AN: Thank you so much for your reviews! As a writer it means so much to see people enjoying what I'm putting out. I really hope that I'm improving as I continue to write this story and by the end of this I hope to be as best a writer as I can be. Not that the end is coming soon, mind you. I intend to continue this for as long as it doesn't overstay it's welcome. Enjoy the chapter!

Makoto woke up with a numb arm and cold toes. His left foot was hanging out of the bed and the blanket was barely covering him at all. Luckily his right arm was both numb and warm due to Kyoko having wrapped herself around it. This was the most innocent expression he had ever seen on her face. The way her mouth was slightly open. The way strands of her hair rested on her face. It reminded him how beautiful she was. Now was the difficult part. How was he going to get out of bed without waking her up? Screw it, he may as well wake her up. He stroked her hair a few times and left her hand on her cheek until her eyes fluttered open. She let out a small groan before propping herself up onto her elbows, Makoto instantly taking the opportunity to retract his arm and try to gain some feeling in it. Kyoko looked at him with tired eyes before groaning and falling face first onto his pectoral. ''Do we have to get up?'' She mumbled into his flesh, her hot breath making him slightly jumpy. ''It's probably early, we don't have to.'' ''It's not.'' Makoto jolted up and looked to the door. Junko stood with an unusually straight expression on her face. ''It's 1pm. You've been asleep for 14 hours.'' Makoto looked at Kyoko, who turned around in the bed, making sure to hold the blanket over her chest. Her face was a scowl and her fist clenched the covers tightly. ''You know the exact moment we stopped having sex?'' She barely got out, seething with rage. ''Duh. I was listening to you. Right there.'' The Fashionista opened the door slightly and pointed to a spot on the floor by the crack in the door. She turned back to the couple with an enormous grin. ''You were at it for about… an hour? 45 minutes?'' Kyoko reached down the side of her bed and grabbed her underwear before putting them on under the covers. She swung her legs off the bed and pushed Junko out of the room like she had the previous night. The Detective turned and sighed to her boyfriend. ''We need a new lock for this door.''

Makoto found it strange waking up with no clothes on. In the Academy, he always slept in his clothes and as far as he could remember, he had always slept in at least his underwear. It was also a strange feeling waking up next to someone. He had experienced it once before but it never became less awkward or embarrassing. He supposed it would, with time. They got dressed quickly and both headed for the bathroom to brush their teeth. Hajime stopped them along the way and, after normal morning greetings, handed the pair their toothbrushes and towels. The two freshened up and headed out towards the couches, where Chiaki and Ibuki were already occupied with Mario Kart. Mahiru sat on the same couch, though she was preoccupied with feeding the baby. The bottle of formula was remarkably shiny, a reminder that Hajime was an extreme perfectionist when it came to the wellbeing of his child. Fuyuhiko and Peko were once again playing at the pool table but Fuyuhiko seemed preoccupied by resting his hands on her stomach. There was a small bump, but from most angles there was little to display her pregnancy. It was very sweet to watch. Maybe he and Kyoko could be like that one day. He could talk about it at some point, when they were both ready. The others were spread around the room; Byakuya sat at the table with a cup of coffee so the couple decided to take a seat across from him. He put his magazine down and stared very disapprovingly at the two of them. ''Did your fornication honestly have to go on for some 50 minutes?'' Makoto turned bright red and stared at the floor. Kyoko scowled at him. ''Did it keep you awake?'' Makoto asked sheepishly. Byakuya smirked. ''No, I didn't actually know that you'd done such things. But thank you for confirming my suspicions.'' Kyoko stood sharply and headed over to the kitchen. ''You knew that I was going to do that didn't you?'' The Luckster asked with a sigh. ''But of course. It was obvious she'd know where I was going. It's lucky you're so open. That said, it's not a bad thing you two are having relations. I'm actually quite in favour of it.'' The smirk softened to something of genuine content for a brief moment before it hardened into a straight line as he picked his magazine back up. Kyoko arrived back at the table with two bowls of cereal. Kyoko had prepared some Weetabix with bananas and strawberries. Even the milk was at the exact height he liked. ''Wife material…'' He mumbled under his breath. His eyes shot open and he looked at Kyoko out of the corner of his eye. There was a dusting of pink on her cheeks. Oh god. She had heard him. He ate the rest of his breakfast in content silence (as silent as it could be with Byakuya attempting to correct his eating etiquette). The two finished at almost the same time and both made their way to the kitchen to wash up. They put their bowls in the sink and Kyoko placed her hand on the faucet before being interrupted. ''I'll do that later. It'll only take me about 10 seconds. I'd like to show you the farm today, Makoto. Are you free to leave now?'' Makoto looked at the Detective before turning back to his upperclassman and giving him a small nod. ''Great. Follow me and we'll head out.'' Makoto mustered up the courage to peck Kyoko on the cheek before following, an act that embarrassed them both greatly. Hajime stopped at the foot of the ladder and allowed Makoto up before him in case his luck caused him to fall. It seemed like a shorter climb than descent.

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The pair attempted idle chat during the short walk, the hill providing the longest conversation topic. The fence to the farm was lined with barbed wire and the gate was large enough to allow a truck to drive up to the farmhouse. The slopes were where the fields were with the dirt path splitting it in two as it led in a straight line up to the farmhouse which was directly at the top of the hill. The rustic, wooden house was not only quite large but allowed an amazing advantage point over the outskirts below the hills peak. It was roughly a 10 minute walk to the farms gate and another 5 from gate to front door. As Hajime produced the key to the house, Makoto took the opportunity to question him. ''So, what are you growing in the fields? You have two small fields so…'' Hajime ushered him through the door and closed the door behind them. ''The field on the left hand side at the gate is potatoes and the right hand side is half carrots/ half cabbage. We used to have wheat but we had a particularly bad harvest and gave up with it.'' Makoto looked around the houses interior; homely and quiet were the first two words that sprung to mind as he poked his head into the living room. There was a small couch and footstall. There were even more magazine here than at the shelter. ''There's no TV or board games here. We need to have something to do during breaks.'' Hajime's voice rang out from the kitchen. Psychic. Makoto walked into the kitchen to see a small breakfast table and some basic cabinets and shelves. There was a lot of canned food scattered around, cans of various foods were thrown in a huge garbage bin in the corner of the room. Hajime turned and walked upstairs to continue his silent impromptu tour. There was just one large room on the next floor. There were 6 beds in a row and the rest of the room was almost barren. ''This is where you should go in a worst case scenario. If people know you're here, you can use the beds to block the stairs. The reason I brought you here was because you need to know about this the most. You can not only lead your friends here but come here alone and wait for me. I'll save you. I swear it.'' The Ultimate Ultimate's face fell but he recovered to give Makoto a warm smile. ''Now then. I need to get a few tools to create Junko's 'cell' today.'' He leapt directly up and grabbed onto the attic's ladder release. He brought it back down with him as he fell and climbed as quick as a flash. He clambered back down and threw the ladder up perfectly so that the hatch locked itself. He held another metal bar and a series of power tools. ''Well, we should be off.'' Hajime strode back down the stairs and waited at the door for the Luckster to catch him up. Makoto walked out the front door and turned back to Hajime. The taller boy let the door shut before throwing all of the tools and materials into the air. He swiftly pulled out the key and locked the door in time to catch all of the items as soon as they were level with his arms. Makoto stood in awe; even somewhat simple things looked amazing when Hajime did them. Hajime nodded for Makoto to walk back down the path. ''Oh, by the way… You and Kyoko look good together. Like, really good. Natural couple, I guess.'' Makoto smiled bashfully. ''I mean you and Chiaki are practically Superman and Lois Lane.'' Hajime laughed loudly before slowing slightly. ''She's Superwoman in my book. She's the glue that holds me together.'' Makoto and he both shared a warm, knowing smile. They both had important women in their lives. Women that loved them enough to support them even when death seemed certain. Speaking of important women, a thought sprung to Makoto's mind. ''By the way, did Peko never ask you to make her a prosthetic arm?'' Hajime shrugged and shuffled the tools around in his hands. ''I offered but she refused. I assume that losing her arm was important to her relationship with Fuyuhiko. She's never told me why she doesn't want one, so it's probably symbolic of their love. The only time I've ever seen her use any type of aide is when she plays pool. She's good enough to do that with one arm anyway.'' Hajime chuckled softly to himself. Makoto smirked slightly. He would ask Peko later. If she was willing to share.

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It as about half 2 when the two antennae-having boys returned to the shelter. Makoto had been distracted by several bookstores and novelty girt shop stores. By the time they had come back Makoto held a bag full of figurines and novels. He dumped it out onto the dining table and let the group pick whatever they fancied. It was when everyone had gathered that he noticed that Gundham was absent. ''Hey, did anyone see Gundham leave? Do we know where he went?'' Ibuki slammed a hand onto the Luckster's shoulder, startling the short boy. ''Gun-Gun went back to his Rapunzel tower. He should be back soon so the gloom can rock on'' She motioned the rock hand before grabbing a music magazine and sprinting to get a space on the couch. Makoto chewed the inside of his cheek and looked towards Mahiru, who looked over a contemporary art book. She seemed glued into the pages but was aware enough to feel is eyes upon her and meet his gaze. She gave him a look that said, 'he'll be fine.' He returned a nod and allowed her to return to her reading. Byakuya had made a strange and foolhardy decision to pick up War and Peace. Not only was the book in English but it was ancient, even by The Heir's normal reading standards. It would be dreadfully dull to anyone but Byakuya, he thought. Kyoko sat on the couch with Aoi, who was practically ranting about the lack of exercise she was able to do. It was 'totally not enough' according to the tanned girl. Toko sat awkwardly on The Swimmer's left opening her mouth to say things on occasion but had evidently let her social ineptitude get the better of her, as she contributed nothing to the conversation. On the couch opposite Hajime sat with his feet on the footrest, Chiaki curled up at his side with her head resting on his chest. They had moved the crib into the main room evidently, as Hiyoko lay asleep just in front of the couch. Ibuki sat on the floor cross-legged next to the crib, an XBOX controller in her hand and Sunset Overdrive on the TV. Hiro sat in the armchair and watched her play intently. Upon further inspection his eyes were slightly glazed. Had he managed to sneak some of his 'special' stash out of the Academy? As long as it didn't make him do anything too stupid he wouldn't have to take it up with him. He decided to leave his potential book on the table and play pool with the Swordswoman and the Yakuza, who stood at the table as they had every time he'd seen them together. The short blonde grinned widely as he saw the brown haired boy approaching. ''Feel like playing some pool, kid?'' Makoto nodded and reached under the table for a cue. When he couldn't feel one his head sprung back over the edge of the table to see Fuyuhiko offering him his. ''I gotta go piss. You can finish up this game while I'm in the can.'' He thrust the wooden pole into his hands and hurried over to the toilet. A lucky break considering it would be awkward to ask one whilst the other was standing with them. Peko gripped the cue at it's end and laid it on the cushion of the table. She wasn't even using what remained of her left arm to steady herself. She lined the tip of the cue up with the white ball and shifted her arm forwards, sending the white flying into the pink which nestled into the bottom left pocket. So they were playing snooker? He supposed that would explain all the other ball colours. There were few reds left on the table so Makoto assumed it was a long way into the match. But if it was still Peko's turn, then had Fuyuhiko not potted a single ball? She was good. As she stood up straight and turned towards him, Makoto asked his question with no hesitation. ''Why don't you use a prosthetic? For you arm? That was obvious actually…'' He mumbled most of it but Peko still heard him clearly enough to answer. ''My lack of an appendage does not make me any less powerful as a weapon. I can still serve Fuyuhiko as I did before. My master does not require much protection now that the world has seemingly ended and his enemies along with it.'' Makoto regarded her thoughtfully, a look of discontent evident on his face. ''And that's all there is to it?'' Peko shook her head. ''Losing my arm is what spurred Fuyuhiko to admit his feelings for me. He admitted for the first time that not only did he see me as an equal but that he loved me as well.'' She smiled warmly to herself, the expression not meant for anyone else as she stared at the ground. ''Had you ever told anyone that before?'' The Luckster asked, the nervousness in his voice gone. ''No.'' ''Why not?'' Peko gave him a strange look. ''No one asked.'' Makoto's face demonstrated his frustration. So Hajime hadn't even asked her. The way he'd phrased it made it sound as if she refused to give her motives. However this made for another line of inquiry. ''How'd you lose your arm?'' He asked slowly, the clearest question being the least offensive in his mind. ''My young master had discovered the truth about the death of his sister. She was murdered by a fellow student at Hope's Peak's Reserve Course and a friend of Mahiru. Mahiru had not only witnessed the murder but helped her friend get away with it. He ran out of the shelter during the night in his despair and was captured by outsiders. Hajime and I went to rescue him and during this rescue I was attacked from several angles. I lost my arm to one of the men in front of Fuyuhiko. He went into a blind rage and killed the men that remained with their own weapons. Hajime kept the other approaching men off him to allow him to vent his anger. We returned home and I was fixed up as best as we could manage. Fuyuhiko came into my room during my recovery yesterday and broke down into tears. He told me he was afraid he would lose me and that I was the most important thing left in the world to him. I too confessed my emotions for him and we came to an agreement. I would no longer think of myself as a tool and he would no longer be hot-headed and irresponsible. A few days after I recovered we conceived our child. That was about 13 weeks ago.'' Peko rested a hand on her baby bump and met Makoto's eyes with a small smile. ''How'd she play, pal?!'' Fuyuhiko yelled despite only being less than halfway across the room. ''Like she was a person with two arms I would assume.'' The blond says as he reached the end of the table. Makoto nodded and handed the cue back to him, only then realising he hadn't had a single shot and mentally facepalming.

''Hey, Ibuki.'' The pink-blue girl paused her game and turned up to Hajime who still sat with his feet on the stool. ''Can you go take his hamster food to him? He left without it. I'd go myself but I don't think I'd be welcome.'' Ibuki shot up onto her feet, stumbling slightly as her sandal bent outwards. Ibuki grabbed the rodent food from the kitchen and a book from the table before heading up the ladder. It was time to pay the Breeder a visit.

I'd like to end this by apologizing. I realise that this chapter is a lot later than I've been updating of late, but there is a least a god excuse. I was given 4 essays to complete in the the space of a week, as well as having a Psychology exam to study for. I hope that all my chapters in future are uninterrupted by excessive work, though that is unlikely. Thank you for reading!

Next time-Ibuki and Gundham's friendship will be explored