I don't need a damned disclaimer. Look at all my other KOF fanfiction. I obviously don't own KOF.
Written for General Alia, who wrote such a wonderful story based on our roleplay. This is the 'other half' of it. The Kusanagi half (as if you people didn't see that coming! Ha!).
--
Trouble Times Two.
--
Kyo wasn't surprised to see Yuki dancing around the kitchen of their not-so-spacious apartment, nearly singing with joy about how he'd finally knocked her up. Kyo could only smile sheepishly and call Shingo, his parents, and Athena with the good news.
Of course, Athena Asamiya, being the pop-idol that she was, was unable to keep her mouth shut, and Kyo's answering machine was soon full to the bursting with congratulations from every person in the KOF (including Iori, but Kyo figured that Kasumi had made him call. She was whispering to him in the background, and he could hear Yagami growling... it made him laugh).
So, Yuki held a baby shower. It was only natural.
--
Of course, Kyo knew as soon as the sun came up on that destined day, that he was going to be suffering from a major migraine.
It started innocently enough. Athena, Malin, Hinako, May Lee, Chae Lim, Momoko and Kaoru Watanabe had all arrived at the same time, apparently via Hinako's limo.
He could see the disappointment in Athena's amythest eyes, but... he was happy with Yuki, and he knew that Athena could finally get over him, knowing that he was going to be someone's father.
That thought was so strange. Kyo was finally going to have to get off of his lazy ass and take care of another human being, instead of Yuki always taking care of him... he couldn't quite believe it, but he was EXCITED about it.
But, all of the young women piling into his living room wished he and his fiancee congratulations, and the most heartful did come from Athena.
Through and through, it seemed Athena was always going to be Yuki's friend.
The next two to arrive where the infamous Beart sisters; one dumber than an eight pack of crayons, and the other, a scathing smartass. One so bright she blinded, the other so dark that she made shadows during a blackout. He didn't remember inviting them, and Yuki didn't even know them...
Kyo turned his gaze on Chae Lim and Athena, who smiled and waved.
'Shit.'
Well, Mignon sat next to Hinako and Athena, and Ninon commandeered the seat between May Lee and Chae Lim, and everything still seemed to be an awkward kind of okay.
Kyo breathed a heavy sigh of relief when some testosterone finally arrived, in the form of one Ikari warrior dragging two others by the ears.
"Leona, reporting for the shower," she said firmly.
Kyo held back chuckles. "I can handle these two. At ease, soldier," he told her. "The other women are in the living room..."
Leona released her captives, who whined and rubbed their ears in unison, trying to ease the stinging.
"Thanks man, we owe you one," Ralf said with an appreciative smile.
A few more males arrived, mostly dragged by the women of Southtown; Mai towing Andy, Mary on Terry's back, Bonne Jenet with a relentless grip on poor Rock Howard's wrist... Yuri and King came but their men seemed almost willing to be there. Of course, Yuri and King had given them an ultimatum. It was they who ruled the Kyokugen roost.
Ryo and Robert began to raid Kyo's fridge for beers, and Kyo, out of sympathy, didn't say anything.
The last guests to arrive where the ones that everyone held their breath for; Kasumi Todoh, Iori Yagami and their three year-old son... who would undoubtably become the life of the party once turned loose in the living room. That kid was going to be cooed at and pinched and tickled until he screamed for his parents.
The knock on the door was sharp, and only two raps. Kyo opened the door, and Iori was standing there, his hands stuffed into his pockets. Kasumi pushed past him, the writhing, blue-black-haired, blue-eyed body in her arms struggling to get down to the floor.
"Ugh," the Todoh heiress said, releasing her spawn into the shower. "Thanks for inviting us, Kyo," she said, giving him a smile.
Iori still hung outside the doorway.
Kasumi glared at him. "Stop being a baby and get in here. Wish Yuki and Kyo congratulations," she demanded.
Iori moved inside, and muttered a quick, "Congratulations."
Shreiks of glee, cooing and calls of, "Oh, he's so cute! Who knew that Kasumi and Iori would have such an adorable child?" rang from the living room. (1)
Terry and Rock snickered, but Iori didn't find it amusing.
"Shut it, Bogard," he warned.
Kasumi smiled at Yuki this time. "Congratulations, Yuki. Do you guys know if it's a boy or a girl yet?" she asked.
Yuki shook her head. "No... we want it to be a surprise," she said.
"You want it to be a surprise," Kyo corrected. He had begged the doctor at the first ultrasound to tell them, and Yuki had slapped him for it.
His fiancee laughed. "Well... the whole thing was a surprise, really," she said.
"Same for us!" Kasumi said happily.
For once, Iori and Kyo were empathetic; being told that you're going to be a father is NOT wonderful at first. It is shocking and scary, because all of the sudden, you're expected to be responsible for someone else's life.
"I wanted a girl..." Kasumi said, sighing. "But Shohei's such a good boy... Look at him!" she said.
The four of them peeked into the living room, where Mai, Mary and King had managed to take Shohei from the rest of the women. He was sitting happily in Mai's lap while King and Mary taught him 'Patty-Cake' or some other weird game. The rest of the girls, especially the younger ones, looked jealous.
"Ooooh, King, that's not fair!" Yuri said loudly. "You've got a baby. Let me hold him!" she demanded.
"And you've got a nephew, so King... trade places with May Lee," Mai said, and reluctantly, King did so.
Kyo shook his head, feeling bad for Andy and Terry; when they got home, their girlfriends were going to be screaming for babies of their own. 'Baby fever' was a contaigous disease, and could be spread even over the phone.
Yuki smiled back to the Todoh, placing a hand over her stomach. Some strange, warm, paternal instinct rose inside Kyo... that was his kid in there. HIS kid. His KID. A little thing that he and Yuki had made... and would soon be just as, or if not more, cute as Shohei Todoh-Yagami.
He walked to her, bent and kissed her cheek sweetly.
"Aw," Kasumi commented.
Yuki was blushing, something she did rarely, but made her look so beautiful.
Kyo could honestly say that he was ready to settle down and spend the rest of his life with Yuki Kushinada.
"It'll be so good for Shohei to have another friend..." Kasumi continued. Her next comment was innocent, but it was the show stopper, the thought that had been on everyone's mind; "Hey! Maybe they'll be rivals, just like Kyo and Yagami were, ne?"
"No." Yuki's sharp, hard voice had broken the still that had instantly fallen. "No, this stupid fued is not continuing with our children, Kasumi-san."
Kasumi was taken aback, but she didn't back down. She thought Yuki was just overreacting. "What, afraid of a little friendly competition?" she teased.
Iori shook his head at his lover, but it was too late.
"No," Yuki's voice was just a bit louder now, "they will not. I have half a mind to not let my child EVER see your son, Kasumi-san. I won't let history repeat itself."
Kasumi now looked ready to unleash razor sharp claws of white hot energy on someone or something. "What, is Shohei not good enough, Yuki-san?"
"Kasumi..." Terry warned, resting a hand on her shoulder.
Iori growled, and slapped the Lone Wolf's arm.
"No, I'm sick of this crap! So what if I'm not deeply immersed in this whole Orochi saga?" Kasumi said. "Just because I'm not a Kushinada, or a Kagura, or a Kusanagi... or even a Yagami, doesn't mean that Shohei's...!"
Kyo should have known that this would happen. Part of him had expected that Iori and Kasumi would be the baby shower's downfall. He just hadn't thought that it would be because of something between Yuki and Kasumi.
Everyone was staring into the kitchen.
Kyo sighed, and he hated to do this. He and Kasumi were friends... but it was Yuki and his child's day. From now on, he couldn't back down, not even about the tiniest thing. Yuki and that baby were his world. "Kasumi-san..."
She paused; Kyo didn't usually refer to someone with honorifics or titles.
"I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
He steadied himself for an energy blast, but it never came. Kasumi had turned and marched towards the door, her shoulders set stubbornly, and Iori gathered their child from the doting women.
--
Later, after everyone had gone home and they'd begun to clean up the mess, present stacked to the cieling, Yuki looked upset.
Kyo walked over to her, pulled the broom from her hands, and asked her what was wrong.
"It's just... I know that you're friends with Kasumi-san... and I wish that you didn't have to make her leave," she began.
This was much more emotional than he'd ever seen her. The extra hormones were definitely kicking in. Normally, she'd be complaining about Kasumi's behavior now, not lamenting that he'd done something about it.
"Hey, it's not your fault," he said, wrapping his arms around the brunette, pulling her close. "It wasn't anyone's fault... Kasumi just needs to watch what she says," he said. "And you were right; I don't want that for our kid. I didn't want it for me, either... It has to end with me and Yagami," Kyo soothed, kissing her forehead.
Yuki sighed, and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Alright... if you say so..."
"Cheer up, babe. Look at all the gifts we have to sort and put away until that baby comes! We're going to be pretty busy, right?" he said, smiling down at her.
She blinked up at him, giving a confused smile. "What? You're actually going to help me do that?" she questioned. "You're not going to call Beni-kun and cry until you can go watch soccer at his apartment?"
He shook his head, walnut locks swaying. "Nope. I'm going be right here, bringing things where-ever they need to go, doing whatever you need me to do. I promise."
Yuki burst into a fit of laughter, and Kyo frowned.
"I'm being serious, Yuki! I'm... I'm gonna be more responsible, for you and the baby," he said firmly.
She reached up and wiped the tears that had accumulated at her lashes. "Oh, I know..." she said. "I believe you, Kyo. It's just... so strange to hear you say something like that!"
Once again, she dissolved into giggles, and Kyo could only shake his head in frustration.
But, even if it was laughable now, Yuki knew that Kyo was going to be the best father that she and their child could ever hope for.
--
Kyo wasn't home when the baby kicked. He was, to put it mildly, disappointed.
"He kicks hard," Yuki told him.
That only made it worse, the little details. He felt so awful for not being there for it. "It's a boy...?"
"I think so, if the kicking was any indication," she said, smiling. "Come on, put your hand right here..." she took his hand and guided it to the mound that was growing little by little, day by day. "Maybe he'll kick again."
They waited, but it never happened, and Yuki was filled with the same disappointment. She had wanted Kyo to experience the wonderment of feeling the child moving around... they exhaled heavily at the same time.
Finally, Kyo broke the tension. "Maybe he's tired," he joked.
Yuki leaned against his shoulder. "Speaking of tired..." she yawned. "I'm beat. Let's head to bed, darling," she said contentedly.
Kyo liked that idea, but when he opened his mouth to say so... Yuki had already fallen asleep on his shoulder. He moved one arm around her back, and the other under her legs, lifting her up.
He was still having a hard time believing that she was carrying their child. He wouldn't believe it at all if not for the growing bump on her stomach. She didn't look any different, she didn't feel any different... she certainly didn't feel like she had another person forming inside of her, as he carried her to their bedroom.
He set Yuki down on thebed, gently moving her head to rest on the pillow, and he smiled as she rolled to face him. He drew the blanket over her, and climbed in. One arm sliding over her waist protectively, his eyes drifted closed...
And then, almost serendipitously, it happened.
The baby kicked.
Kyo's eyes shot open. He'd felt his child... kicking. The baby was alive and moving around in there! He was stunned that something so small could be so amazing and wondrous...
The child didn't do it again, but Kyo was satisfied. He fell into sleep.
'It's so going to be a boy.'
--
"I feel fat," Yuki complained one morning.
Kyo bit into his toast, grinning. "You look beautiful to me," he told her.
"None of my clothes fit! I'm getting too big for sweatpants now," she said.
Seven months. Yuki had gotten pretty big... but her face was almost constantly flushed with a healthy glow, and to him, really, she never had looked so appealing.
"So wear the maternity clothes your friends gave to you," he suggested.
"Why, so everyone can know how fat I am?!" she shrieked, heading back into their bedroom. As the door slammed, Kyo jumped, dropping his toast.
So now they were getting into that phase.
--
Kyo and Yuki were soon regretting that they wished their child would kick more often. Now it did, all the time, and Yuki hardly got any sleep...
which meant that Kyo hardly got any sleep, and they were cranky.
"God, it feels like there's two, and they're both demons," she muttered one morning as she climbed out of bed.
Kyo attempted to roll over and get some sleep, his arm shading his face from the morning sun.
Yuki smacked him with a pillow. "What, you think you can sleep? No! You helped make this little hellion, so if I can't sleep, neither can you!"
Kyo wanted to cry.
That kid had better hurry and be born before he killed himself.
--
Again, what Kyo wished for came true, but it caused Yuki great amounts of stress and worry.
"Kyo..." she gasped one afternoon, holding her bulging abdomen, her lips twisted into a grimace.
Kyo put down his comic book. "Yeah...?"
"It's..." she began, but Kyo had already leapt from the couch and grabbed the car keys.
"Finally!" he cried in relief. It felt like they'd been waiting forever.
"But he's not due for another three weeks!" Yuki said, moving towards the door.
The Kusanagi heir took her arm to help her. "I'm sure everything is fine. I think some babies are just born early..." he soothed.
"Since when did you become an expert on babies?!" she snarled. "What if his lungs are underdeveloped or something?" she demanded.
"Let's just get to the hospital," Kyo said, pulling some sort of infinite patience from somewhere... perhaps it was just his paternal instinct.
--
The doctor confirmed something surprising; the baby was healthy, but it wasn't the only thing in there...
Yuki had been carrying twins all along.
All Kyo could say was, "Well, that explains it."
He prepared himself for a smack from Yuki, but it never came. They'd given her the drugs, and they'd started to kick in.
"Are you going to watch?" the nurse asked him.
Kyo breifly wondered if he could stand the sight of Yuki screaming in pain, blood everywere... he shuddered. It seemed more akin to death than life.
The nurses demeanor changed instantly. "Then get out! We're trying to deliver babies in here!"
With a rough shove, Kyo found himself in the hall, and there was nothing he could do but to wait.
He sat in one of the uncomfortable chairs, and folded his arms over his chest.
For once in his life, he wished that his father was there to share this with him. The birth of the new Kusanagi heir... or heirs. Had there ever been two? Had there ever been twins in his family?
It didn't matter. Even if his kids didn't produce flames at all, he'd love them. Yuki had been right when she'd told Kasumi off; the age of the Kusanagi, Yagami and Yata defending the world from the Orochi was over.
Hours passed, feeling like days as the anxiety built. He glanced at the clock, but the hands never seemed to move.
And then, he heard soft sounds of wailing. When the nurse came out of the room to beckon him, he was already at the door. He rushed to Yuki's side, clinging to the railings of the hospital bed.
She was asleep, with one child cradled in the crook of each arm.
"It was a c-section," the nurse explained. "She should be awake soon... but she had some ideas for names. She said she liked Daigo."
"Daigo, huh?" he said, noting that one baby had been wrapped in blue, and one in pink. "I like it, too..." he agreed, reaching for the pink bundle. The child inside, his daughter... reached up for him. Carefully, he pulled her away from Yuki, cradling her just the way Yuki had made him practice. He was confident that he wouldn't drop her... he'd never harm his children, or let any harm come to them.
"Your brother's name is Daigo... but you still need a name," he said softly. The little girl appeared to be smiling at him, and he smiled back. "Your mom and I didn't even discuss a name for you. I'm sorry," he apologized with a laugh. The baby began to cry again, and he rocked her back and forth. "Hey, hey... I've got an idea. How about I name you after your godmother, how's that? I'll call you... Chihomi. Yeah... Chihomi," he said.
The baby quieted, and Kyo felt proud. His first day as a dad, and he'd named his child and got her to stop crying.
Yuki's faith in him hadn't been misplaced... and maybe this being a dad thing wasn't going to be as difficult as he'd feared.
--
(1) Alia and I knew.
Alia, I'm sorry for taking so long, hun. I've just been busy. I hope you liked it. It's not nearly as good as yours, but I tried.
Hehe. I'm totally going to write about Chae Lim and Alba and Ninon and Rock's kid next.