Disclaimer: I don't own Star Ocean - Till the End of Time nor the characters. They belong to tri-Ace and Square Enix. I don't profit financially from writing this.
Author's Note: I assigned Robert Leingod a birthday, much like I have for Albel Nox, Luther Lansfeld, Fayt Leingod, Nel Zelpher, and Maria Traydor. It was the 24th of October.
Enjoy!
It wasn't how he wanted to celebrate his birthday. Robert Leingod stared, mournful, at the prone form of his fifteen-month-old son, his only child, as the boy slept. A slightly pained yet peaceful expression was on the boy's face. Monitors were attached to the little one's chest and forehead, oxygen and I.V.s to his face and his arms. Everything indicated his son was faring well after everything that had happened.
He and Ryoko had told their families Fayt suffered injuries in a near fatal accident, that they needed to keep him on Moonbase to recovery. Most of the "injuries" were internal, and they didn't dare risk moving him home so he could recover there. It was easier to tell the lie about their fragile son and his condition than it was to tell them the truth.
Fayt was a little more beyond human now, and it was all because of Robert, Ryoko, and their friend and colleague, Clive Esteed. They'd done what they needed to do, an unforgivable sin, and they'd given Fayt, along with Jessie Traydor's daughter, Maria, powers outlawed by the Pangalactic Federation. Fortunately for Robert and Ryoko, Fayt was still too small to remember much of anything, and they'd tell him the same lie they'd told their families until he was old enough to understand why they had done what they had done. Robert just didn't expect his only child to ever forgive him.
"Hey there," Ryoko said. She walked up to him and rested a hand on his shoulder. "I brought some cupcakes for us to eat when he wakes up . . . Happy birthday, Robert."
"Thank you, my love," Robert murmured. He grasped one of Fayt's hands as he placed his other hand on top of hers. "You don't know how much that means to me."
"Oh, I think I do," Ryoko replied. She kissed his cheek. "You want to make as many good memories for him as possible with what time we're able to give him . . . and so that we have something fond to remember for when he hates us for what we've done to him."
Robert smiled, albeit weakly.
"You know me better than anyone," he said. "How did I get so lucky in finding someone like you?"
"That's a good question, Professor Leingod," Ryoko said, smiling in return. "Maybe someday we'll have an answer. For right now, let's just enjoy the day. He should be waking up soon."
"Of course," Robert said. He felt marginally better but not by much. It wasn't how he wanted to celebrate his birthday, but then what life dictated for them wasn't always what they wanted. So long as Fayt lived and grew strong, Robert felt he could live with his son hating him for when he finally learned the truth.