Journey of the Featherless

      “It could be fun. It’ll make her room more personalized, right?” Yoshiya giggled. He did like the idea of Humra putting forth her artistic talents, but for entirely selfish reasons: He still enjoyed watching her serious and focused expressions, which he figured she would make while painting.

      “I wonder if any of your old clothes will fit the girls?” Mikale teased. It would be easy to adjust them, anyway. “We still keep your old stuff in storage.”

         BECAUSE WE HAVE PROBLEMS LETTING GO IN THIS FAMILY.

Hana was just about to say something, but closed her mouth, paused, then opened again. All the while she was painting, but no words came immediately. They..kept all of that?

“..Even...the ones that I ... “ Guilt was setting in to the Shadow days, “...sh-shredded up. I destroyed a lot of them...... “ so sorry, dad. Oh Arceus. She just kept painting the wall before her, 

lugiafan2000:

        “Hm? Did you just make me cuter?” Shi teased softly, making no effort to remove the paint. It wouldn’t hurt him for a few hours, at least! … Someone had come a long way from being so sensitive about his appearance that a drop of paint would have ended him.

           “I wonder if we could find some stencils? Or maybe have someone paint them by hand?” Yoshiya suggested, “I’m not opposed to spending the extra time and money to make her bedroom perfect.”

        “She’s going to become an apprentice to her Uncle Haru at this rate.” Mikale joked. He wasn’t actually sure if Sakura would want to be a detective of police officer, though she sure seemed the type. On top of her existing interest in ‘justice,’ Sakura was surrounded by heroic faces.

        “I think her room will turn out wonderfully, whatever you two decide to put into it. Perhaps I should start quilting for her bedroom blanket.”

“Hehe she should! Haru is sooo cool~~~” The life of a spy, a mobster? That was a really cool life filled with stories. She wished she’d seen him a bit more, “I can see it. Following in his footsteps..I’m proud either way. She’s come so far...”

Humra hummed a little, “I think...we can wing it?” No pun intended, “There’s plenty of pictures online of sakuras and their petals..how hard can it be? Between the three of us, we’ll have the most unique room for her, wouldn’t you say?” 

lugiafan2000:

          “Mmm. Let’s start with the blue, then go wallpaper shopping together.” Yoshiya giggled, though GOSH he was still SO RED AND FLUSTERED. The fantasy of having a family with Humra was almost in motion, and he still couldn’t believe they had made it this far together.

             Humra wore her emotions so plainly, though… or maybe it was the four years of dating that helped Shi tune in to her feelings. He had planned to let Humra paint with her father for now, so had intended to move his painting supplies to the opposite wall… She just looked a bit too frazzled for him to move immediately.

             Yoshiya put his painting supplies on the other side of the room, then came back to kiss the top of Humra’s head. Just briefly, long enough to coo calm reassurance to her. Then, like a jerk, he poked the part she had painted and removed just a fingerprint’s worth of blue. “Missed a spot~!” Also, relax mama birb. You’re fine.

         Mikale was pretty dense, but he caught on to what Yoshiya was silently suggesting. Gratefully, he did move to take a spot on the floor closer to Humra. It helped ease his anxieties about her moving to make it into a family event like this… They didn’t spend nearly as much time together as he’d like, even when they lived together.

      “Haha. Don’t leave fingerprints. This is Sakura we’re talking about. She’ll analyze them, then come arrest you.” Mikale laughed, “And maybe… birds and flowers? She likes those. She is quite proud of sharing a name with her mother.”

...But that fingerprint looked like a little snow flake. It did  snap her out of it, though. Shaking her head, Humra laughed, “Ah..silly me~” Baack to normal. Thanks, honey. She returned the kiss, and suddenly booped his nose with blue paint, “That’s where the blue went~” 

Gazing to her father, the bird stuck out her tongue, and commented, “That sounds good. Ah..she’d be a grand police officer. Crimes would be tremendously lower because of her, I just know it..” Humming, Humra started to paint the wall and THAT MARK R00D. 

lugiafan2000:

        “Au?” Yoshiya squeaked at the joke, flustered to the point of not responding. It occurred to him that this was what had probably been preying on Mikale’s mind up until now: The fact that Humra and Yoshiya living together this way allowed for…. that…. and Mikale probably didn’t realize this wasn’t new.

        “K, Kuroneko-san will, huh?” It was also Yoshiya’s first time hearing that Satou couldn’t have children of her own. He had always found it strange, but chalked it up to Satou simply being more into adoption. He smiled shyly at Humra, deciding they could discuss this seriously on their own. For now, he just chuckled at the joke and took the cans from his shaking lover. “W-Well! We need to paint the house before we even think about adding children, ahaha…!”

VICTORY.

        “Right, painting~!” Mikale laughed, having finally relaxed. The way they both got so embarrassed eased his concerns. They were still so innocent! Don’t burst his bubble here! He’s got his fan theory and he’s gonna keep it!

        “We had better get a move on. Each layer will need a few hours– maybe a day,– to dry. You guys probably can’t wait to show the kids their new home, huh?” Mikale set out some of their painting supplies on the floor, finding himself just as excited for the big reveal. He did sincerely love those little robot girls, especially when they experienced human emotions like happiness. It was such a treat. “What colour are you painting your own room, by the way?”

Oh Arceus stop mentioning children. Humra was already getting scattered and lost in fantasy land, and fluster. It felt like a fantasy, but now it could be all too real. The idea. Oh man. She set up her own painting supplies and finally glanced at Yoshi.

“..Ahaha..haven’t thought about that...a-anything really. Maybe that Lugia wallpaper? I’m good with that, I bet it would be..neat.. aaaahh... b-but dad, you think Sakura would want birds or something else..?” 

Even her eyes were swirling with thoughts. All she needed to do was paint. Great. First layer. Good. “..But..blue..starting with blue for her, she’ll lve this room.. I really really can’t wait.” ..Wait. Were she and Yoshi ready to be parents? Parents of Sakura and Chika? They always were, but her parents always watched them. They knew them more than they did...right? Most likely Yoshi knew more than her. She was going to be an atrocious parent and--

lugiafan2000:

        “We could have our own family tradition!” Yoshiya agreed, excited at the idea. Life with Humra was an open door now that he was ‘real’ again, something that he didn’t think he needed to be ashamed of. “Now that your grandfather isn’t out to kill me, we can grow our family…!”

           This is the point where Mikale died.

        “I set out the floor covering and taped off the edges while you were shopping, so we’re all ready to go~! One bucket of paint should get us throw the first layer…” And now, Shi noticed Mikale had died, “Mikale-san?”

           During all of this, the gears and fears in Mikale’s head were still turning. He liked the idea of floral wallpaper for the flowery family. He also liked the idea of keeping up Satou’s quirky tradition. What mortified him was realizing Humra and Yoshiya were going to grow their family.

        “Ah? Ahaah. I’m fine. Just… thinking.” Mikale laughed nervously. C’mon, communicate with your daughter! Communication issues already caused this family a lot of drama in the past…! “Around your age… was when Satou first started wanting a family. And when we found out she couldn’t…”

           And when he spoke his thoughts, it became easier to accept this. The idea that Humra and Yoshiya were happy wasn’t as hard when Mikale realized how much it must mean to Satou. She must have understood better than any of them how sad it was to want a family and realize you couldn’t have one through your own chemistry.

           He sighed, relenting…. With a joke that hopefully he won’t regret. “She’s going to want to know when to expect newborn grandbabies herself, you know. Be careful.”

           WHOA MIKALE TOLD AN ALMOST LEWD JOKE.

“Dad--” Humra almost questioned before he came to life. Oh thank Arceus he was okay! And he was talking, not shaking and..talking....about...

She paled.

Never in her life would she ever have thought of him of all people to say that! And so soon, too! Her paleness turned into beet-redness, while her hands shook while holding the can. That was so daring. And yet...so touching-! Humra felt tears welt up from happiness, and finally laughed loudly as the INTENDED joke! Also rushing inside, 

“Ah-! Ahaha! Oh daaad..~ Oh-ahaha! O-oh you...!!!” That’s all she could have said with her flutters. 

ai-nnihilate:

           It was Yoshiya’s quick flip to Lugia that finally dragged a sincere laugh out of Mikale. Sometimes he still laughed about how the Lugia Fan had ended up in such a happy relationship with an Actual Lugia. Admitting to himself that they were such a happy couple helped him to relax too.

        “Well, I can agree with separating her from the Sky Plate. They don’t need to live that way anymore.” Mikale nodded, “They both like their Magikarp…? Ah, are you going to get them a Pokemon soon? Maybe it’s time to let Shadow and Ai-chan…………….” make babies. Say it, Mikale. You can do it.

        “…………………….” Apparently, he cannot say it.

        “Hmmm~ Well, I guess Lugia is all for me now anyway~” Yoshiya teased Humra, grateful that she had come to his rescue. He was oblivious to exactly what thought was preying on Mikale’s mind, but he knew only Humra could truly put her father at ease. “Ah! We named them with the kanji for your name, Hana… Why not floral wallpaper? We can get sakura flowers for Sakura!”

           Before he could too excited, Mikale broke.

        “… That’s right. Shadow and Ai-chan are the parents of your Glaceon, right?” He turned to Humra, smiling calmly. Still. Oblivious. “Your mother said it’s family tradition! I wonder what Sakura and Chika would evolve an Eevee to, ehehe? Newborns are so cute.” Slaying the notin-law.

Humra paused at Shi at that comment and smirked, “..Heyyy you gotta share and spread it allover the house, love~” She chuckled, eyeing her father, especially in trying to say what he meant to say.

“And yes! Pike is so strong, and was the perfect fit with me and the team....so definitely. Shadow and Ai-chan are still such great parents. Pike loves seeing them. So they’ll have their Magikarp, Eevee pups..” An idea came to her, 

“..-And..maybe someone from our team if their chemistry is right, huh, Shi? A Pokemon from the Grandparents and Parents?” Someone’s been on POKETReST, especially with Best Pokemon at weddings. That was a kick. 

ai-nnihilate:

           The gears in Mikale’s head were beginning to turn faster… and surprisingly, he didn’t flip any furniture or have a breakdown. He just smiled as calmly as he could.

        “… I see. That makes sense. Having their own rooms will help them grow.” And then Sakura couldn’t just use Chika to clean up their room. Hopefully the bratty sister would development some independence. The thought of the little girls reminded Mikale that they had kept this outing a secret from Humra’s daughters. “Aha. So we’re going to surprise them with their own rooms?”

           He was trying very hard to focus on his granddaughters, and not the idea of Humra and Yoshiya having their own private room. Letting the two teens stay on that boat together had been fine for a while, but Mikale never saw it as permanent. And as Humra called herself a parent, another thought haunted her father: HOW PEOPLE BECOME PARENTS INVOLVES A BEDROOM.

        “………………………………… um. Let’s start with Sakura’s…. room…”

           I’m doing my best, my love…! Yoshiya was glad for the topic changes. First, Humra bringing up their balcony and sounding so happy about their home! Which just gave Shi more excited flutters. She truly sounded happy and that was killing Shi with joy.

           When the conversation was dictated by Mikale, Yoshiya clung to the second topic. Anything to help appease his… father-not-in-law. Especially when Mikale seemed so sincerely invested in his granddaughters. “Y, Yes. Sakura’s room is a good start. I think it’ll be good for them to not to be so focused on being different, but just being themselves.”

           Yoshiya tried to relax, not realizing that Mikale’s mind had fallen into the gutter. “We were thinking of painting it blue… Maybe we can buy some cute blue wallpaper for her? I know she likes birds, but I want to keep the Sky Plate out of her room…? Maybe Lugia wallpaper?” uh-huh

Yes good. Lugia wallpaper. Humra agreed to herself, trying to set everything up. Aaand..done! She hopped over to the front door-in and out- grabbed the paint cans and followed his beloveds, “Yup! Both of them are going to grow up with themselves now-not with each other. I really think they needed the space anyway. Less fights anywho.”

She cleared her throat, one ear listening for the pot to whistle that the water was ready. Until then, Humra hopped to her boyfriend’s side to buffer anything, “Blue wallpaper with birds...do you think that’ll suit her, dad? I love the idea, but perhaps she’s changed..?”

ai-nnihilate:

           Totally not crying, Mikale accepted the gesture quietly. He knew his daughter was ready to leave and he had to let her go. Yoshiya and her had been dating for years now and already had children, whom they could not effectively raise when they didn’t live together.

           As Humra moved to make the tea, Mikale gradually straightened his posture and took a good look at the apartment. There still wasn’t much furniture, but the rooms he could see were open and spacious. They even had a decently sized kitchen… Finally, he addressed Yoshiya.

           “Yeah, it’s nice… How many bedrooms are there here? I guess.. three? One for the girls, and two for you?” poor dad.

           At first, Yoshiya was very calm. He chirped lovingly to Humra as she passed him by, otherwise resisting the urge to kiss her cheek and send her father into a fluster. He guided Mikale into the living room and to one of their only furniture pieces, a couch, then almost went to sit down himself.

           But the comment about three bedrooms got him.

        “There are three… One for Chika and one for Sakura, and uh.” Oh dear. Mikale accepted that Humra and Yoshiya shared a room on the boat, but did he really think they wouldn’t share a bed in their own home? Was he overstepping his boundaries by sharing a bed with Humra? Cuz if he was, then that was still the least of his Humra sins.

        “Aaaand there’s a balcony~! Right, love? And big closets a-and this kitchen~! Andonlythreerooms.”

Humra found the tea pot and filled it with water as fast as she could. There was going to be awk---

..Yup. Awkwardness. Good, she was almost done, “Ooh a gorgeous balcony! -And the rooms we’ll paint! Dad, is there anything you’d like to specifically paint? You know Sakura and Chika really well!~” 

Hang in there my sweet lover, Humra thought, finally putting the pot on stove top, now to set out the mugs, and the teas...! 

ai-nnihilate:

           Wait, what?

        “Y-Your… Yoshiya’s and your…?” This was the first Mikale had heard about Humra and Yoshiya moving out… For good reason. Even he knew it was for a good reason. He would have gotten emotional and upset and probably accidentally guilted Humra out of her decision if he knew ahead of him. Mikale knew that was an honestly valid reason to get this far along in the process before telling him…

           …. BUT STILL. HIS BABY WAS MOVING OUT?

           He looked down at his paint cans. “… Ah. The park… raising a family… You’re moving out…” They were finally going to live with their kids, too.

           Mikale set down one can as he entered the house, just so he could wipe his face, “You’re growing up agaaain.”

           Yoshiya gladly left the balcony so that he could greet the pair at the front door. Likewise, he was concerned that Mikale might have a breakdown. It was no secret by now that Mikale was an overprotective father… and he had every right to be, given Humra’s traumatic past. So Shi tended to appreciate it more than he resented it, even if Mikale gave his daughter’s boyfriend a hard time.

        “ … Eheh. He’s calmer than I expected.” Shi whispered to Humra, before directly his full attention to Mikale. “Is the location okay? I’m making a lot from my music, so I thought we should aim high for our girls.”

        ‘Our girls’ in this case meaning both Shi’s daughters, and the beloved girl Mikale and him shared in Humra.

“Mm!” Humra agreed, putting the cans down, and stepping forward to hug him gently, “Oh dad.. it’s okay to grow. -And we’re growing near you this time~ Good place, safe place..” 

ai-nnihilate:

         Mikale looked up at the apartment door, smiling calmly. For now. It did look like a really nice place. He was surprised to realize Humra’s friends could afford this. They would have to be dating a famous composer or something, huh?

      “Yeah, looks great! So, which friends are we visiting anyway?”

      “Hana~! Welcome hooome!”

         And then someone appeared on the balcony, waving down at them with his stupid smile. Yoshiya giggled in delight when he saw they had brought the paint, bringing both his hands together in a girly gesture. “Mikale-san, hello! What do you think of our new place?”

“Shi~” She waved at her lover with glee.

Humra finally nudged her dad’s arm, “My boyfriend’s~” She grinned, opened the door, “We live here now~ Come on in! I’ll make tea then we’ll get ready to paint!” 

    writes his will and leaves everything to humra

          “Sure is. I saw a park on our way too. It’ll be a great place to raise a family.” Mikale agreed. Though, that was because he thought Humra was visiting a friend: Her friends all seemed to be moving in with their lovers and settling down. Mikale was glad that Humra was staying with them for a while longer.

             ha.

          “Is that my choice? Shouldn’t we ask your friend? It’s their place.” 

             ha.

Humra blushed at that family comment, but covered herself up with a giggle, “It’s a surprise. Ah-there..up ahead! Hehe the place where we see the 4′s.” She nodded, and as the both of them arrived, she looked up at the place, then back to her dad.

          “They are nice colours. Not surprised that more of your friends like them.” Mikale chuckled lightly to himself, counting the numbers on the buildings as they passed. They seemed to be in some sort of residential area, which did make sense. There were a lot of apartments here…

          “Did one of your friends move again? This seems like a nice area.”

“You could say that...” Humra hummed in amusement, “But isn’t it? You think it’s safe? Plenty of trainers nearby too...” Looking ahead, she even added with a little skip in her step,

starter @lugiafan2000 / @glitchfan0002

        “So… Why are we going to this address…? With paint?” Mikale questioned, for what may have been the 100th time. Humra had invited him to a painting party, but hadn’t explained anything else. Not whose house they were visiting, or what they were painting, or why she had an extra pair of house keys on her keyring.

           “Blue and purple paint…? These are the shades Sakura and Chika like…”

“Well...what do you think, dad? I won’t answer anything until we’re close enough..which...” Humra looked around, “..Should be soon. But shoot. Also Those are light blue and light purple? Very pretty colors..”