Prologue

Her darling


"Da-ling…"

Those words were what had jolted Hiro awake. As he slowly sat up, he saw Her laying beside him. He thought, no, he knew, that they had died in the explosion. He remembered those thousand years of going through space with Her. He remembered waking up so vividly!

He was under that cherry tree

That pink haired girl.

The only person he needed.

Her.

Hiro hoped that he would finally be able to fulfill the promise he made to that little girl all those years ago.

But when he heard that one special word, Her word for him, it sliced through his consciousness, and it cleared his mind of its haze.

He remembered it all. Strelitzia, and thus Zero Two, had taken the brunt of the explosion. The only parts left of the once majestic FRANXX were the head, chest, and boosters.

Hiro snapped out of his daze when he remembered Her. He looked down at the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, laying beside him. Her.

The same girl he helped run away from the Garden.

The very same girl he had promised to never leave.

He looked upon her broken body, and cried.

"Z… Zero Two…" he sobbed. It hurt him so much to see her like this. She was the most powerful, alluring person Hiro had ever met, and now she laid beside him, suffering.

He knew that her broken body was because of him. He knew that he failed the one thing he held most dear. He didn't realize that tears were dripping down his face until they started landing on his lap.

Hiro pulled Zero Two closer.

He laid his forehead on her cheek

and his tears ran down her face.


It had been, as far as he could tell, two days. Two days of perpetual guilt, sorrow, and anger. He was alone with his mind, and a mind alone is a dangerous thing indeed.

He wondered why it couldn't of been him who took the brunt of the blast.

He wondered why he wasn't good enough to protect Her.

But above all, he made a vow. He would fulfill his promises, and get her back to earth alive, so that they could finally explore the world.

Together.


Hiro had bandaged Zero Twos injuries, and yet, she still wouldn't wake up. He feared for the worst, but her chest still rhythmically rose and fell.

"How. How do I keep going on without you? You were the one i promised to never leave. I promised! And now because of my failures you are laying in my arms, dying."

He inched his face closer to hers.

"Please, Zero Two, come back to me."

Hiro pressed his lips against Zero Two's.

Their minds became one, and he felt her joy.

Joy that he was ok.

Joy that they were together.

And the joy of his body next to hers, wrapping her in a warm blanket of protection.

her eyes flashed open. She hugged him tighter and pulled away from the kiss. Their foreheads touched, their horns intertwined, and she finally said

"Da-ling."

The only words Hiro could say were her name. He responded to her cries with a passionate

"Zero Two!"

And before he was pulled tighter into the embrace and smothered by her affection, Zero Two shouted.

"Da-ling!"