The morning air was cool and crisp.
Senku, Chrome and Magma were fully dressed in their get-up and ready to take on cave exploring. Yae wished Senku would let her go, but he wouldn't allow it. At. All.
Their heated discussion about it the night before played on repeat in Yae's mind.
"I'm a good fighter, just like Magma. Why won't you let me go?"
Senku sighed while he was busy packing things. "I know you're a good fighter, that's why you need to stay here. If any of Tsukasa's men come back, you need to be here to help protect the village. Besides, you may be a skilled fighter, but you don't have the brute force that Magma has."
"But what if you run into trouble? What if one of Tsukasa's men or Tsukasa himself is inside the cave? What will you do then?"
"I'll cross that bridge when I get to it, then."
Yae huffed and crossed her arms. Everything she said, Senku had a valid argument against. Damn him.

And now the young scientist, and newly acquainted lover, was leaving to go exploring in a dangerous cave with a dangerous man. Yae stood there, arms still crossed, staring at Senku. She was sure he could feel her cold stare.
"Senku, Chrome and Magma?" Kohaku said in disbelief.
"I don't know about this." Suika said. "It seems kind of dangerous to me."
"Yeah, are you sure this is a good idea?" Ginro added. "He could be all like, I'm the chief now, Senku, and then attack you or something."
Senku had nothing in response to what they said though, and hauled the basket up on to his back. "We need to start moving ASAP, all three of us. We're gonna go down there and find the magic stone we need for making vacuum tube filaments."
Yae nodded. "Yes, yes. Scheelite, which glows blue. With that we can make the most heat resistant metal in the world...Tungsten." The very idea was exciting, but Yae kept her voice at a monotone level, making the subject sound dull and boring. It was all because she was still irritated about not getting to tag along. Everyone could feel the tension between two, but they were all smart enough to not ask.
To brighten the mood, Chrome said, "And this little nugget is just a taste of what's waiting for us. There's gonna be a while bunch more down there!"
"I'm counting on you to take us to the cave and lead the expedition, Chrome."
"No Problem!"

Moments before leaving, Yae spotted Asagiri speaking with Magma. He was whispering something to him and wanted in on it. However, she would wait to corner the mentalist after the three left. Then, and only then, would she force it out of him. If it was about Senku, she wanted—no, she NEEDED to know about it. But perhaps she wouldn't need to do that.
"It appears we've finally gotten rid of Senku." Asagiri said once the three were well out of hearing range. "Gone without a clue that he's in a surprise for his life."
"What?" Said Kohaku confused.
A flicker of light danced across Asagiri's eyes. "We're going to build something magnificent, but I'm going to need to have everyone's help to make it happen." He looked at Yae seriously now. "I'm going to need your help the most, deary."

"A telescope?" Yae said. So that's why the mentalist had a creepy grin on his face. He was planning something for Senku's birthday. "So how do you know when Senku's birthday is? Not even I know that. Come to think of it, he hasn't told me."
Asagiri smiled. "He hasn't told me either, but I've figured it out through past conversations with him. He dropped little hints without even realizing it, I think."
"Hey!" Ruri came walking up with some of the villagers behind her. "I have a crew here that would love to help out."
"Perfect!" Said Asagiri. "Now, let's get to work. Yae, what do we need to do first? I know that you can put lenses in a tube and fashion a telescope, but what else is there?"
Yae rubbed her chin, thinking. "You'll need a sturdy base, something to hold the lenses in place. without that you can forget about making a telescope." She turned attention to Kaseki. "Hey, grandpa, if I make out a map of detailed drawing for the base, will you make it?"
"Of course!"

Before they could make the lenses, Yae had to first draw a detailed guide as to how the base would need to be built. They only had a few days to make it before the three would return—if they returned. Even if Magma was to try nothing in terms of getting rid of Senku, the cave was dangerous enough.
Yae stared down at the half finished drawing as images of Senku falling into a hole or getting bit by some rabid animal came to mind. She shook her head, trying to free herself from the thought, and got back to work while hunched over the table in the laboratory.

Those few days without Senku was almost unbearable. If not for working so hard on Senku's birthday gift, Yae would have for sure lost her mind. She missed him like crazy and wondered how on earth she ever lived without him before.
This is it, Senku! My minds made up. I'm finally gonna do it after five long years. I'm telling her how I feel!
A voice popped inside Yae's head, but she did not recognize it.
Wow. Fascinating. I can't leave the lab right now, but I promise to cheer you on so loud my vocal cords will snap.
It was Senku's voice. Of this, Yae was sure about.

Suddenly, Kaseki's voice pulled Yae out from her trance. "Is it ready?" He asked.
"Oh, Kaseki!" Yae glanced over at him and smiled. She then quickly finished drawing a few lines and handed Kaseki the drawing. "Here you go. I hope that helps."
Kaseki scanned the drawing. "This will do nicely. Thank you!"
Yae watched him leave, and soon, she sunk back into her thoughts.
Something happened that day 3700 years ago. Something important. What was it?
Time was too valuable and short to waste, though, and Yae left the laboratory to help the others.

The village worked endlessly to finish Senku's gift and they had finished just hours before his return. As the sun started to set, Yae waited anxiously for him. She stood by the telescope they had built for him inside the observatory they had tirelessly worked at building. The night air was cool and refreshing and from the distance, Yae spotted two individuals running down the path. However, the bigger fellow was carrying the other. It was then that Yae soon realized who it was. She sucked in a breath. Senku was back, and Magma was hauling ass with him hanging over his shoulder. Chrome was also seen not too far away, trailing behind.
"Everyone, get ready!" Kohaku said. "Get in your places!"
Yae stayed where she was. She was both relieved and excited to have Senku back. Besides the telescope, she had another idea in store for him and a small grin played across her face.
"Ah, you're back, Senku. Welcome home." Asagiri greeted him.
"What is all this?" Senku asked. He was blindfolded with his hands tied behind his back.
"Don't waste your breath crying out loud." Kohaku told him. "Everyone's working together with Gen."
"I guess you sneaky bastards finally figured out the hack. All you need to do is hand science and my head over to Tsukasa, and the village is safe. Perfectly logical." He paused. "But don't you dare touch a hair on Yae's head."
Asagiri chuckled. "I have no idea what you're talking about, but..." He nodded over to Kohaku and the lioness untied the blindfold and his bound hands.
Yae smiled when she saw the surprised look plastered on Senku's face. "Welcome home." She said.
Senku walked up to the telescope, amazing and baffled at the same time. "You guys made a telescope? No, you made a whole observatory!" He looked into it, testing it out.
"January fourth...Stone day!" Said Kaseki.
"Today's your birthday, isn't it, Senku?" Kohaki asked. "We all made this for you."
Ginro started poking fun at him. "Are you moved, Senku? Huh, huh? Go head, you can cry now. You don't need to hold it in."
Senku smirked and checked out the telescope again. "Good job, everyone. This is extremely practical. Now we can use this to spy on Tsukasa."
That was not the reaction people were hoping for. Still, they could see that Senku was thrilled about his gift. "Yeah, I guess that's true." Kohaku said to him.
"You're feedback is as rational as ever." Said Asagiri.
"I'm glad you like it so much, Senku." Yae smiled.
Senku gave the telescope a good pat. "I'm not one to bring up my own birthday, so how did you know it was today?"
"You dropped hints about it in previous conversations."
"Ah," said Senku. "You bated me with that question. Besides, it would be impossible for you to figure it out if you didn't know when I revived."
"Do you not remember marking the day you woke up on that tree? I saw that right by the entrance to the miracle cave. It was probably the first thing you did, and from that day forward I've had a level of respect for you. You could say I'm a big fan no matter what side we're on. And I'm not the only one. The whole village agrees. You might think that's kind of lame to say though."
Senku grinned. "Yeah, just a little bit."

Later that night, once Senku had finished playing around with his new gift, and the village had gone to sleep, he returned to his tent. Yae was there, and so were a few of her belongings.
"Oh, you're finally back."
"Yeah, it's good to be back. I'm totally exhausted though." He threw off his coat and flopped down on his bed.
Yae scooched closer to him. "I have a gift for you."
"Oh?"
"But, if you're tired, I can wait to give it to you."
Senku propped himself up on his elbows. "No, I want to see it."
Yae's eyes shifted to one side. "That's the thing. I haven't made it."
Senku raised a brow. "Okay...?"
Yae looked nervously at him. "It involves you physically. I can't do it otherwise." They stared at each other in awkward silence before Yae spoke up again. "Please close your eyes."
Trusting her, Senku closed his eyes. He was tempted to take a look when she gently pushed him down, forcing him lay back. The crackling of the fire and her hands moving across his body was the only thing making any amount of sounds. Even the night was seemingly quiet.

Only when Yae touched the most sensitive part of Senku did he finally open his eyes.
"Hey, I said close your eyes." But it was too late, he already knew what she was up to.
"Yae?"
Yae pouted. "I wanted this to be a surprise."
"Oh, trust me. I'm surprised." He told her as Yae lifted the ends of his clothes and grabbed his undergarments.
This was new to Yae, so she was unsure if she was going about it the right way. "Do you want to stop?" she asked him.
"No!" Senku said quickly. "Uh...keep going."
Yae was relieved to hear this and gave him a shy smile. "Okay." She started to stroke him manhood and massage him balls. She watched his penis grow to it's full length and blushed when she saw it. She had never gotten a good view of Senku until tonight.

With every stroke, Yae could feel Senku's penis pulsating; veins popped out and at the very tip it was wet. Yae suspected that was his precum and she was curious to know what it tasted like. She moved in slowly, still unsure of herself, and licked the tip. A soft moan escaped from Senku and Yae took that as a yes to keep going. She closed her mouth around the top of his circumcised head and sucked at it.
Senku put a hand on her head and pushed down gently, begging her to go deeper. He wanted to feel himself locked around the inside of her mouth. He took great pride in knowing that.

Senku let her do what she pleased—let her experiment with him and have fun.
What a great way to end the night. Thought Senku.
Life couldn't get much better than this. With a beautiful girl at his side and a whole village who believed in him, it was the best birthday gift ever.
Yae gagged a bit as she went a little too deep, his head hitting the back of her throat. But she pulled through and kept going. It was a different sensation for her to have complete control over him. Who knew that a woman could hold that kind of power over a man? She liked it.
She liked that he had fully given into her, and trusted her.
Senku moaned again, his breathing somewhat heavy. "Yae..."

Finally, Senku could not longer hold himself back and cam inside her mouth.
Yae paused for a moment, surprised and shocked as she had no idea what to expect. Slowly, but surely, she swallowed.
"D-did you swallow it?" Senku asked. He was thrilled about it.
Yae lifted her head and nodded. They both laughed a little. "How was it?" Yae asked as she cuddled next him.
"That was perfect. You get ten billion points for that." He wrapped his arms around her. "Thank you."
"I do these things for you because I love you, Senku." She told him.
Senku looked at her, eyes wide. He was extremely overjoyed to hear this, but he had paused to long in response to what she said.
"You love me too, right?"
Senku was not one to go around telling people he loved them, even his own father. Sure, he had said when he was child, but as he grew older, that sort of thing just didn't fit his personality. And just as he was about to respond, Yae's pet hawk made its way inside. It flapped its wings wildly before settling down and making a nest out of Senku's coat.
"He must like your smell." Yae said.
Senku nodded. "I guess so." He wasn't off the hook just yet though as Yae looked at him seriously.
"Senku..."
The young scientist suppressed a sigh. It took a lot for him to say those three little words. "I do love you, Yae." He hoped she didn't expect him to say it every day now. It just wasn't like him. Besides, he showed his affection towards her in other ways, like making the village stronger and safer and holding her at night and making her feel good. That was his way of saying he loved her. He didn't think words were necessary when actions did a better job at confirming those feelings.

Yae nuzzled her face against his chest. "Senku, do you remember the day we all turned to stone?"
"I do."
She paused for a second. "I think I was there with you when it happened. I remember how or why, but I was hoping you would."
Senku thought for a moment. "We had chemistry together, and it was shortly after class that it happened. What else do you remember?"
Yae thought back to that unfamiliar voice. "There was a conversation going on between you and another. Something about telling someone how they felt."
"Ah," said Senku. "Taiju. That big oaf."
"Taiju, huh? So that's what he sounds like."
"Annoying, huh?" Senku grinned.
Yae giggled. "You're so mean."
Senku didn't care though; he was too tired. "Let's get some sleep." He yawned. "Maybe you'll remember more in the morning."
Yae nodded. "Yeah, let's hope."

With her memories still scattered, hope was all she had.