Summary: Kotetsu reveals he's retiring to the rest of the heroes after the death of Maverick. Barnaby, who found himself dependent of Kotetsu's companionship and the deep seated attraction he had held for the hero but hadn't had the chance to tell him makes him take drastic measures to keep Kotetsu by his side forever.

Disclaimer: I don't own Tiger&Bunny. That right solely belongs to Sunrise.

Zypher: Well, my one-shot took well for you all so I thought, let's go ahead with an actual story. Now this one is really gonna test the limits of my skills since I never done a story with disorders before so this is a new step for me and hopefully I hit all the points that the prompt that I decided to try out from the anon meme. Whether I go about posting it there, don't know yet but I may since it's a fill and I'm sure the OP would like to see it. But let's begin here first. Hope you readers enjoy.

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Cracking Under Pressure

Chapter 1

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After the ordeal with Maverick, everyone was glad to feel peace that everything was finally over. No more threat of the H-0X androids threatening their lives and their jobs and Barnaby was finally at peace in more ways than one. He never felt more rage at the thought that Kotetsu had died on him and towards his Uncle Maverick was surprising in his mindset but it was nothing short of welcoming. The man caused his parents death and very well nearly did the same to Kotetsu. And the worse of it was that his memories had been tampered with and his rage for the murder of his parents was misplaced for those 20 years of being under his care.

But now, here he was with the other heroes in the room Kotetsu resided in, recovering from the nasty burns that he took after being hit by the beam rifle. Flowers nestled in a vase sat on the end table beside the bed along with balloons, cards and other little gifts given to him by the others, even a little stuffed tiger made by the same people that the obnoxious pink bunny they all gotten for Barnaby's birthday sitting on a chair.

"We're all glad you're ok."

"We almost thought you were dead!"

"You didn't know how bad it felt. Accompanied with the fact we suffered memory loss, who knows what could've happened if it wasn't for your daughter."

Kotetsu smiled and nodded. "I know, I know. The memory loss this was shocking. I mean seriously guys, can you really forget this face?" he said, making a funny expression as he pointed to himself and Pao-Lin laughed. "No, we couldn't but after hearing what happened to Barnaby, Maverick had a pretty nasty power." she said and Barnaby nodded. "To misplace my anger for 20 years is a shock to me but everything has been resolved, he is gone and I can finally be at peace." he said before looking down to Kotetsu. "And I'm especially glad that you are alive and well. I can't think of what I could do without you."

"Oh, Bunny, stop trying to flatter me! You'll be fine without me!" Kotetsu said with a wave of his hand. "You're young and spry. The hero business is a piece of cake for you." he added before looking to the other. "Which is why I'm glad to see you all here cause I have some news to give. I never got around to talking about the crux behind what I'm going to tell you all but it's better than nothing. I'm going to retire from HeroTV and return home to Oriental." he said and gasps were heard but something solid dropped into the pit of Barnaby's stomach.

I'm going to retire from HeroTV...

No, he can't. He must be playing a joke on us. He has to be. These thoughts ran rampant in Barnaby's mind but the look of firm resignation confirmed his inner fears. Kotetsu was leaving him. He was losing the last anchor he had keeping him mentally sane. He lost his parents when he was young, Aunt Samantha thanks to a ploy made by his Uncle Maverick who soon died at the hands of Lunatic for the trouble he had caused and the lies he had made. He had no one left but the elder and he hoped that he would stay and give him enough time to admit his deep seated attraction to the man.

He knew the other never took off a wedding ring from five years after his wife died but he wanted to heal that aging heart. He couldn't dream of replacing his wife but he wanted to love and cherish the man as much as she did and have that reciprocated. He almost fell deep into troubling thoughts when Kotetsu's words broke through the haze when Ivan asked why he was resigning.

"Well, like I said, I never told the crux of why I'm going to resign. I've been losing my powers for quite some time. At this point, I can last no longer than a minute before my Hundred Power dries up. It would be too troublesome to try and fight crime with such a limited time frame and it would put too much on Bunny here. A One Minute Man was an idea I've juggled around but decided against it." he said before Barnaby looked up.

"We can make it work, Kotetsu! You don't have to go! I can handle you having only one minute! Please don't go!" Barnaby begged. "Bunny..." Kotetsu murmured and reached out with a hand that the other gripped like it was his only lifeline. "I would love to stick around but I have a daughter to get back to. I haven't been much of a father to her with being a hero and all so I want to rectify it by being there for her. Especially after this scare. I don't want the next time I'm out on the field to be my death for real." he said. Antonio rested a hand on Barnaby's shoulder as if ready to pull him back but Barnaby snapped at him to release him and didn't let go of the hand he was holding, almost at the brink of tears. He couldn't let Kotetsu go. He didn't want to but everyone around him was accepting the idea, telling him that he'll be alright and that things will still good smoothly without him there.

"Hey, I got an idea! Let's hold a goodbye party!" Pao-Lin said and the others agreed. A party, huh? Barnaby let the malfunctioning cogs of his mind whirr and nodded. "Yeah, a party sounds good. We can hold it at my place." he offered and the others agreed, knowing that the place was big enough for such a small gathering of heroes. They planned on food and decorations and the day, knowing it would be a month before Kotetsu was released from the hospital and while they planned, Barnaby planned as well. He would corner the other at the party and continue to convince him that he had to stay, that Barnaby just can't accept him leaving.

Even if he wasn't working as a hero, he could still stay in Sternbild in close vicinity of the other. His daughter could come live with him as well, maybe even go to the Hero Academy so she can get a better grip of her power. Anything to keep him close. He didn't dare to think he was bordering on obsessive with his need for Kotetsu in his life, he just lost too much and wasn't ready to give up Kotetsu either.

He just didn't want to be alone.

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When the month was up and Kotetsu was a free man from the hospital, Barnaby was busy cleaning the apartment. Sure it was never such a mess like Kotetsu's but he wanted it to be perfection. If they want a good party, they'll have it but it would be him who gets what he wanted in the end. The doorbell was rung and he moved to open the door, finding the others sans Kotetsu waiting there. He allowed them inside so they could set up. He watched them, not really putting much effort into helping except pointing out where some things could go without obstructing any walkways but Pao-Lin, having been there before, had a pretty good reign on the rest of the heroes.

After everything was taken care of, Antonio offered to get Kotetsu before he could make the suggestion. He growled under his breath but kept himself positively stoic as the man left and music much different from his classical tracks played over the speakers to give the room a bit more personality from the gloom that was usually permeating the quiet flat.

Barnaby went to get himself a drink and some of the appetizers, provided by a high end restaurant Nathan called up for the occasion, and ate in silence, staying far from the circle of heroes that chatted it up with one another while they waited for the guest of honor to arrive. It was a few minutes before the bell rung and Karina answered it, allowing Kotetsu and Antonio inside. Now the party was really swinging but Barnaby cared for none of it, his main focus being Kotetsu. When the other went to get something to eat, he finally move from his spot and went over to him.

But before he could reach him, Keith sidled up to him and began a conversation and he huffed but didn't bother to break up the conversation and just stood off to the side once more. The rest of the night pretty much went about just the same. Every moment Barnaby tried to get close to the other to talk, someone was already there and seeing Kotetsu talking with such vigor prevented him from muscling into the conversation to bring about his own issue with the resignation.

Soon, the party began to dwindle down and the young heroes were the first to leave, getting a ride from Nathan back to their homes to avoid having them walk out in the middle of the night. Heroes or not, there was still danger and they couldn't afford to place risk going out as civilians. Keith was next to go, saying that John needed to be fed and was probably missing his company. Antonio was the last to go outside of Kotetsu, offering to give the retired hero a ride home but he said he would just take a cab when he was ready. He nodded and soon left, leaving the two partners in the quiet home. Kotetsu offered to help clean up and just reveling in spending some time with the man, Barnaby nodded and they cleaned up leftovers and decorations, leaving the large living room spotless once again.

"Now that everyone is finally gone, I can finally talk to you alone. Care for a drink?" Barnaby asked.

Kotetsu stretched and shook his head. "I think I had enough for one night. I need to get back home, tape up some more boxes and get my letter ready before heading off to bed for the night. We can talk some more tomorrow before I leave." he said as he made his way to the door but a grip on his arm prevented him from going any farther and soon found himself cornered by the younger hero as he looked into green eyes staring back into his.

"Please, Kotetsu? Just one drink for old times' sake. We won't have this time ever again once you leave." he whispered.

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Zypher: And there you have it. Looks like I did alright considering this is yandere!Bunny we're talking about now. Hopefully this appeases to the readers taste buds and people will be looking for more. But for now, I will go into my little corner and fear for the worse. -prepares helmet-