Set during the time period between the guardian angels leaving and their return, this story is about how Goro and the Saint Beasts got along without them. Goro just seemed a little too accepting of getting tossed out of bed by Gai and the rest of the guys' antics that it couldn't have only been one night. Not to mention, when they leave there are subtle signs that they've been there for a while like the fact it's a full moon again and that the grass under their tent is dark and dying.
Slight shipping of the Shin and Ayumi; also, this might, might, get more chapters to it but for now it's a one shot.
- -The Morning After- -
That morning, after everyone left him, Goro woke up to a quiet apartment and nearly wept. They were gone, they had vanished from in front of him and when he tried to run to them, they seemed to pull farther and farther away like a never-ending hallway in a horror movie where the hero tries to race from one end to the other. All he could do was lay there on the floor where he had simply collapsed to last night, not crying and not listening either until he heard a loud pop come from the kitchen.
He blinked, paying closer attention to the sound. He could hear sizzling too and smaller pops.
Someone, he realized, is cooking in the kitchen.
"Ran!" Suddenly he shot off the ground and nearly fell back down again by his own terrible balance. He managed to nearly hurtle around, using the momentum to wheel him around, and raced to the kitchen. "Tsubasa?" He almost fell again and had to clutch at the door frame to not skid past it.
In front of the stove, wearing an apron and sleeves rolled up to the elbow, one of them men from last night, (Shou? Shun? Shin! That was it.), looked back at him, holding a pair of long cooking chopsticks and a handle of the pot in the other. He looked bemusedly at him and Goro felt a part of him sink deep into despair.
Shin, (…it was Shin, right), finally recovered enough to speak. "Korokke?" he offered, nodding to the pot in front of him.
"…sure?" Goro tried, not exactly sure what the correct response was to finding someone who had tried to kill you the night before cooking in your kitchen and offering you some.
"Good, because that's all you had left in the fridge," Shin replied, turning his attention back to the frying food in the pot to pull one out for inspection before letting it sink back in. "I would have tried to make you breakfast, but its past noon now."
"I'm sorry," Goro said automatically.
Shin raised a brow but nodded, turning back to food. Goro realized that maybe he wasn't the only one trying to grasp the situation too; it made him feel a little better at least. "I borrowed one of your aprons, sorry for not asking." It was the lavender one with the turtle on the front.
"It's Ayumi's," he answered, his mind still not quite caught up with the situation yet.
"Oh?" Shin murmured, running a hand reverently over the turtle. "I see." After a moment, just as Goro was about to finally ask what the hell was going on, Shin checked another of the cutlets, this time found it satisfactory, and switched off the burner. "I know you're confused, I promise I'll explain. But first, lunch."
"O…kay," Goro managed. Deciding to go with the flow for a moment, he grabbed the plates, cups, and then the tonkatsu sauce before heading to the table while Shin followed him with the food. As Shin set the korokke and bowls of rice in the middle and served it, Goro set the table. For a moment, it was almost like the girls were back and they were getting breakfast started. "Itadakimasu," he said before beginning to eat. Shin did likewise and for several moments Goro ate quietly before finally laying his chopsticks across his bowl of rice. "I think I deserve to know what's going on now," he announced simply, leaving Shin to glance at him and sigh before setting his own food down. "…where are the girls?"
"Back in the Maid's world," Shin answered directly.
Again? Goro wanted to bang his head off the table or scream at how unfair the whole thing was. First his pets come back to him after so long, then they leave, then they come back and now they were gone again? "Why?"
"Their duty is done," Shin replied gently.
Goro stared at him for a moment. "…what?"
"They were sent you to help you and now their duty is done."
Something about the answer seemed so undeniably wrong that Goro decided to ignore that line of questioning for the moment and move on. "Well, why are you here?"
That seemed to be the question Shin was prepared for, his shoulders relaxing. "We are here because we want to help you."
"Help me? With what?" he asked before he could stop himself.
"To be more precise, we want to help you when you become the Sage," Shin clarified. "Until then, we will help and protect you in the angels' stead."
A spark of hope suddenly enflamed him. "So they're coming back?"
"Goh-niisan believes so. And I believe him," he smiled and Goro felt reassured for a moment. Feeling better now that there was a hope for the girls to return, he began to feel much more at ease. Shin seemed to pick up on this, looking reassured in turn.
Goro then frowned after a moment. "What happened to the others?"
"Hm?" Shin murmured, half confused.
"There were four of you, so I was just wondering about-"
"Ahh," Shin interrupted. "They've gone to stock your fridge up on food. Well, actually," he tacked on, "Rei's gone to stock up your fridge; Gou-niisan took Gai with them so that Gai wouldn't pester you."
Goro smiled in spite of himself from amusement but before he could say another word, there was a solid knock at the door accompanied by talking and then the door opened to the rest of men, (Saint Beasts they're called), came in, carrying grocery bags.
"Hey, hey! You made korokke and didn't tell me?" the blond one (Gai) shouted as he caught sight of the food on the table. Goro stared at the boisterous young man while the pale haired man (Rei?) huffed and sat his load of bags inside the kitchen.
"Gai, don't be so noisy and rude in front of the Sage," he tsked before smiling apologetically to Goro. "Please forgive him, Seiyja-dono, Gai's still a child at times."
"S-Seiyja-dono?" Goro repeated in surprise. It was one thing to be told you're a sage after a confusing fight and quite another to be addressed as such later.
"Gai, get back here and put your stuff in the fridge too," Goh called to the flustered blond who stalked into the kitchen after him.
"And get me a bowl of rice too, while you're in there," Rei called to them.
"Get your own god damned bowl!" Gai snapped as he put away groceries.
"So," Rei began, sinking down elegantly and sitting next to them at the table. "how'd it go?"
Shin sighed, "Fine up until the yelling came and interrupted us."
"Ahh, but Gai's young, it's not unusual to yell," Rei countered before smiling benignly at Goro. "So, Seiyja-dono, you don't mind if we stay here?"
"I-um-no?" Goro answered, feeling himself slowly acclimating to all the yelling and shuffling going on around him. It was almost like the girls were back. Almost.
"Rei," Shin hissed. "Don't just invite us all in here."
"Ah? You hadn't gotten to the point yet then?" the other Saint Beast asked, unconcernedly. "Please excuse me then."
"We won't stay in here if you want," Shin began, trying to recover from the bumbling of his colleague.
"We bought a tent on sale," Gai announced, walking in with two bowls of rice, one of which he gave to Rei before he sat down and helped himself to some cutlets. "And sleeping bags too."
"O-oh?" Goro said, trying to keep up.
"Please forgive the intrusion," Goh told him as he also walked in with his own bowl of rice. Shin and Rei scooted over for him, putting him across the table from Goro. Looking at him, Goro was suddenly struck by a question.
"Do you think the girls are really coming back?" he asked before he could stop.
Gai, Rei, and Shin all paused and looked to Goh. Goh quietly sat his bowl and plate down and stared back. Then he spoke. "I bet my fang on it."
Goro couldn't help but feel relief at the utter confidence Goh had in his words. Feeling oddly energized, he rubbed his hands against his jeans after a moment and nodded. "Okay then. Let's eat."
The others seemed to relax and conversation sprang up again as they ate.
"Ah, my korokke's cold!"
"It would have been warmer if you hadn't wasted time arguing with me about trying to eat chicken for dinner."
"Shut up, you oversized feather duster!"
"Niichan, would you like another cutlet?"
"Mmhmm."
"Seiyja-dono, would you like some more water?"
"Y-yes, please."
It wasn't quite the same as a meal with the girls, but for a moment it didn't look quite so bad to Goro.