v=pAgnJDJN4VA

Hiro's eyes shot open, welled tears dripping down his cheeks. He lifted his head off… he lifted his head off?

When he went to sleep the night prior, he had brought a pillow in so his back wouldn't hurt after resting in a hard-backed chair… how had he ended up lying down?

Where was he? What was going on? Last thing he remembered he was in… heaven? Was this heaven? Was he dead?

He slid a finger down the length of his arm, checking to see if he was still in the proper material plane. The tingling sensation he received was confirmation enough, and he sat up completely, letting his enhanced eyes adjust to the low light present in the room.

The black-haired man took in his surroundings slowly, as if to confirm that everything was actually there. He was in a relatively small hospital room, the blank walls somehow more comforting in the absence of light, and a bouquet of roses lay perched against the chair he was in. Someone's figure was present in the bed in front of him, but he didn't know whose.

Allowing curiosity to take him over, he slowly moved forward to examine the other person with him. It took him but a moment to realize that lying in the bed in front of him was his wife, sleeping softly.

Teary oceanic eyes widened, and their owner lunged onto his honey, holding her tightly.

The sudden movement and contact woke her up, and she met his crying eyes, arms moving to encircle his back.

"Darling, are you okay?" She asked, returning his hug. Why was he crying? He was here when she fell asleep and they were laughing and talking about happy things. What happened?

The man in her arms took a moment to compose himself, eventually gazing up at her with wet eyes, the sight causing her sadness as well.

"I… I had a nightmare," he breathed, voice almost imperceptible. He sounded so small! This was unlike her darling, it had to have been something terrible for him to be like this…

She cocked her head to the side, lips curled in empathy for her husband. "Wanna talk about it?"

He shook his head quickly, looking away from her. "I… yeah, sure," he agreed, sighing heavily and preparing to dive in to what he remembered from his sleep.

Zero Two watched this curiously, mentally preparing herself for whatever he might have in store. If it was bad enough for him, what could it possibly do to her?

Hiro took a few minutes to explain what he'd seen while sleeping, then looked up at her for a reaction. Her frown had grown deeper, and concern was very apparent in her eyes.

"Darling… you know that could never happen, right?" She asked, nudging his arm.

His head went up and down slowly, and he sighed. "I know, but it just felt so real…"

Seeing that he was about to go back into considerations about it, Zero Two turned his head towards her and put their lips and horns together. He leaned further into her, and she followed suit. After a moment, they broke apart.

"Better?" Zero Two asked.

Hiro nodded. "Better." Another moment passed where he recomposed himself, sitting back on the chair with his wife's hand still clutched tightly. As he spared a glance downwards, his eyes widened. "Oh, that's right!"

His hand reached down to the side of his chair, and when it returned Zero Two saw that he had some roses. "Happy Valentine's Day, honey," he said, warmth radiating off him.

A smile worked its way onto Zero Two's face, replacing the frown that had marred its features. "Oh, darling, you didn't have to…" She was cut off by him kissing her on the cheek, with him then replacing the lilies at her bedside with the roses.

"I wanted to get you something, you know. Thought it'd be nice," Hiro said, shrugging.

Zero Two rolled her eyes as a tinge of scarlet colored her cheeks. "Every moment with you is a gift," she whispered, eyes focused on him.

Hiro smiled, then shook his head. "Isn't that my line?" He said, chuckling.

Smile growing wider, she looked at him, eyes filled with warmth. "Thanks… for everything."

"I could say the same to you, honey."

Zeta sipped at her… was it hot chocolate? She didn't really know, but what she did know was that a nearby couple was engaging in… she didn't want to think about it.

Next time, before you go out, check what day it is, she thought, cursing at herself. Who goes out for coffee alone on Valentine's Day?

This question was answered as she looked over at a sullen Ichigo, the woman clearly feeling the absence of Goro. Zeta didn't exactly know the details of this second scouting mission of his, but he was supposed to come back in the summer sometime.

The hybrid remembered him feeling down about not being around for his child's birth, but it was necessary, he said. Edelweiss was an unknown, and they needed information if they were going to engage in any sort of combat with them.

She wasn't one for speculation, but she had to assume that they were… well… either completely backwards, or misinformed. After all, who could still follow that sort of system?

A sudden vibration from her PDA startled her and stopped her consideration, Zeta removing the device from her jacket pocket and looking at the message she'd received. It was from… Suriyo?

you alright?

She tapped out a response, crossing her legs. Yeah, I'm fine.

ok good I saw you looked a little down there

The hybrid's ears twitched, and she looked around, wondering how he could… oh.

Her brown-haired friend's eyes met hers from the window, and he waved slowly. Motioning his head towards the door, he silently asked if she would come outside. After a moment of consideration, she stood up, threw away her cup, and exited the small café, rebundling her scarf.

"Sorry for interrupting," he said, playing with his thumbs. "You just looked a little… lost. Seems like you could use someone to talk to."

Suriyo watched as her scarf bobbed up and down slowly, her attempts to talk with him muffled beneath the cloth. He leaned in closer, signaling that he couldn't hear her.

She pulled down the scarf, blushing profusely. "I don't even know why I wear this thing. I'm plenty hot already."

Nodding slowly so as to not insinuate anything, Suriyo went to speak again, but he stopped himself. "Let's walk and talk, is that alright?"

Zeta nodded, falling in step beside her friend, again wishing that she had chosen different attire and a different day to go out. It felt as if everything was going wrong, had she done something bad? Karma wasn't something she believed in - it wasn't even something she knew about until recently - but it sure felt like it was acting on her now…

Suriyo paused mid-step, realizing that he could no longer hear his companion walking behind him. "Zeta, are you sure you're alright? You're pretty out of it, it seems."

Her mouth opened slightly, and it looked like she was going to tell him about what was troubling her. However, she decided better of it and closed her mouth, shoulders slumping.

He wasn't sure if she saw the look of concern on his face as she joined him, but if she did she paid no heed to it. "Where are we going?" The gray-haired woman asked.

The man beside her shrugged. "I dunno. Away from couples, I suppose," he let out a small chuckle, slowly exhaling and watching his breath move into the late winter sky.

The two walked in silence for a while. An uncertain air hung between them, but Zeta knew its name.

Longing.

Eventually, they reached the coastline. A heavy fog hung over the duo as they stared down at the frozen sea some distance ahead of them.

Zeta broke the silence. "I wonder what happened to the animals."

"Huh?"

She looked up at him, eyes distant. "I read about seagulls yesterday. The book said that they were in this area, or… at least they were when it was written. Do you think they'll come back?"

Nothing but the sound of a breeze passed between them as Suriyo contemplated his answer. After some time, he settled on something and turned towards her. "Sure. If we believe, I guess."

What? Come on man, that sounds pretty stupid.

A long silence followed before the taller man furrowed his eyebrows. "Is this why you weren't feeling great earlier?"

Letting out a single chuckle, Zeta turned back towards the ocean. "Well… not exactly. I guess it is the deeper thinking bringing me down, but I'm not any less happy about not being defecated on by some bird."

"So, what have you been thinking about that's making you sad?" Suriyo said, then stuttered, "I-if you don't mind my asking, of course."

She shook her head calmly. "It's fine. It's just… Edelweiss and all. I saw Ichigo in the café earlier, and it reminded me that we're missing Goro at the moment."

"Oh, yeah. He went out on reconnaissance, what, a few weeks ago? I remember seeing him off."

Zeta continued, unaffected by Suriyo's response, "You can empathize with that, not having your partner around. Must be hard, right?" He nodded. "So why am I unhappy if there's no real trouble in my life?"

He touched his hand to her shoulder, moving slightly towards her. "Don't be like that. Everyone has their own issues. There's always something wrong in life, but it's important to work through that," he explained, compassion very apparent in his tone.

Zeta turned toward him and smiled, facing the ocean again. "I guess you're right. Thanks," she said, placing one of her hands over his own still on her shoulder.

Suriyo internally sighed. This girl… she is so difficult to read.

His hybrid friend, as if remembering where she was, suddenly removed her hand from his. She was blushing, and he could tell it wasn't completely because of the weather. "It's cold," she noted.

"Mm. I think I'll head back," Suriyo murmured, removing his hand from her shoulder. He began to walk off, turning around to find Zeta still with her hand on her shoulder, appearing to be frozen.

After a moment, she regained her composure, calling out a "Thanks!" as she watched him leave. Suriyo waved it off, internally considering if he thought she would advance past her self-hatred.

If she believes.

The hybrid woman remained by the coastline for a few minutes more before covering her mouth and nose with her scarf. As she left, she swore she could hear a bird call.

Miku stood half-in, half-out of the kitchen, arms folded across her chest.

"You alright? I can't smell anything…" she said, chuckling under her breath.

Zorome placed an open hand over his face, sighing into it. "Rations are almost out. Told you we should've gotten Ichigo to store more."

She took a moment to consider this, nodding just a little. "Well, we can talk to her about it when we're in a better season, I guess." The red-haired woman sat down at their table, idly looking at it. "So… what do we have?"

Zorome presented two items to her: lettuce or… some sort of fish.

"We've had fish for the past three days, though!" She complained, before stopping herself. Now was not the time to be picky, not when her well-being and that of her child's were at risk of malnourishment. "I'm… fine with whatever, Zorome."

He gave her an affirmative glance as he began to cook. Ever since he started taking those lessons with Futoshi, Miku had noticed a marked improvement in his products. He can do anything he sets his mind to, after all, she thought. Remember back when you two piloted? How he pushed himself forwards for… well… you?

Lips curling upwards a tiny bit, she steepled her hands and looked at the man hard at work in front of her. I'm his motivation now!

She sat smiling like that for a while, occasionally peeking at what Zorome was doing, but she had come to enjoy the silence in situations like this. It was nice to be able to contemplate, to unwind after all they'd gone through. It was surprising that it had taken this long for her to realize that she could have time to think, but she supposed it was because her brain had finally gotten rid of APE's… habits.

A timer went off, and she tracked Zorome as he brought their food to the table. It was simple - he'd had to use less than he normally would so they wouldn't run out quickly - but that was fine, or so she thought.

Miku cut a piece off of her fish, then ate it. Savoring the flavor, a recent conversation with another former pistil came to mind.

"That reminds me," she began, mouth still full of food. "Kokoro said it was strange that you cooked. She thought I did."

Zorome snorted. "Your cooking sucks, though."

Miku nodded. "That's what I told her! She seemed convinced I could do it if I tried hard enough, and while I appreciate the sentiment…" The red-haired woman paused, swallowing her food. "I don't like being babied by her all the time. She's all fired up over us pistils being pregnant and all, and it's pretty creepy."

"She does… tend to be like that, now that I think about it," Zorome said, looking upwards. He lowered his head, looking Miku in the eyes. "I wouldn't look super deep into it."

Miku sighed, playing with the food on her plate a little. "She always asks us strange questions, like 'What ideas do you have for names?' or 'Would you be happy having more?'

Before she could continue, the man sitting across from her spoke. "Wait, do we have an idea for a name?"

"I asked Zero Two about that, and she just said to pick something important to you. Any ideas?"

"Woah, hold on. Zero Two goes to these 'meetings?'" He made air quotes. "And… erm… let me think," he said, motioning for her to continue.

"Yeah, she comes for about two minutes. I think it's Hiro trying to get her to get out more. She's always been quiet, except around him." Because of the torture, right? They told us after Christmas about it… And I'm making myself feel down.

Zorome snapped his fingers, startling her. "I've got it!" He exclaimed, pausing for effect. "Truth. That's what's most important to me."

"...any reason why?"

"Well," he began, "I was talking with Hiro 'bout it, and he told me that he was planning on giving his child the childhood he never had. We were only given lies by Papa, so I'll give our child the truth, even if I have to remind myself daily."

Miku looked at him strangely. "You're spending too much time around Hiro; you're starting to sound like him, you know?"

Zorome tilted his head. "Is that bad?"

She shook her head. "No, not really. But I fell in love with you, Zorome. Not some… strange wordplay or insight.

"I like the name, though. It fits."

Zorome nodded, another silence settling between them. Suddenly, recognition flashed over his face, his eyes slowly widened, and he checked his PDA.

She followed suit, realization - her term for "text on the screen" - dawning on her: it was Valentine's Day.

"You want to go out?" Zorome asked, rubbing his neck.

"Drink lukewarm, stale coffee? Nope, I'm fine here."

Her husband nodded, getting up. "I'll find something for us to watch, then!" He exclaimed, sending her a thumbs up, eyes closed.

She rolled her eyes, wondering if he'd ever change. Better question - do I want him to?

It was the day Hiro had been waiting for, consciously or unconsciously, for the past nine years: the birthday of his and his wife's child.

As he stood just outside the hospital room where she was, he took a moment to reflect on the past couple days. Aside from the all-too-real nightmare he was subjected to, they'd been quite nice, if hectic. Seemed to be that everyone wanted data - especially Ikuno, although he was fine with her being around - and it worried him. His honey was not a test subject, not something to treat like...

Hiro sighed, deciding it better to think of something else. Negative thoughts like that would only bring him down, which would only cause more negative thoughts to form. Spiraling was unhealthy, even more so for him - his only true supporter was also the only person whose wellbeing he was actively worried about.

She's tough, she'll be fine. Can't have any stupid logic here; this is reality. Things are real, proper medical procedures are real.

His body had other thoughts, his fingers tapping out an erratic allegro against the wall he was leaning on. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't get those thoughts out of his head, could he?

Speaking of things getting out of his head, he saved a few brain cells by nearly catching a water bottle Zorome had thrown at him. He shot the shorter man a glare, before lowering the bottle.

"Sorry! I was aiming lower, but I forget that these things -" he gestured towards his own drink, "- are pretty light. Anyways, how are ya' holding up?"

Hiro gave him a nervous smile, the raven-haired man drinking some of the water. "I'm alright. Stupid fears creeping in, but they're easily taken down. It's strange, though - I wish today could be over and yet also last forever. Days like these are once in a lifetime - I'll never get something like this again, you know? And yet, I just want to know everything will be fine."

Zorome nodded, mouth open slightly. "O...kay. Well, if this'll take your mind off of things…" he messed with the cap on his bottle for a moment before continuing, "...what's 'truth' in Japanese?"

That brought a laugh out of the frazzled man for what felt like the first time that day. "What? Why would you need to know that?"

Purple eyes shifted quickly to their owners' left and right, ultimately settling on Hiro. "Miku and I were discussing names for the kid, and I came up with that."

"Don't you know Japanese?"

"...no, only you and Zero Two do. We didn't get to read fancy foreign books, remember?"

Dumbfounded, Hiro looked at him for a moment, then shook his head. "It's shinjitsu. Find a translation dictionary next time, we have a few here and there."

The auburn-haired man took a note on his PDA, making sure to record this information - he couldn't be too careful - then congratulated his taller friend for the significance of the day. Hiro waved him off, returning to his former position of leaning against the wall.

Alright, unfocus. Think about nothing and everything, that's what's worked up to now.

Hiro closed his eyes, settling into a comfortable trance. Images and thoughts floated in the void, meanings thrust upon their creator.

The house. Two vacant rooms, two filled yet empty ones. Familiar sea-blue eyes, their owner unknown. Red and blue horns breaking, mixing, and coalescing into something new… something… truly wonderful. Beautiful.

Black and pink, red and blue; one sum for two equations. A simple addition - one whole born of two parts, creating a person for the future. Legacies created, something to leave behind. Fate willed their separation, but he didn't care. He knew she didn't either. Anything and everything, anywhere and everywhere, they promised.

The nervous, expectant father breathed deeply, before sighing and opening his eyes. He pinched the corners of those two dotted oceans, putting more weight onto the wall.

Hiro still didn't know if that dream was prophetic, but if it was he was going to punch something, and punch it hard. He'd punch fate itself if he had to, if nothing else than to exact vengeance in any way possible.

Of course, it would never - could never come to that. Plus...

A clamoring began inside the room, and Hiro could hear machinery beeping now, his ears focusing in on the space just behind him.

Light, urgent footsteps made their way to the door, and opened it just as Hiro turned his head to look in that direction.

"Things are looking good, we should be over and your baby delivered soon. You may continue to stay here if you'd like, we'll send someone out to get you."

The male hybrid nodded, and the nurse he was talking to turned himself around and walked away. Hiro was quite glad that the hospital staff were amicable, because that was another problem that he wanted to avoid. To be thought of as a monster on his child's birthday, now that scared him.

Ears perking up again, he caught a snippet of a conversation between another nurse and Ikuno.

"...give it to him myself. Make sure everything is going smoothly in the meantime."

Ikuno appeared in the entryway, a folder filled with papers in her hand. She extended it towards the father-to-be, and he held them tenderly.

"What are these?" He asked.

Ikuno tapped the other side of the aged manilla, prompting him to turn it over. On it were printed the words CODE: 002 MEDICAL RECORDS.

Ikuno looked back into the room, then returned to face Hiro. "I should get back in, but I've highlighted something important regarding your child."

She left him there, and he figured that, if nothing else, it could help kill some time while he waited for the delivery. Flipping through the stack of papers, he eventually came across the one Ikuno had highlighted on - "Early Life Procedures." At first, the operations seemed simple enough: vaccinations (ultimately redundant), simple intelligence tests, and...

What was this?

02 15 2125 - Prehensile limb amputation, no regrowth observed

Another trait of the klaxo sapiens? Perhaps it was only present on natural-born ones, as he had no… "prehensile limbs" anywhere on him.

If so… that would mean that their child would have it. An early warning from Ikuno, he guessed. "Watch it, your kid has three arms," or something to that extent. He was grateful, although he did not expect to have a difficult time with child-rearing. Based off Zero Two's behavior around him when they were younger, their baby would have her mother's brain, so it would pick up on what was accepted or not quickly.

That'd be fun, he decided. Seeing their future's first steps, first words, first day of school-

He was getting ahead of himself, again! That happened there, too, so stay out of it. Stay in the here-and-now.

Ears suddenly refocusing, he heard several exhausted breaths followed by loud crying. Could it be…? Well, he'd have to wait to find out, but he wondered just what his honey was feeling right now… the horns could come in handy with that.

And now I'm excited. He let out a small laugh, allowing a breath to escape from his lips, held there for far too long.

What would she look like? Him? Her? Both of them?

Hah… ah… don't get ahead of yourself.

Back to the present, he reminded himself. This time, there was no replacing, no switching of the new for the old. An addition, something extra was gifted to them. His senses told him it, and his soul knew it.

Letting himself listen in to the room once more, he again heard the noisy crying of a child, accompanied with the standard commotion one might expect at a time like this. If he could just find...

A breathing that was slowly resetting itself was what he was looking for, and when he found it his heart missed a beat.

We're okay, we're all okay. No stupid nightmares, no made-up scenarios.

The door opened, an orderly inviting him in. Stepping across the threshold, he caught a glimpse of his newborn daughter, Ikuno confirming her gender from across the room.

She was the tiniest thing he'd ever seen, with some purple tufts of hair on her head accompanying two horns of the same amethyst. Based off his own patterns and his honey's, he could assume her to also have pupils and markings around her eyes akin to her horns.

His emotions began to overload as he felt his heart jump up and down in his chest, everything about the situation becoming magnified in his bright eyes.

Looking lower, he saw what Ikuno had brought him the folder for - on his daughter's lower back was a small, quivering tail of purple and black chevrons. Like her grandmother, if only she were here.

On their own accord, his eyes drifted to his wife. She lay, still panting, watching her daughter as closely as he was. The love in her eyes was palpable, and as she turned to him that feeling only grew in intensity.

Hiro walked over to his wife's side and held her hand, both of them smiling the brightest they'd ever seen, since their… third-to-last reunion.

Why were we sep- not now, man.

"I told you… I'd be fine," she said, small, hoarse laughter bursting out. "How is she?"

"Wonderful, honey, absolutely wonderful. She's one of the best things to ever happen to us, I swear," Hiro said, locking eyes with one of the - now two - most important women in the world.

Zero Two sat up slightly, grasping his hand tighter. "I'd agree with you, but I'm exhausted."

In an instant, she fell back onto the bed, eyes closed. Her chest was moving up and down in tandem with his own, deep breaths escaping both of their lips. Hiro breathed another sigh of relief at his wife's alright health.

Ikuno brought his daughter over to her parents, the newborn having calmed down slightly. Taking his daughter from his friend, Hiro held his future in his arms for the first time that day, emotions flowing out of his eyes.

Deciding to share the feelings he had in this moment with his sleeping wife and daughter, he brought all three of their horns together in the blissful silence. An interesting, new feeling came in response, one of discovery and new horizons.

We're in for fun, aren't we?

Outside the window, a black and white bird took flight, joining its brethren in the frozen winter rain.

"So, Hiro, how are things?"

The man in question curled his lips upwards while also sighing, a gesture Ikuno had never seen him perform before.

"I'm tired. Unbelievably tired, but I'm happier than ever."

"Elaborate, if you would." Ikuno opened a new note file on her computer, fingers settling over her keyboard.

"Well… where to begin?" Hiro looked upwards, eyebrows coming together in consideration.

Smile unfading, he faced back towards his gray-haired friend. "Sorry, I'm getting lost in thought. What was the question?"

Ikuno was anticipating this reaction - he'd become a little airheaded lately - so she was not surprised. "How is Amefuri? Has anything particularly interesting happened?"

"Amefuri? She's about what we expected from the books, nothing out of the ordinary there. It is… difficult to deal with your child when she has three 'arms' and is sharp as a tack, but that was also... not... incredibly surprising." He said, yawning.

"So, she's a handful, then?" Ikuno asked, typing out some more of what Hiro was telling her.

Hiro shook his head. "A bit, but we can handle her. Like I said, it's great - I've also been having a lot of fun."

Ikuno looked at him curiously. "You sure, Hiro? You look worn out, and you're yawning constantly. There's an increasing need for daycare centers, and I know Zorome and Miku are looking to get into that. You could see if they would want to do something. You know, a sort-of test run."

"Well, I want to see more about how she develops first. With public opinion as is, I'm also somewhat worried about how people perceive her. Children are very judgemental, you know."

The scientist nodded. "Well, back to the topic on hand. Everything's going alright, you say?" Hiro nodded. "Well, then, we're done here. You can go home. Say 'hi' to Zero Two for me."

Her sleep-deprived friend stood up, and as he was leaving she called out that he should keep her updated. Hiro rolled his eyes, continuing towards his home.

On his way back, he passed by the FranXX grounds. Looking at the steps, he chuckled to himself and shook his head.

Not then, not today, not ever.

...I do need to get working, though. Should talk to Ichigo about that.

He walked with purpose, not stopping to contemplate the spring flora like he normally would. Zeta and Suriyo were out walking, and they waved at him, but all he did was nod.

The gray-haired hybrid looked at her friend and shrugged. "Huh. He's focused."

Suriyo murmured an agreement, following Hiro with his eyes. "Guess so. Where were we?"

"Recommendations on movies to watch, I think," Zeta said, continuing their discussion.

Hiro came to a stop before his front door, reaching for his keys in his front pocket. Retrieving them, he entered his house quietly, not knowing where or what his family was doing at the moment.

His caution proved to be warranted as he entered the living room and found his daughter sleeping calmly on his wife's chest, the pink-haired woman apparently also about to nod off.

Walking slowly and carefully, he came up behind the pair. Hiro placed his hands over them as if touching a feather, and kissed his wife on the top of her head. "Hey," he whispered.

She tilted her head upwards enough to allow their lips to connect, and both of them smiled into the kiss.

It was unceremoniously interrupted by their daughter's tail lightly tapping against her mother's cheek, as if to signal that hey, I'm here, don't do anything too bad.

Zero Two glanced down at the violet-horned baby in her lap, meeting her eyes. "What? You want daddy all to yourself?"

Amefuri moved her eyes off of her mother, to her father, then back to the woman she was lying on. Hiro chuckled under his breath, wondering if Zero Two would relinquish him or not.

The woman in question was pouting and thinking hard, wondering how she could satisfy both her need for Darling and her daughter's want for her father. An idea soon popped into her head and she shifted on the couch, patting the empty spot next to her.

Hiro vaulted over the couch, bouncing slightly as he landed. It took him only a moment to extend his arm over his wife's shoulder, leaning in to greet Amefuri.

"Smooth," Zero Two complimented, leaning back in her seat. "Our little one here was… honestly, kinda surprising!" The red-horned woman sighed.

Hiro's eyes didn't leave his daughter, but he endeavored to know more. "How so?"

"She didn't do her usual 'I'm going to cry and scream until I get attention' shtick, she went with the 'heartbreakingly sad almost-silent mewling and wagging my tail around' today."

As if she could understand what her mother was saying about her attitude, Amefuri's tail came down onto Zero Two's thigh a little bit hard, and the hurt woman sat up.

"Ow, Amefuri! Don't do that!" She chastised, slapping the baby in her lap on the tail lightly.

Amefuri looked up at her mother, purple-dotted eyes wide and hurt, Hiro mimicking his daughter's gaze. "She loves you, you know."

Zero Two frowned, looking away. "...doesn't feel like it…"

"Do I have to remind you that you tried to eat my hand when we first met?"

His wife only pouted more. "Fine, I guess… she'll warm up in time, right?"

Hiro looked over at Amefuri's tail, the appendage now rubbing lightly where it had hit Zero Two. "I think she's already started to, at least unconsciously."

Zero Two tapped her daughter on the nose. "Is that right, sweetie?" She nuzzled their horns, causing Amefuri to giggle from the emotions her mother was transmitting. Hiro scratched her tail as it swayed side-to-side slowly, rejoicing in this moment with his family.

Zorome tugged at his collar and wished he could unbutton his cuffs, reminding himself not to wear a long-sleeved shirt next time. Nobody told him it would be this hot! This was the first "real" spring they'd had!

He wanted to be at home with his newborn son and wife, but he needed to get this done. His two favorite orange-haired people could wait just a little longer - Ichigo finally had some time free, so he could talk to her about the daycare idea. It was a miracle, he knew, as she'd been pushing herself so hard, trying to ignore Goro's absence.

I feel bad for her. I don't know what I'd do if Miku were out doing something like that, and I didn't know how she was doing.

Zorome's eyes caught on something on his left, and he stopped empathizing for a moment to analyze what he was seeing.

Futoshi was sitting in his shop, his assistant leaning against his shoulder.

Good for him. It's nice to see everyone getting along, hah!

He was going to wave, but put his hand down before he began. No time for teasing, no time! Had to talk to Ichigo, then get home!

The rest of his walk passed without any event of import, and he found himself in front of Ichigo's workplace. Letting himself in, he continued on towards her room and prepared his speech again in his head.

Alright, you got this. Remember, it's a need and something that people generally want - and Miku and I are qualified. Everything's good.

He paused in front of his blue haired former-squad-leader's door, then knocked. Ichigo told him he could enter, and as he did he found her forcing a smile.

"You alright?"

She nodded, but Zorome could see longing in her eyes. "Yeah, I'm fine," she said curtly.

"Missing Goro?"

"Yeah. But he'll be alright. I'm sure."

Zorome nodded, allowing a moment of silence to pass. "Well, I think we should get into the daycare idea, right?" He suggested, looking at her for a sign of approval. She motioned for him to begin, and he described it to her.

"Sounds good, but are you positive that just you and Miku can handle a load like this? We have a lot of parents wanting babysitters," she said, before laughing nervously.

Zorome had anticipated this, but it still caught him slightly off-guard. "Well, I'm thinking we can start small - maybe just 'our' kids for a while."

"'Our?'"

Zorome blinked. "Squad 13's, I mean. You know - Ai, Amefuri, Shinjitsu…"

"Ah?'" Ichigo muttered.

Zorome widened his eyes. "Well, yeah. I'd like to get some experience in before we go big." Ichigo nodded.

"Anyways, that seems fine to me, if you think it's alright. I'm trusting you'll do it well," Ichigo said, clicking back on her monitor.

The brown-haired man stood up and gave her a mock salute, as she had come to expect, before leaving.

As he was walking back to his house he thought of all the fun things he could do while watching the kids. Good for them, too - they'll be making fast friends.

A darker voice called from the back of his head. And they won't be losing any, either. This is no Garden. We are no Garden.

Hiro tied his tie in the mirror, confirming that all was well with regards to his getup. Loath as he was to wear such formal attire, it was befitting of a teacher to do as much.

I really wish I could spend more time at home with my honey and Amefuri, but… we need the money. Can't live off what Ichigo gave us forever.

He walked over to his wife, the woman just finishing putting her hair into a ponytail. Hiro had to admit… despite how much he adored her normal hairstyle… she looked good. Especially with the dress. Especially with the dress.

She looks good in anything, idiot, he thought.

He picked up Amefuri - they'd drop her by Zorome and Miku's on the way, as they'd been gracious enough to host her - and looked her over.

They'd put her in a small light-purple dress that Kokoro had made that matched her eyes, and thankfully the material wasn't an irritant. That… would not be fun for anyone.

Zero Two had turned around and was looking her darling over. She liked the tie. A lot. They'd have to use it later.

She moved past him to the door. "Ready?"

He walked over, pecking her on the lips. Couldn't do it during work hours… he'd go insane. "Yeah, I suppose."

His honey nodded, and they exited their house. As they made their way to the FranXX grounds, they chatted about what each of them would be working on for their first day - Hiro would start covering basics of stamen operation, while Zero Two would focus on explaining the mind and soul meld with the mech itself.

About halfway to the grounds they arrived at Zorome and Miku's house, and said their goodbyes to Amefuri. It was difficult, both of them knew, but it was only temporary. Their favorite hot-blooded couple weren't idiots, despite the two constantly calling each other that. They could take care of her.

The couple continued their pilgrimage to work, hands held tightly between them. Words were unable to capture the feelings and heat in that grasp, but Hiro thought it had something to do with longing… maybe for Amefuri, maybe to be home, maybe to be able to relax forever.

Can't do that, though.

Hiro laughed under his breath, shaking his head. Zero Two caught the motion and smiled, squeezing his hand.

"We'll see her in a few hours, okay?"

"Right, right," he said, picking up his pace. Work couldn't wait forever.

Zorome waved goodbye to the hybrid couple, gently closing his front door. He introduced himself to Amefuri the only way he knew how - head patting. She seemed to be fine with it.

Two pairs of violet eyes met and Zorome was surprised at the amount of fear he found in the little girl's. She probably wants to be with her parents. Hiro had told both him and Miku about her tail, but the appendage still surprised Zorome upon first viewing.

Uh… it's gonna be difficult to take care of her with the tail… Zorome thought, looking Amefuri over. Miku was watching their son and Ai in the other room, so he brought Amefuri in for introductions.

Miku's first thought upon viewing the purple haired girl was that she looked like a cat. Specifically, a pretty scared cat. Iwanttogohomewherearemyparents-type cat. Amefuri's tail was tucked in between her legs, and her eyes were as wide as saucers, staring first at her, then Ai, then Shinjitsu.

Zorome cleared his throat. "This is Amefuri, she'll be staying with us today as well. Say hello, Ai."

The gray haired girl tilted her head, but still hesitantly waved to her new acquaintance after a moment of contemplation. Shinjitsu did nothing, but stared curiously at her tail. As Zorome sat down near him, the auburn haired boy reached out to touch it, and managed to do so - startling its owner greatly.

However, he immediately retracted his hand, and with the knowledge - or intuition - that she was of special interest, Amefuri brought the tail up towards Shinjitsu and allowed him to touch it.

Zorome watched this exchange with his head angled and mouth agape. Weird… but not bad. Definitely pretty cool, though! Like I thought, fast friends.

Miku smiled as she watched the two getting along, then shifted her attention to Zorome, who was entertaining Ai with a puzzle block game. He realized that she was looking at him and he flashed her a smile, eyes closed.

We've got this in the bag.

"Your name is…?"

Zeta looked up at the ceiling as the movie's credits played, both her and her companion silent as they reflected on the experience.

She lightly prodded him with a foot, bringing Suriyo to face her.

"Hey… you ever think about getting into a relationship with anyone?" She asked, feet propped up against the brown haired man's side.

"Hmm?"

She leaned up slightly, facing him. "Do you ever wish you were in love with someone?"

A tinge of red came over his cheeks, and he looked back to the television. "Well, part of me does, sure, but it's not like I'm always thinking about it. Why do you ask?"

Zeta faced the TV as well. "Just… I feel this… awkward emotion anytime I'm around couples. Especially Hiro and Zero Two. It's not jealousy, so…"

Suriyo smirked. "Sure you're not 'missing anyone' - waking up crying and all that?"

She tilted her head and narrowed her eyebrows, the reference missing its mark. "Huh? Oh - right," she chuckled. "I wish."

Suriyo murmured an agreement as an uncomfortable silence fell around them, both contemplating their mutual singledom. An idea made itself known in Suriyo's conscious, but it was quickly shot down. Oi, not the time! Not now!

However, on Zeta's end, similar intrusive thoughts were… not quelled. A plan began formulating in her mind, Suriyo watching her eyes glazing over. "Zeta? You alright?"

Snapping out of her trance at the sound of his voice, she nodded quickly. "I'm fine. Was something happening?"

"Uh… yeah, looked like it," he answered, voice curt. "Your eyes got all cloudy, it looked pretty creepy. Seemed as if you were about to jump me."

His hybrid friend let out a series of loud coughs, before standing up. "It's a bit hot in here, right? I'm going to go for a stroll," she said, grabbing a jacket.

Suriyo also got up to follow her - he didn't want to be alone in someone else's apartment, even if she was his best friend - and narrowly made it out behind her as she closed the door.

Zeta checked the lock, then rubbed her hands together, sighing. "Well… that was fun. Let me know if you want to… hang out again sometime?"

The brown-haired man moved his head up and down. "Sure, I'll shoot you a message. See you!"

She waved as he left, hands settling in her jacket pockets, she walked the opposite direction. As she passed by her front window, she thought she saw a monochromatic bird perched, but…

Imagination is a fickle thing...

A/N: Kept you waiting, huh?

Sorry about the hiatus. This was meant to be out on the fifth of August, but a whole lotta stuff came out regarding the series' production and fucked me up (see: Lost.) Again, sorry.

I'll try to get back on schedule for next week, but school's started back up, so I'm not holding my breath there.

If you're wondering why I changed the name, I just thought it sounded cooler (there's also a bit of deeper meaning if you look into it.) In addition, "Rehabitation and Repopulation" became a little too close to what I'm avoiding (making this story about breeding. It's not.)

Shoutout to my guys over in Cerasus for being awesome and betaing. Pray for us all!

(Thanks to Booze for the tail idea. Love ya bud)

Yours as ever, oh reader mine.