Whoa… I wrote this one-shot in one day! It's a record for certain. I've never finished typing one chapter to any of my other stories in one day.
This is a sequel of my one-shot "The Mystery behind Axia's Crossdressing", only this time is more about the relationship between Drum and Axia, and how Drum's father appear in the Human World to pay a visit to an old friend. Let's just say things will get turned a bit upside-down.
Disclaimer: I do not own any Future Card Buddyfight characters!
XXXXXXXXXX
It had gone months since Axia told Drum the truth about her crossdressing, and a lot of things had happened after that. Drum had helped Axia to loosen herself up and release her feminine side more, and it was noticed by the other monsters and their human Buddies. However, Axia would still draw herself back to her old self once in a while, since she was used to it.
During those months, Drum realized how much he really liked Axia. She had stopped forcing herself on him and he actually missed it a little bit. He was close to confess to her when the Dragowizard had to leave, feeling her human Buddy was soon coming to her. Drum got his heart crushed, but he didn't show his sadness to the others, thanks to his stubbornness. But Gao knew Drum missed Axia a lot.
So imagine everyone's shock when Hanako, Gao's little sister, came home one day after school with Axia by her side. It turned out Hanako was Axia's destined Buddy and no one noticed it, not even the blue dragon. Drum was relieved to see Axia was back and living under the same roof as him. The other monsters were also happy to see their friend had returned to the group.
XXXXXXXXXX
Drum was walking around in circles in the schoolyard. Gao and every student of Aibo Academy was in class, and Axia was with Hanako for a special Buddyfight class, so it gave him an opportunity to think about something.
About how he should confess to Axia.
Drum had finally become honest to himself and knew deep down that Axia was the one meant for him. But how should he tell her?
Should he go straight up to her and tell her? Nah, that was too forward and maybe even pushing.
Bring a gift to her, like a book or something expensive such as a jewelry? No, Axia said before she wasn't the type who liked jewelries or girly accessories.
What about flowers? That could work, but it was too cliché.
"What troubles you, young warrior?" El Quixote spoke up.
Drum jumped by the sudden voice and turned around. The Dragon Knight and his dragon, Rocinante, were both in disguised form.
"Don't scare me like that!" Drum snarled. "I thought my heart was going to get ripped out of my chest!"
El Quixote laughed calmly. "So your mind is in a deep cavern? Could it about a certain female dragon?"
Drum blushed when he heard his friend figured it out. "I-Is it that obvious?"
El Quixote laughed calmly again. "The only one who is blind is your loved one, young warrior. You should come forward with your feelings before it's too late. Axia is an attractive female and I have seen other monster eyeing her as their perfect mate."
Drum growled from his throat. How dared other monsters think they had a chance with his Axia?!
Wait… His Axia?
Drum smirked to himself. He liked that sound.
"Our friends know your feelings to your princess, so they are not your rivals", El Quixote assured the Armordragon. "But I did see one monster the other day trying to flirt with Axia. He might confess his feelings to her even today."
Rocinante barked in agreement.
"Today?!" Drum exclaimed. "B-But I don't know how I should tell Axia!"
"It's simple, young lad", El Quixote said. "Just go up to her and tell her. If you stutter, then you stutter, but you must keep talking until you've poured out your feelings to her."
"How come you know so much about love?" Drum asked.
El Quixote chuckled, "I did have a lover a long time ago, before I became a Dragon Knight." He sighed deeply. "It broke my heart to leave her, but it was my destiny to become a knight. I promised to one day return to her and sweep her away with me on adventures, but I came back too late. She had found another mate and ignored me when I tried to approach her." He placed a hand on mini Drum's shoulder. "So do not make the same mistake as I did, young warrior."
Drum feared of the thought that Axia would ignore him if she found someone else as her mate. He nodded determinedly to the old Dragon Knight. "I won't, El Quixote. And thank you for your advice."
"Anytime, my friend", El Quixote chuckled as Rocinante barked happily.
XXXXXXXXXX
When it was time for the Mikado siblings to go home after school, Drum said he had to talk to Axia, so the Dragowizard couldn't go home with her Buddy. Gao and Hanako didn't question Drum's actions and promised they would tell their parents to save their dinner, and pudding, when they would come home.
Drum walked with Axia hand in hand, making sure to keep her close, in case another monster would come forward and try snatching the blue dragon from him.
Axia blushed while the mini dragons walked together down the streets. "Ehh… Drumkins… Where are we going?"
Drum blushed hard as well, his thoughts traveling all over the place. "Well…"
"Hmm?" Axia hummed, tilting her head slightly.
Drum turned to her with a shy smile and rubbed his nose. "We barely get to spend some time together, so… I was thinking…we could…go on a date?"
"A date?" Axia exclaimed, surprised, but she was cheering happily in her mind.
"Yes. A date", Drum nodded. "Got a problem with that?"
"No!" Axia shook her head before smiling. "I'd love to go on a date with you!"
Drum's heart beat in relief when Axia accepted the idea. "Alright! Let's go, Axia!"
The two mini dragons ran off together, both of them smiling and laughing.
XXXXXXXXXX
Drum took Axia to his favorite places around the city, especially to the shopping mall where the Hobby Shop "Castle" was. They watched a few people Buddyfighting in the special stage of the shopping mall while sharing octopus dumplings.
The sun was going down when the two dragons were on swings in an empty playground. They had an enjoyable date with no interference, to Drum's relief. He felt like there was nothing in the way to confess to Axia now.
"The date was so nice", Axia smiled. "Thank you, Drumkins."
"I'm glad you enjoyed it", Drum said before he jumped out of his swing.
Axia jumped out of her swing too and joined Drum. She had a feeling something was up. Maybe the date had been just been a decoy or something? She wasn't dumb. Drum had never before asked her out or someone else before, so this was something new. She actually didn't know if she liked that change or not.
"Drum…", Axia spoke up.
Drum flinched when he heard Axia call him by his name. "Y-Yeah?" He had a feeling Axia was suspecting something.
"Why did you even take me out on a date?" Axia asked. "You've never taken me or someone out like this before."
"W-Well…", Drum rubbed the back of his head.
Axia stared at him with puppy eyes, making the Armordragon more nervous.
Drum decided to go straight out, but first he needed to confirm one thing. "A-Axia!"
"Yes?" Axia said.
"A-Are you seeing someone right now?!" Drum exclaimed.
Axia blinked confusedly. "You mean, if I'm dating someone?"
Drum nodded without making eye-contact, praying Axia would say no.
"No, I'm not dating someone", Axia shook her head, making Drum sigh in relief. "I've been asked by other monsters to go out with them, but I declined them all."
Drum flinched when he heard Axia had been asked out, but why did she decline them? "Why did you say no to them?"
"Because…", Axia looked away with red cheeks. "I have someone I really like…"
Drum's heart sunk when he heard that. But if Axia liked someone and declined other dates, why did she agree on going out with Drum? Was it because they were friends?
"I see…", Drum said with a slight sad tone.
Axia blinked when she saw the red dragon's sad look. "Drumkins?" She placed her hands on the male dragon's cheeks. "What's wrong?"
Drum collected himself and turned away. "Nothing…"
"It's not nothing, Drumkins", Axia pouted. "I know you well enough to know when something's bothering you, so say it!"
Axia now sounded demanding, so maybe Drum should come forward with his feelings.
"Axia!" Drum turned around to face his crush, his heart beating fast.
"Yes?" Axia said, her heart beating in hope that the male dragon would say the thing she had been waiting for.
"T-The reason why I asked you out…", Drum stuttered nervously. "…i-is b-because…" He was now cold sweating like crazy. "…I LIKE YOU!"
Axia giggled, "I like you too, Drumkins."
Drum's heart dropped. He felt like Axia didn't take his confession seriously. Maybe he should have said "love" instead of "like"?
Axia noticed the sudden change of mood, so she took the initiative now. She leant forward and kissed Drum's lips. Drum froze when he felt Axia's soft lips on his hard lips.
The Dragowizard drew back with red cheeks that could almost match Drum's red scales. "The one I love is you, silly", Axia giggled. "I would only go out on dates with you."
"A-Axia…", Drum was stunned.
"Hm?" Axia said innocently.
Drum groaned and face-palmed. "I wanted to kiss you first. Man, now I feel like I've got no male pride."
Axia giggled, "You should have seen me coming, love."
Drum recovered from his shock and smiled. "Yeah… I should have."
"So…", Axia began. "We're mates now?"
Drum smiled before nodding. "Yes. Yes, we are."
Axia smiled widely before the two of them hugged each other. Drum felt like this was right. Axia fit in his arms. She was definitely the one for him.
XXXXXXXXXX
Drum and Axia broke down the news for the Mikado family after they returned home after their date. No one was actually surprised by the news. The Mikado family had merely sighed with a "finally" tone, including Gao and Hanako.
When the couple revealed to their friends that they were dating, the monsters had a similar expression as the Mikado family, but Asmodai wanted to celebrate the dragons' relationship by holding a karaoke party. The majority of monsters and humans agreed on it, so to Drum's embarrassment, he had to endure two long hours of celebration of his and Axia's relationship. But he softened when he saw how much fun Axia had, and he sometimes joined her for a duet.
XXXXXXXXXX
A couple of months had passed since Drum and Axia became mates. They were on the innocent level, since they wanted to take things slowly. So they only hugged or kissed or cuddled once in a while. Otherwise, they became protective of each other, if other monsters wanted to get close to one of them.
Right now, the couple and the Mikado siblings were on their way home. Gao and Drum received a challenge after school, so they had to Buddyfight before going home. Hanako and Axia waited for them and even shared from the stands.
"Man, I'm starving!" Gao sighed as he rubbed his stomach. "I hope Mom will have the dinner ready when we'll get home."
"Gao, did you forget what Dad said this morning?" Hanako said. "He said an old friend of his will come over today, so we should hurry up!"
"Oh yeah, that's right!" Gao nodded.
Drum and Axia were holding hands, overhearing the dialogue. "So who is your dad's friend anyway?" Drum asked.
"Dunno", Gao shrugged. "Maybe an old classmate or something?"
"If that's so, we should behave nicely", Axia pointed out. "So try to behave if there's pudding for dessert, Drumkins."
"I'll try, but no promises", Drum said sheepishly.
The group of four made it home safely and entered the house. "We're home!" Gao called as he and Hanako took off their shoes.
Takashi peeked out from the living room. "Welcome home, kids. Come in and meet my friend. He's excited to see you."
Drum smelled the air when he caught the scent of someone familiar. Too familiar. "Oh no…"
"Drumkins?" Axia spoke up.
Drum cold sweated like crazy now. Even worse than when he confessed to Axia before.
Gao and Hanako stepped into the living room first, leaving their Buddies in the hallways. The dragons stayed behind, but flinched when they heard the siblings cry out in shock and surprise.
Gao peeked out from the living room. "Drum, come quick! There's an old dragon here that looks just like you!"
"Did you just call me old, young man?!" a familiar voice to Drum exclaimed before bringing back the human boy.
Drum flinched when he heard a loud bang, knowing Gao just got to taste one of the strongest fists the Armordragon knew.
"What's going on?" Axia blinked.
Drum sighed before grabbing his mate's hand. "You'll see…"
The male dragon pulled his mate to the living room. Gao was sitting on the floor with a bump on his head. Hanako sat next to her big brother and tried to help him get rid of the pain. On the couch sat Takashi with a serious expression, which was very rare to see, and Drum Bunker Dragon Father.
Or more precisely…
"F-Father…", Drum stuttered a bit.
Axia's eyes widened in surprise. She had heard about Drum's father before, but she never thought she was going to meet him so soon.
Drum Bunker Dragon Father looked up from Gao and turned his eyes on his flesh and blood. "My son…" He let out a soft chuckle. "I see you ended up becoming Buddies with my old Buddy's son."
The mini dragons and Mikado siblings froze when they heard that. It took a few seconds for them to react and they were screaming out their shock.
"WHAT?!"
"D-D-Dad…!" Gao pointed shakily at his father. "Y-Y-You used to be a Buddyfighter…?"
Takashi laughed and rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish look. "The cat is out. Yes, I used to be a Buddyfighter when I was your age, Gao."
"Maybe you and your Buddy can explain more after dinner, darling", Suzumi and her old mother walked into the living room with plates of food. "We can't let the dinner get cold now, can we?"
Drum Bunker Dragon Father laughed with a deep tone. "You're lucky that your elementary crush became your beautiful wife, Takashi."
"Yes, Bunker", Takashi laughed with his Buddy.
Drum sweat dropped at his father's behavior. "Father…"
XXXXXXXXXX
Axia was getting nervous. What if Drum Bunker Dragon Father realized she was dating Drum? Would he question her and see if she was a good mate for his son? What if he didn't approve her?
The Dragowizard barely ate her share of the food as the Mikado family and dragons sat and ate dinner in the living room, since there was more room for them all. She even helped Suzumi, Hanako and Hanae, Gao and Hanako's grandmother, to put away the dishes from the living room and brought some snacks and drinks.
"…You were the first Mighty Sun Fighter, Dad?!" Gao exclaimed, shocked, as Axia walked into the living room.
"Yes, I was", Takashi confessed with a sheepish smile. "I was once just like you, Gao. I wanted to show everyone that justice would always win."
"At that time, I was a shy girl who was often picked on by bullies", Suzumi added. "Takashi saved me from bullies and introduced me to his family dojo."
"So you've been doing the dojo since our age, Mom?" Hanako asked.
"Why, yes", Suzumi nodded. "Soon, I gained the confidence that hid inside me. But I was still more collected than your father. I always had to remind Takashi to stop when the bullies had enough."
Takashi blushed in embarrassment and rubbed the back of his head.
"So the comic book that Yota drew for me was inspired by you, Dad!" Gao snapped his fingers.
Takashi nodded with a slight sad look on his face. "Yes… When he was often hospitalized, I told him stories about my childhood and he was amazed of them, so he filled his days by drawing the comic book."
Both Gao and Hanako, and even, Drum were amazed to hear the story of the background about the Mighty Sun Fighter.
Drum's father glanced at the blue dragon sitting next to his son. She had been quiet the whole time and almost seemed nervous to make eye-contact with her. He did spot the few times when Drum placed his hands on Axia's.
The father dragon wasn't blind. He could sense Drum and Axia were mates, or potential mates.
"Axia", Bunker spoke up.
Axia froze when she heard her name. "Y-Yes, sir?"
"May I talk to you in private?" Bunker asked.
Axia looked at Drum with a scared look. Drum looked at his father before turning his attention on his mate. He nodded to Axia, silently telling her it was going to be okay.
Axia nodded and turned to Bunker. "Yes…"
"You can talk in the dojo", Suzumi suggested. "As long as you don't make a mess in there."
"Don't worry, Suzumi. We won't", Bunker assured.
Drum Bunker Dragon Father and Axia walked out of the house and headed to the quiet dojo. The adult dragon stepped in first as Axia turned into her true self and followed her mate's father. She shut the door behind her before looking at the other dragon. Drum Bunker Dragon Father stood a bit away with eyes closed and arms crossed.
"S-Sir…", Axia spoke up silently.
Drum Bunker Dragon Father opened his eyes, which made the Dragowizard flinch. The look in the dragon father's eyes was intense.
"Come closer, female", Bunker demanded calmly.
Axia swallowed nervously and walked closer to Drum Bunker Dragon Father.
"What is your name?" Bunker asked.
"Q-Qinus Axia…", Axia replied. "B-But I'm called A-Axia for short."
Bunker hummed, "Axia. What is your relationship with my son?"
Axia looked down, afraid for eye-contact. "We're m-mates…"
"For how long?"
"C-Couple of months. W-We began as friends after Drumkins… I mean; when Drum rescued me."
Bunker noticed the nickname Axia used for Drum, but ignored it and smiled inside his mind. "Do you love him?"
Axia blushed hard at the question, but nodded. "Yes… I do. Very much."
"How much?"
Axia suddenly felt like this interrogation wasn't as strict as she first thought. Drum Bunker Dragon Father's voice had softened by each question, and it sounded to her now like he was just a father who was concerned about his son's mate.
The Dragowizard straightened herself after getting back her confidence and slammed the bottom of her wand on the floor. "I'd sacrifice myself over and over again to protect Drum from all harm and danger, just as he has always done. I don't want to stand aside and watch on without doing something. I was trained to protect monsters and humans I care about."
Drum Bunker Dragon Father's poker face slowly turned into a small smile. He could sense how determined and strong Axia was to protect his son, just like a real mate. She reminded the dragon father about his own mate before she passed away when Drum had been a toddler in human terms.
"I can tell you are a wonderful female, Axia", Bunker spoke up, making Axia surprised. "Drum made the excellent choice to make you his mate." He walked over to the Dragowizard and placed a hand on her shoulder with a warm fatherly look. "Promise me you will stay by his side forever…even when I pass away and leave him my crown."
Axia nodded with a determined smile. "I will, Drum Bunker Dragon Father."
Bunker chuckled deeply. "Please, just call me Bunker. My real name is even longer than my title. However, I do have one question."
"Yes, sir?" Axia blinked.
"Why do you dress like a male?"
XXXXXXXXXX
Drum was standing outside of the dojo in his true form. The truth was he was worried about the conversation between Axia and his father. What if his father didn't approve her? Would he then demand his son to stay away from her and never try talking to her again? What if his father had already chosen a mate to him back in the Dragon World that he would introduce only by the time he would hand over the crown and throne to him?
No! Drum didn't want that! He didn't want to marry an unknown female by arranged marriage! He wanted to marry someone he had known and dated for a long time, and that someone was going to be Axia, whether his father would approve or deny his choice.
The Armordragon looked up when he heard the door to the dojo open and two laughing voices were talking to each other. He turned around and saw both his father and Axia were smiling. It was like they had been friends for a long time.
Bunker looked up when he sensed his son was there. "Ah, son. I was hoping you would be here."
"Really?" Drum said confusedly as Axia walked over to his side.
Bunker crossed his arms with a warm smile. "You've chosen an excellent female as your mate. I'm very proud of you, and I know your mother is as well."
Drum sighed in relief as he wrapped an arm around Axia's waist. "Thank you, Father."
"Just remember one thing", Bunker said calmly before getting his strict eyes. "Don't you ever let go of this female, or you won't inherit my crown or throne!"
Drum froze into stone for a moment when he heard the threat, but recovered and gained his confident smirk. "Don't worry, Father. I'll always cherish Axia."
"And I'll always cherish you, Drumkins", Axia purred as she leant her head against his broad chest.
The two male dragons chuckled before nodding to each other. Drum was now more happy and relieved than ever. His father approved his mate!
Now he had already begun imagining his future with his mate and maybe one offspring or two with Axia.