make this connection with Cobra Kai. 

I am also a sucker for Found Family, so Malina, Carter, Reyna, and Mari becoming their own little family unit within like 2 days just makes me so happy. 

I've been lucky to make some amazing friends in my life and some of them literally became my person after our first meeting. I write things I've experienced and this is definitely one of them. 

But I think that's all for now, so I'll see you next chapter. Bye guys!!