Author's notes: I had almost forgotten how MUCH spare time you can have when you have no exams looming – I almost don't know what I should do with it…though trying to finish this story is one of the priorities.

Writing this chapter was hell, I tell you. Trying to keep the whole thing believable was a struggle (I couldn't have everything be alright as soon as they were together again, after all), but I hope I managed to do it decently enough.

Enjoy!


Yuki yawned softly as she stirred. She opened her eyes, still half-asleep, and for the briefest moment she was surprised to not see the familiar walls of her room in Yamanouchi. She let out a sigh as she realized where she was, cursing herself for falling asleep like that.

Oh, well, it wasn't that bad – she had slept just for a couple of minutes after all…right? It wasn't really like she had fallen asleep – it was more like a little slumber, right?

Yeah, right. Whatever.

Yes, she decided, she hadn't fallen asleep. She had just closed her eyes for a couple of minutes, and that was all. She groaned and tried to rub her eyes, and she frowned as she felt something holding back her left hand. She looked down, and her frown of annoyance turned into a stunned expression as she saw exactly what it was that was holding her hand – a familiar genetically modified monkey hand. Yuki swallowed, her heart skipping a beat as she glanced up to see the hand's owner himself staring at her, his blue eyes filled with wonder and confusion.

"Uh…" Yuki tried to speak, but everything was so sudden that her mind was blank. She weakly tried to think of something, anything coherent she could say, but her brain seemed to have frozen. "…tell me I didn't fall asleep," was all she finally said.

What kind of question is this?

Just…give me a moment, alright? It's rather awkward.

"You didn't fall asleep," Monkey Fist answered mechanically. It took a few moments for his brain to catch up with his tongue and realize it was a rather stupid thing to say.

Yuki blinked. "Really?"

"Well, no. You were sleeping until a few moments ago," he said, barely realizing how utterly idiotic the conversation sounded.

"Oh," she swallowed and looked down at his hand, which was still holding hers "you can…let me go, you know," she said awkwardly, feeling like that was the first thing that almost made sense she had said yet. Well, it was a start.

Monkey Fist immediately let go of her hand and turned his gaze away, somewhat embarrassed. Under other circumstances and were it happening to anyone else, Yuki thought as she uneasily got up from the armchair and cleared her throat, she would have found the whole situation incredibly funny. "So…uhm…" she blinked in surprise as she looked at him again and noticed he was wearing…well, normal clothes. She had never seen him wearing anything else but some ninja garb or his usual smocking jacket until that moment.

"What are you wearing?" she asked, surprised.

He raised an eyebrow as he glanced down at the shirt he was wearing. "Clothes, I presume," he said, shifting a little as she kept staring at him as if he was in woman's clothing or something "…what?"

Despite the situation, Yuki couldn't help but snicker she glanced at his feet. "And you're wearing shoes," she said, sounding both surprised and amused "since when do you wear those?"

"You're making it sound like you caught me wearing a dress," Monkey Fist protested. An image of himself wearing something similar to Killigan's kilt flashed through his mind, causing him to shudder.

"I would have been less surprised. You don't look so bad, you know," she teased a little – she had almost forgotten how fun it could be teasing him – then she frowned a bit, her gaze still on his shoes "aren't you uncomfortable with those on?"

"Well…" truth to be told, he did feel uncomfortable – he was no longer used to wear shoes "I was supposed to change back as soon as I came back from London, but…I forgot to," he didn't need to add anything else for her to understand why he had forgotten to change back in his usual clothes.

"Oh," she bit her lower lip, glancing nervously around as if suddenly reminded of what was going on and feeling rather stupid for let such a foolish thing distracting her in that situation "how…how long have I slept?"

"You were already sleeping when I got back yesterday evening," he said, and she blinked.

"Yesterday…?" she asked, glancing out of the window, and she realized it was dawn already.

Just for a few moments, uhu?

She cringed inwardly – alright, maybe she was more tired than she had thought. She uneasily looked back at Monkey Fist. "So…you've been here the whole night?" she asked as her eyes lingered on the dark shadows under his eyes, her heart warming up at the thought despite the guilt she suddenly felt.

The monkey man nodded – truth to be told, he had kind of lost track of time as he watched her sleep, both reassured by her presence and plagued by his doubts. "I stepped in and I saw you here. I thought…it was just my imagination at first," he added uneasily "I was certain I would never see you again."

"So was I," she sighed "I guess you're wondering what the heck am I doing here."

"Well, not precisely in those terms, but…sort of," he said. He barely dared to hope she was there to stay, afraid of how horrible it would feel should that frail hope be shattered now that he had gotten to taste her closeness once again.

Yuki bit her lower lip. "I don't know from where I should start," she said honestly. She definitely couldn't just say 'guess what? I changed my mind' as if she had just woken up some day and decided she wanted to get back to him.

"How about the beginning?" he suggested, more sharply than he meant to – he had been plagued by doubt from the moment he had seen her sleeping, and the waiting was staring to get unbearable.

She rolled her eyes at his predictable answer. "Oh, sure. In the Beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and –"

Monkey Fist raised an eyebrow, causing her to shrug.

"…yeah, that was supposed to be a joke. A lame one, but whatever," Yuki couldn't help but chuckle a little at his expression "it's not so easy to 'start from the beginning' as if it was some kind of tale, you know. Should I choose a beginning, however…" she sighed "I guess it would start from the moment I began to realize that giving up on you had been a mistake."

The monkey man's heart skipped a beat, his hope growing as he remembered how sad Yuki was while telling him to leave Yamanouchi. "A mistake?" he repeated, his voice shaking even so slightly.

Yuki nodded. "I missed you," she spoke softly, her gaze fixed on the ground "every moment. I was sure I could get over you in time, but I couldn't. I cannot," she paused for a few moments before she went on "I guess the only reason why I didn't realize my mistake before is that I kept hanging to the idea that living in Yamanouchi would have been the best solution – but then Sensei…well, let's just say he proved me wrong. As usual," she gave a small smile.

Monkey Fist opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out for a few moments, and Yuki spoke again before he could utter a single word. "I've been unfair to you," she went on "I was too scared of being hurt again to see you deserved another –"

She trailed off, unwilling to put it that way. It would sound like getting back to him had been some act of kindness from her, which really was not the case considering the fact she hadn't exactly treated him fairly either. Should Monty just tell her he didn't want her in his life again, she honestly felt like she couldn't blame him: after everything they had been through and after treating him like that, she couldn't show up in his home with a child he most likely didn't even want and expect him to be all happy about it.

"Yuki?" Monkey Fist called hesitantly as she stayed silent, and she seemed to snap out of her thoughts.

"I know I had no right to suddenly show up here as I did," she finally went on, the idea Monty could just tell her to leave and never come back as she had told him in Yamanouchi breaking her heart "but I missed you too much – I needed to give it a try, but I can understand if you don't want…" she swallowed, and it took her an awful effort to go on "if you want me to leave, just tell me and I will…" her voice broke, and she waited for his answer.

Surprise was written all over Monkey Fist's face. Everything she had just said made no sense to him – she, having no right to show up as if guilty of something? He had been the one to betray her. He had been the one that had almost killed her. Alright, she did nothing to spare him the suffering of thinking she was dead because of him, but he was responsible for everything that had happened – he had hurt her so much. How could she think he would ever send her away now that she was granting him another possibility even now that she knew what kind of man he was?

And God, he had missed her so much. When he thought she was dead, pain and emptiness were unbearable – and even after knowing she was alive, the emptiness had never left his soul. Since when he had come back the castle had felt horribly empty, his room dreadfully cold and his heart terribly heavy. He had never even dared to hope she would get back to him someday, sure as he was he would spend the rest of his life alone – did she really think he would accept losing her once again?

Yuki bit her lower lip to hold back the tears that threatened to escape from her eyes, misunderstanding his stunned silence. "I understand," she said, and her shoulders shook as if she was about to cry – but she was determinated to not shed a tear "I…wish you good luck with your life," she muttered quickly, turning to leave before she could break down and cry in front of him – but she didn't have the time to take one single step to the door before he finally snapped out of his confusion.

"No!"

Yuki gasped as she felt his arms wrapping around her and pulling her against his chest. She tried to speak, but words died on her lips as he spoke first, his face nestled in her hair. "Don't," he almost pleaded, his grip around her tightening "don't…"

She took in a sharp breath, completely taken aback by his reaction – then, slowly, her tense body relaxed. The tears she had fought to keep back fell down her cheeks without her even acknowledging it as the meaning of what he had just said began to sink in her mind – he didn't want her to leave. He wanted her back, he really did. He wanted her to stay.

"What…?" was all she managed to utter as she turned in his embrace to look at his face – he was looking at her with the same need and longing he had in his eyes when they had met in Yamanouchi, both of them certain they would never see each other again. "You really…want me to stay?"

"No," he replied, causing her to cringe for a moment "I need you to stay. Will you…?"

Yuki let out a sob and flung her arms around his neck, completely overwhelmed with relief. Monkey Fist tensed as she began crying against his chest – he tried to pull back to see her face and ask what was wrong, but she tightened her grip around his neck to prevent him from pulling back. Not knowing what to say, he just swallowed and held her shivering body close until her sobs subsided and she slowly stopped crying. She stayed silent for a few moments as she tried to put herself together, her arms still wrapped around his neck, her cheek resting against his chest.

"Should I take it as a yes?" Monkey Fist asked with a small smirk as she finally stopped crying. Everything seemed to have happened so fast that his head spun – but it didn't matter now. He still didn't quite get why, but he had been given a second chance…and he would be damned if he wasted it, he thought as he felt a wonderful sense of relief spreading in his chest.

"I'm…uh…sorry about this," Yuki said as she finally pulled back, a bit embarrassed for losing her control like that "I really am an idiot, ain't I?"

"I'm a gentleman," he reminded her with a something remarkably similar to a grin "I'd never say such things of a woman."

"But you must think I've been an idiot."

"For thinking I wouldn't want you back? Yes," he said almost solemnly, causing her to chuckle a little. He reached to brush away some strands of hair from her face "So…" Monkey Fist took a deep breath before asking the question that had been plaguing him since the moment he had seen her "do you really want to stay? Even after…well, everything that happened?" he asked again, as if to be absolutely certain it was true.

Yuki was about to ask if he really thought she would have done all that melodramatic mess if she didn't, but she let out a gasp as the baby suddenly kicked – overwhelmed as she was by her feelings she had completely forgotten about him, she thought with a certain amount of shame. How could she forget about the child? He was the main reason why she had been so hesitant to get back there in the first place, and his birth would change both her life and Monty's.

Monkey Fist blinked as she gasped, and his hopeful expression changed into a worried one. "Are you feeling well?" he asked, and she swallowed, avoiding his gaze – just as she did, he was forgetting the small, insignificant detail she was carrying his child.

Did you really think everything would be so easy? I doubt he's going to be so happy once reminded of this detail…

Yuki bit her lower lip. Things would never be quite the same again – they would have a child to take care of, and even though she knew he would most likely never be an ideal father she needed to be sure that he knew what he was getting himself into, and that he was willing to try his best at raising Michio as well.

"I'm fine, I just…" she hesitated "the baby. He kicked," she finally added with a sigh.

Monkey Fist's jaw dropped as he glanced at he stomach – he had completely forgotten about the child in those last few minutes. He tried to speak, but he felt like he couldn't utter a word: he hadn't thought for one single moment of what a responsibility raising a child could be, for he had been certain he would never meet his son in years…if he ever did, of course. He stared at her for a few moments, unable to think of anything intelligent he could say.

She gave him a somewhat sad smile as she saw his hesitation. "You see, I really want to stay – but I can't be sure you'd want us both with you: things wouldn't be the same as before, you know: there would a child to raise. Do you really want both of us with you?"

He was about to speak, but she cut him off. "No, don't say anything now – you have to think about it first. You…" she paused "you must do what you think is best for Michio, regardless of what you want. Regardless of what we want."

There was a long, heavy silence as Monkey Fist turned his gaze away from her to stare out of the window, his eyes oddly distant as his gaze met the rising sun. In all honesty, he didn't think he would ever make a good father. The thought would have never crossed his mind just months before, for having a child had never been part of his plans, but even now…God, he had failed to handle his own life. He had done more mistakes than he could remember – terrible mistakes. And he lacked of…well, of all the qualities a parent is supposed to have to begin with. How could he even hope to raise a child properly?

But you will have her by your side. You can't let this opportunity pass by, can you?

Monkey Fist clenched his jaw. Yes, it was tempting – awfully tempting – and he knew that not much time before he wouldn't have thought twice before telling her that yes, he did want them both to stay. Yet…

You must do what you think is best for Michio, regardless of what you want.

"What kind of parent could I ever be?" he finally spoke, his voice sounding oddly empty "look at me, Yuki. I'm hardly an example you would want him to follow, and hardly someone he would be proud of."

Yuki raised an eyebrow. "You used to have a higher opinion of yourself."

"I was wrong."

She bit her lower lip, painfully surprised by the emptiness in his voice, and when she spoke her voice was unusually quiet. "You went from having a far too high opinion of yourself to having a far too low one," she smiled a little "you have become a better person than you think, you know – with all your flaws."

He didn't seem convinced. "You can't really think I could ever be a good father," he said, shaking his head.

"Honestly? I'm not sure, and I'm not sure I'd be such a great mother either – but I'll try to do my best, and I'm certain you would do your best as well."

"It may not be enough."

"I think it would – but this is not about what I think, it's about what you think."

Monkey Fist blinked. "You're starting to sound like Sensei," he said, a little startled.

Yuki grinned a little. "I'll take it as a compliment. But don't worry, I won't start to grow a beard."

"How can you be so certain? I've heard quite disturbing things about hormonal unbalance during pregnancy…" he mocked her a little, causing her to roll her eyes.

"Nice. Well, until now I just kept eating and eating and eating…and occasionally throwing up, or crying like an idiot as I did a while back. No beard yet," she paused and glanced at him "I wonder how would you look like with a beard though."

Monkey Fist grimaced at the thought. "That's something you'll never get to see. Aren't we getting rather out of topic?"

"Definitely," Yuki sighed, though a bit amused by how easily they got carried away while teasing each other "so…are you willing to accept this responsibility?" she asked, folding her hands – she didn't want him to see ho her hands were shaking as she waited for his answer.

But no answer came from Monkey Fist for a few minutes. He just stared down at the ground, his eyes glazed, and Yuki felt as if a stone had just been dropped on her stomach. Of course he wasn't, what was she expecting? He probably didn't even want that child. She was about to say that getting there had probably been a mistake and they should just forget it and try living separate lives when he took a step forward and reached out for her, his hand almost resting on her stomach.

"May I…?" he asked, and she could just nod numbly as he laid his simian hand on her swollen belly. He just stayed still for a few moments, and Yuki saw him flinch as the baby kicked – but he didn't retreat his hand.

"He began kicking a couple of days ago," she said a little awkwardly, but he showed no sign of hearing her.

"I almost killed him," he just said, his eyes fixed on her stomach "I almost killed both of you."

"But you didn't, and you paid for that mistake," she said quietly, putting her hand on his "it doesn't matter now."

"It does to me," he raised his gaze from her belly with some effort to look at her "I almost killed you and denied him his first breath. How will I ever manage to stand his gaze, Yuki?"

She smiled a little, her hand brushing against his cheek. "Oh, you will. Just like you're standing mine right now."

"You'll never forget what I've done, will you?"

"No. Never."

"And you still want to stay. You still want me to be a part of the child's life."

"Yes."

He shook his head, as if trying to clear his thoughts. "This makes no sense."

Yuki smirked a little. "There's a reason why I've never been chosen as Miss Logic."

"Aren't you afraid I could…you know…" he paused, as if saying it aloud hurt him.

"Yes – I'm terrified, really," she shrugged "but I was provided some good reasons to believe you truly changed this time."

"Such as…?"

"The time you spent in Yamanouchi was not wasted. The fact you refused the Lotus Blade kinda proves it, don't you think?"

Monkey Fist gave her a weak smile. "I guess so."

"Besides, you wouldn't be so worried to make the same mistakes if something hadn't changed," she cupped his cheek "I'm not saying it's going to be easy, nor I'm sure this is going to work out. But I want to believe there is a chance for it to work – I want to give it a try. What do we have to lose?"

There was a brief silence, then he cleared his throat. "Nothing, I guess," he said as he glanced back at her stomach "I can't guarantee everything will be fine, but I swear –"

He was abruptly interrupted by a sudden squeal. They both turned to the door to see a few monkey ninjas getting inside the living room with breakfast, completely unaware of how bad their timing was. They gave some curious glances at Yuki, still wondering what was she doing there, and they grew even more curious as they noticed she was clearly expecting – none of them had truly noticed the previous evening. They began chattering excitedly, looking both at her and their master.

Yuki couldn't exactly get what they were saying, but Monkey Fist's sudden frown and his reply to his minions was enough of an answer. "Yes, of course it's mine," he snapped. He seemed so outraged by the mere idea she could be carrying anyone else's child that Yuki had to smile. "Now, if you don't mind…get lost."

The monkey ninjas left the tray with breakfast on the table and immediately obeyed, but they were obviously still thrilled by the news, for they kept chattering loudly as they left. One of them, however, stood in the doorway for a few moments, glancing at them with curiosity.

"What do you want?" Monkey Fist asked, and Yuki couldn't hep but feel an odd sense of déjà vu as the monkey's reply caused him to turn deep red "what the…that's none of your business – get out this instant!"

Yuki raised an eyebrow as the monkey quickly scampered away. "I'm not sure I want to know what he asked."

"No," he muttered, avoiding to look at her "you don't want to."

There was a brief silence.

"Alright, I do want to know. What did he say?"

He glanced at her stomach. "He asked if this makes you my mate."

She blinked. "Mate?"

"This was his choice of words," he said with a shrug.

Yuki snickered. "I shouldn't be surprised, I guess," she said, then she glanced at him "if I'm not mistaking, you were about to say something before they got in."

He tapped his chin, pretending to be thinking. "Are you absolutely certain about this? I'm afraid I can't rec-- ow!" he yelped as she elbowed his ribs.

"Yes," she said, folding her arms "I'm absolutely certain you were about to say something – something about how you're going to do your best and give it a try even though you've been a jerk, if I'm not mistaking. Am I?"

He gave him a somewhat sheepish grin as he rubbed the spot where she had hit him. "Well, now that I think about it, you are probably right."

She bit her lower lip, suddenly unsure. "Er…it is what you were about to say, right?" she asked, not wanting to force him in any way.

Much to her relief, he nodded. "Maybe I would have put it differently, but –" he trailed off as she suddenly threw her arms around his neck and hugged him, startled – though definitely not displeased. He hesitated just for a moment before holding her back, breathing in her scent. He knew there were bound to be more troubles and misunderstandings ahead, but he felt like having her there again was enough for now – there would be time to face them later. "Forgive me," he said quietly, and Yuki smiled against his neck.

"Do you really think I would be here making a fool out of myself now if I hadn't already?" she said, pulling back and tapping his nose. He was about to reply, but he stopped as he heard a low grumbling sound.

"Uhu?"

Yuki grinned a little. "It's my stomach, I think," she admitted "I haven't eaten since yesterday. So…didn't your monkeys bring here some breakfast a few moments ago?"


Monkey Fist raised and eyebrow as Yuki swallowed the last cookie, careful to not leave one single crumble on the tray. "I'm afraid the tray is not edible," he said, causing her to roll her eyes.

"How funny. I'm eating for two here, you know."

"I see."

There was a brief silence, both of them glancing around a bit uncomfortably. When they weren't talking, either to speak of serious stuff or just to tease each other, they couldn't help but find the situation awkward. Yuki's gaze fell on the portrait on the fireplace mantel. "You put it back in place," she stated.

Monkey Fist nodded. "Yes," he sighed "I assume Sensei told you everything."

"About you family? Yes," she paused "I'm sorry for what happened to your father – you never told me how much it bothered you…I had no idea you thought his death had been your responsibility."

"I never told anyone."

"I understand," Yuki looked back at the painting "I wish I got a chance to know them," she said quietly, not quite sure if the was referring to his parents or to her own "you did the right thing putting it back in place."

Monkey Fist just nodded. "I should have never locked it away."

"If you're about to complain about everything you did that you shouldn't have done, I'm afraid we'll never see the end of it. Don't think about it too much."

He shrugged. "I can't help it. I paid a visit to their grave a couple of days ago – it was the first time in nearly ten years. Maybe even more."

"But you did pay them a visit now. That's all that matters," she paused "Sensei thinks they would be proud of you if they knew how you managed to handle yourself in these last few months."

The shadow of a smile appeared on Monkey Fist's lips. "He did tell me something similar," he said, then a sudden thought occurred to him "you said it was him to convince you to come back."

"He definitely helped, yes. I think it was his intention since the beginning – given that you would choose to go on with you trip down Memory Lane rather than giving up and then pass the test, of course," she hesitated "I couldn't believe you truly gave up on the Lotus Blade at first."

Monkey Fist shrugged. "Sometimes I can't believe it either. I've been so close to take it…" he absentmindedly reached out as if to grab something, then he sighed, gazing down at the ground "if I did take it…" he paused, unable to go on.

"I doubt you would have lived long enough to regret it."

Yuki's dry reply caused him to wince. "Excuse me?" he asked, turning to look at her.

"You heard me. No matter how sure he was you wouldn't take the sword, Sensei wouldn't have taken such a risk. I'm sure he would have killed you where you stood if you grabbed the Lotus Blade."

Monkey Fist opened his mouth, but no sound came out as he stared at her with widened eyes. "He wouldn't…" he finally said, and Yuki just raised an eyebrow "…he would," he finished weakly as he remembered the way he had pressed a knife against his throat when he had begged him to let him die. Drops of cold sweat forming on his forehead as he realized how close to death he had been little more than a couple of weeks before.

"He would have hated it, but…yes. You would have been too dangerous," Yuki cringed inwardly at the thought "I didn't know about that until a couple of days ago – I would have tried to stop him from putting you through it if I did," she reached out to run a hand through his hair "I'm so happy you gave him no reason to strike," she said honestly.

Monkey Fist smiled a little. "Believe me, I'm happy to be alive as well," he said, and she grinned a bit.

"Let's see if you'll still think the same in a few months," she said, causing him to cringe a little.

"Now that I think about it – you and the child…"

"Michio."

"Excuse me?"

"It's his name, remember?" she reminded him "you never used it yet."

Monkey Fist blinked, briefly wondering why was so important for her to call the child with his name. "Alright then, you and Michio --" he paused, surprised by how odd it felt calling the baby with his name – he felt more like he was referring to a true human being rather than just a fetus developing in her womb. It was his son he was talking about, his flesh and blood, and the thought filled him with both worry and pride.

Yuki smiled as he paused. "It feels odd, doesn't it?" she said, a little amused.

He nodded. "Definitely. Anyway, you're going to have to buy some supplies for yourself – you can't keep wearing that garb or my mother's old clothes forever – and…well, I guess we'll need to get things ready for…how much time is there left?"

She raised an eyebrow at his question. "A little less than five months – four months passed already, remember? It's not difficult math, really."

Monkey Fist snorted, a little annoyed. "One more reason why we should get things ready, I guess," he said, trying to ignore his dread upon knowing there wasn't much time left "there must still be an old crib somewhere, but termites must have destroyed it by now."

Yuki let out a groan. "Don't tell me this means shopping."

"I'm afraid it does, unless you hope for things to appear out of thin air…"

"I hate shopping."

Monkey Fist grumbled something, and Yuki got the distinct feeling she wasn't the only one to despise shopping – but he was right, she needed to buy some stuff for herself and most of all the child if they were going to live there. "I guess you're right," she sighed as if she had just agreed to swim in a shark-infested pool. She blinked as thought suddenly occurred to her.

"Monty, how are we going to afford it? I mean, baby stuff is not cheap, and then we'd need money to raise him…" she said, feeling stupid for not thinking about it before. She had some money saved up, but it definitely wouldn't be enough to support a child for long.

However, Monkey Fist just shrugged. "I didn't spend up my whole fortune, and I sold a few properties I had in Galles," he decided to not tell her about the not-really-legal jobs he occasionally had done when he needed cash "I have more than enough money saved up for years, and if everything goes as planned –" he abruptly trailed of as he saw the suspicious look on Yuki's face.

"Planned?" she repeated, and the sudden distrust in her eyes somewhat hurt him – but what else could he expect? It was obvious she wouldn't trust him as easily after he betrayed her trust.

"It's not what you think it is," he said "it's nothing illegal, it's just work…"

"I've heard this already," she said sharply, but she sighed as she saw him cringe at her remark "so…what is it about?" she asked trying to stay calm and not judging without listening first.

"I've been in London to meet an archaeologist that works for the museum – that's why I'm dressed like this," he gestured to his shirt "I brought him the parts of the Obsidian Monkey I had retrieved. For the museum," he added at her sceptical expression "it could be a chance to get back to my old job. I have another appointment with him tomorrow to bring him some documents I neglected to bring with me yesterday – you could come with me if you wish to make sure I'm not…" he swallowed "I'm not lying, Yuki. I beg you to believe me," he said wearily. Yuki bit her lower lip.

What's the matter with you? Weren't you the one who wanted to give it a try?

Yes, I'm just…

Scared? Sure you are. Last time you trusted him, you got hurt – badly. It's no wonder it's so hard to trust him again.

I thought it would be easier.

Since WHEN has anything ever been easy for the two of you? Did you really think that getting here and say some nice words would make thing magically get back the way they were? You've known it would be hard since the beginning. If you want it to work, you must take the risk again.

"I want to believe you," Yuki finally said sadly, turning away "you have no idea of how much I want to."

"Yuki, look at me," he said quietly, reaching out to cup her cheek and make her face him. He knew he had shattered whatever faith she had in him by betraying her, and he knew it would be hard for her learning to trust him again – but she had to, or else there would be no way for things to work again "do you really think I would make the same mistakes again after everything that happened?" he asked, staring into her eyes.

She didn't speak for a while, her gaze unfocused as she thought back at the days she had spent watching him struggle to come to terms with what he had done, plagued by pain and guilt, and she shivered as she recalled the days he had spent in the blackest despair, pleading anyone that could hear him to kill him and put an end to his grief.

"No," she finally said, feeling as if a heavy weight was being lifted by her chest "I don't think you would. I'm getting paranoid, I guess," she tried to joke.

Monkey Fist seemed incredibly relieved by his answer. He was about to speak when a hesitant squealing interrupted him. "What now?" he snapped at the monkey standing in the doorway. He frowned as he listened to whatever his minion was saying. "Of course she's going to stay," he said sharply "what should it matter…uh…" he hesitated as the monkey ninja asked something else.

"What?" Yuki asked, hoping his minion hadn't said something embarrassing again.

"He asked if they should get the guest room ready," he said a bit uneasily, avoiding to look at her.

"Oh," Yuki hesitated. She hadn't slept in that room since the first night they had spent together, and the idea of sleeping together in the same room again made her suddenly feel uncomfortable for some reason.

You're still not ready. Take your time, there's no one running after you.

"Tell them to get it ready," she finally said "I'll sleep there. For now," she quickly added, as if to justify herself, but he simply nodded – it looked like she wasn't the only one who needed to take one step at time.

"For now," he just said, reaching to out hold her hand. Yuki just smiled as she gently squeezed his hand back, saying nothing.