spacial tears

       Kyuu poked at his slice with his fork. It wouldn’t taste good cold, she was right. It wouldn’t taste good now at all... But he needed to eat. If he felt awful now, he was sure that he’d feel feel worse tomorrow. This might be his last meal until his grief got under control.

       So he was quick to cut a piece with his fork and shovel it into his mouth. Nodding quietly to her reminders. Definitely not about to cry.

    “... It’s good.” Kyuu mumbled, chewing on his fork to muffle his sadness, “And... getting late. We should finish up. We’ve... got things to do, huh?”

    “...... Oh?” Kyuu bit down on his tongue, reminding himself not to take the bait. Not in front of Touka! It was almost silly how quickly the couple had taken to Touka as their substitute daughter. Something that would keep Kyuu motivated in the days to come. Feeding and caring for her would be his only reasons for moving forward.

       Kyuu was silent during the exchange. It wouldn’t do to start crying into their pie slices. Not after all of the effort he had put into mixing them, so that they wouldn’t end up tasting like salt.

      “Hmm. Only if you’re both careful.” He teased, knowing full well that he was probably the most clumsy of the three. Take away his power and Kyuu was a regular nightmare. He floated the two plates over to them, not trusting his grace to balance two plates in his hands. Let alone three. 

       Sorry, Touka, but your mom is getting a returned kiss. And some affectionate words to go with it. Kyuu left them both to stay cozy, as it would be an important memory for Touka to have, while he went to serve some of the pie.

    “I did almost nothing put stir a spoon.” He reminded Tanya. And even then, she’d had to force him not to stir the mixture with his power instead of his hands. Cooking was so tedious! 

    “..............” He hadn’t thought about that. It sounded like creepy? But if her soul was safe, then he should be happy? Kyuu wondered if Tanya would be happier with Yuuto and Speck anyway. All he remembered about those parts of Yuuto’s life was drinking a lot of tea, reading books, and going on adventures.

    “Ahhh... Yeaah. Supper, then bed.” Kyuu tried to transition calmly, shoving his confused thoughts aside. He unfortunately had to break their cuddle pile in order to get up and cut the pie. Floating knives were probably a bad idea. 

       Though, now that Tanya had pies and Applin on his mind.... “Honey, don’t Applin evolve into walking pies? Are we setting a good foundation for our daughter’s future..?”

       Kyuu had wanted to finish this conversation. Maybe he couldn’t become her perfect lover in the last few hours, but he could get as close as possible. That would mean resolving any hard memories, even ones from years ago.

       He brushed her bangs back, nodding back to her and encouraging her to get the thoughts off of her chest, “Hmm?”

       But she changed the subject. With Touka roped back into the conversation, Kyuu changed gears to be more cheerful. Agreeing with her idea, he focused on opening the oven and removing the pie from a distance. Sometimes being Palkia was incredibly useful. He could even turn the oven off!

    “You don’t know that for sure...” He liked to think that Tanya wasn’t actually about to be ‘gone for good.’ If he thought too hard about that then he felt even colder and couldn’t ignore the panicked despair rising inside of him. “I’m not the only one in the universe who is smitten with you...”

         He leaned back against the couch, trying to remember what he had been upset about it. It wasn’t uncommon for his Distortion to seep into his mind and cause his temper to flare pointlessly. If they’d fought enough for her to want to leave, however, it must have been more than him losing his mind.

      “... Ah. You mean when I got jealous of Yuuto?*” Which happens a lot, but he had a particular instance in mind. Kyuu had discovered that the Kuroneko Family specifically asked Tanya to help him regain his memories and had been furious. At that time, it felt like being told she didn’t really love him. She’d only tolerated him. 

         Of course, a good talk had fixed the issue. Funny how a good talk could do that. He’d finally realized at that time that whether he had his memories or not, Tanya loved him. 

         With Tanya on his lap now, Kyuu went to his usual attack: Playing with her hair. Hopefully once they fed Touka she would want to sleep and he could be alone with Tanya for a while. He didn’t want to cry in front of their new PokeDaughter and worried that Tanya was employing the same restraint.

      “I did keep you pretty busy, didn’t I?” He sighed, tone apologetic, “I appreciate it, though. I didn’t know what I was doing when we got the shrine... I wouldn’t’ve been able to win over the villagers without your help or maintain such a nice garden...”

         What was he going to do without her?

       She was still warm for now. Kyuu had taken for granted that Tanya would always be there to warm him up. Whether it was in the case of his unpleasantly cold body or his cold-hearted tendencies, he’d expected her to always be around to help him.

       He tilted his head towards her, leaning in to enjoy the close contact.

    “I have a good teacher.” It was ironic that they spent some of their last time together on baking a pie, because Kyuu had no interest in eating. The closer it came to midnight, the more sick he started to feel. “I don’t know if Mikale-san would actually take me on. One pie doesn’t cure my fire hazard status.”

    “I did it!” Kyuu was rather proud of himself for that. Even if he mostly mixed ingredients and stayed away from the oven, he had finally helped Tanya make a meal! Their last supper, sure, but it was a start! And... an end.

       Collapsing on the couch with her, Kyuu snuggled up shamelessly with their new Pokemon daughter between them. Bringing “fur baby” to the next level. Every second was becoming more and more precious. With the stars out and night silencing the forest, Kyuu knew that midnight was coming within reach. He gently slipped a hand behind Tanya’s head, trying to encourage her to lean against him.

    “You saved me from myself again.” He teased softly, “Though, I’d say that I didn’t do a half bad job. Maybe I’ll ask Mikale to hire me at the bakery.”

      “Soon.” He didn’t let her go right away. Didn’t give Touka the mercy of escaping to her PokeBall either. There was no promise that they’d have a ‘family’ embrace like this again. He wanted Touka to see as much of Tanya as possible and know how much she’d loved the little dragon. For a seconds after Tanya suggested dinner, maybe even a full minute, Kyuu held her in a loving embrace.

         Then reluctantly let her go. 

       Even though neither of them had meant it in “a weird way,” it was becoming very weird. More so with every second. Kyuu only felt the embarrassed heat rising higher in his chest, changing him Shiny Palkia Pink. Was he wrong to think that he would have wanted it to be “not weird” to say that? To reach a world where they could take their relationship to that level and not have death waiting at the end? Probably, so he didn’t say it. Just let the thought turn him red.

    “Touka she is, then.” He whispered, lifting the newly named Touka to balance on his shoulder. Adding a soft apology to her, explaining that he needed to give her mother a hug. Then stepping forward to drag Tanya back into his arms. 

         His violet eyes fell back to the Applin, cradled again between both hands. A name, huh? He’d never been good at names. Tanya had been the one to call him ‘Kyuu,’ otherwise he would have taken no name at all. Not quite Palkia but not Yuuto anymore either, he hadn’t wanted any identity. Naming anything was out of his power. He looked uncomfortable for a moment, gaze shy and nervous as he met Tanya’s.

      “Is ‘Touka’ okay?” He asked quietly, “Even though I’m not a ‘tou’ like he was... Would you have Touka with me?”

         His words echoed in his head, enhancing his embarrassment. And then, clicking that he had asked something weird and embarrassing. In another context, he’d asked Tanya to have a child with him.

       He closed his mouth tight when she pointed out his weaknesses. Mean fiance. She should know that he wasn’t talking about that type of weakness. He meant fighting with Pokemon moves! But he wouldn’t argue that he had long since been captured. Looking down at his new Applin friend, Kyuu knew his own fate had been held in Tanya’s hands for a long time. She didn’t nee a Love Ball.

    “Heh?! Uh-- O-Oh...” Even though he had proposed to her yesterday, it was embarrassing to be on the receiving end now. He worried he’d messed up this one too. Not knowing what the Pokemon symbolized, making a bad joke, now stuttering shyly. It was his turn to have a racing heart and tears gathering in the corners of his eyes. She really had planned to propose... She’d put thought into it. Tanya had even traveled out of her comfort zone to catch this Applin for him.

       A shaky inhale. Shifting the Applin to one hand so he could wipe his eyes on his sleeve. Then meeting her gaze again, a smile passing through his unending tears.

        Kisses that would be lightly returned, as it was only fair. He wondered briefly if this was what their married life would have felt like: ‘Welcome home’ kisses and some Kitchen Trust. Even if all that he got to do was wash dishes and other fire-free activities. 

         He dried his hands on a towel before accepting the Pokeball, observing it curiously. How ironic for a Palkia, failed or otherwise, to be given a fellow Pokemon. Or maybe the fact it was a Love Ball was meant to mean something? Kyuu chuckled at the thought, expression twisting into one of his more teasing grins.

      “Are you trying to capture me, Tanya?” He asked, “Because you know that you have to weaken me first, right~?”

         His finger strayed along the button, expecting to find the Pokeball empty. He really did think that she was playing a prank on him. But much to his surprise, a Pokemon did appear from the Love Ball. Small enough to fit his hands and with big, blinking eyes.

      “Applin?!” Kyuu gasped, looking between the Pokemon and Tanya, “Eh-- Wh, why?!”