Notes: Look at that! An update that didn't take me a month!
Before beginning this chapter, I want to thank my friend, Faith (imperfectPacifist), her ideas helped make this AU possible (Especially this fic). Thank you, dude.
I hope you enjoy this chapter.
Please review!
Juudai is not sure if he knows at what time he woke up again, but it was early enough that he saw how the ceiling went slowly from pitch black to mint green. So, he had been awake for a while.
Shou too. Juudai could feel it.
However, he would not say anything, and neither would Shou. They had just stood there in silence, looking at the ceiling while they waited for their cue to start the day, which was usually noise coming from the nursery.
The young brunette bit his lip.
He wanted to say something for a while now, but what? There is nothing in his head except a huge amount of worry.
But the worst part is that he is not sure of what exactly is worrying him.
"This is not a bad thing."
That's what Shou had said… And it was true!
It's not like it's a bad thing, if anything it makes Ako special. Not like she was not special before, she was!
She was a special little girl that was so smart that she had already learned how to make a tower with five whole toy blocks!
And now she can see spirits… Which makes her even more special!
Honestly, he's overreacting; Juudai knows for a fact that he is.
He shouldn't be so surprised. From the moment he met them, Juudai knew that Shou's triplets were special. Although he did not have time to think about it before, because of how shocked he was that they existed in the first place.
At first, he saw them as cute and fragile.
But… As time went on, Juudai found it fascinating how they were so similar, yet each had little quirks that made them stand out.
The way Ako points at things and babbles, how Ryoko can climb on someone's back despite not being able to stand up for more than three seconds, and how Yukio clings to whoever is carrying him.
…It's all wonderful.
Juudai smiles.
Barely a month of knowing the little sluggers and they were already so precious to him.
Well… They were precious.
Innocent, precious, and perfect.
…Maybe that's why he is so scared.
"Juudai, are you feeling better?"
Shou's soft voice cut through the silence and startled him slightly. He moves his hand, gently caresses Shou's neck.
"Yeah…"
It's not completely a lie. Juduai does feel better compared to last night.
"I'm just… Thinking." He sighs.
Shou doesn't say anything, instead, he cuddles closer to Juudai's chest.
"… I've been thinking too." He mumbles, loud enough to make sure his boyfriend can hear. "About Ako and… Well, about what happened."
Juudai's heart sinks to his stomach.
He doesn't say anything, though.
Part of him is dreading to hear what Shou has to say.
But he shouldn't.
He knows it won't be anything bad…. Right?
Shou will not be angry that she can see spirits like him, right?
Shou will not be blaming him for causing this somehow, right?
Shou will not be coming up with a plan to get her to hide that she can see spirits, right?
Shou will not be asking for the quickest way to fix his daughter…. Right?
"I think…" The bluenette speaks, and Juudai's heart skips a beat. "I think she has been able to do this for a while."
Juudai blinks.
"What do you mean?"
He feels Shou nodding.
"This happened a couple of weeks before you got here." He starts explaining. "I was preparing their lunch, so I left them in the living room while they were playing… But then something weird happened."
"Huh?"
"Ako kept crawling away from Ryoko and Yukio. She normally plays with them or plays on her own, but that one time, she just kept pointing and laughing at nothing, or… At least it looked like nothing to me."
"Do you think…"
"I mean… You said Keel suddenly appears when I'm not there, right?" Shou asked, he didn't wait for an answer. "What if he was always looking after them?"
Juudai thinks about it for a moment.
Now that he thinks about it, that makes sense. Keel cared about the kids, so it makes sense that they would have been there for them from the very start.
Juudai blinks, that also means…
"So… If Ako could see spirits before meeting me…" The brunette starts, the fear is quite obvious in his voice. "You…. Don't think it's my fault?"
"What?" Shou raises himself to Juudai's level.
Juudai avoids his gaze and instead looks down.
"I… It's just…"
Shou touches his face, encouraging him to look at him.
"Juudai…" He whispers, he stares at his boyfriend with worry. "Why do you think I would blame you?"
"I just… I don't know." Juudai sighs, he looks back at Shou. "I thought you would be mad I did something that caused her to see spirits, and-"
"How?" Shou asks, still not understanding.
"I-I don't know! I thought you would be mad at me, okay?! I thought you would be mad and ask me to fix her! A-and then get even more mad after finding out that YOU CAN'T!"
Juudai places a hand over his mouth and looks down again, because of this, he misses Shou's expression of shock and indignation.
"Fix her?!" He sits up, whispering so harshly that it sounds like he is borderline screaming. "What kind of father do you think I-"
Shou stops, he notices Juudai's breathing starting to accelerate. The brunette's hand still covers his mouth while he looks down with eyes completely wide open.
"I-I'm sorry. I… Shou I'm sorry." Juudai whispers, he starts breathing heavily as he sits up.
Shou forgets about his anger right then and there.
He reaches for Juudai's bangs, and brushes them away in an attempt to comfort him.
"Juudai…" The bluenette whispers. "Is this about… Them?"
The way Juudai's grip on his own mouth tightened told him everything he needed to know.
"Oh, Juudai…"
Without warning, Shou hugged him. He brought Juudai's head to his chest and placed his chin on top of his messy brown hair.
Shou feels a hand grabbing his shoulder and sighs.
Juudai has done this before, when he was so scared to be left alone, and needed comfort and warmth.
"It's okay." Shou starts brushing the back of his head in an attempt to soothe his boyfriend.
Juudai doesn't say anything.
Instead, he just hides his face in the crook of Shou's neck.
"Juudai, I… I'm sorry I reacted like that, I should have realized what worried you … B-but… I wasn't lying last night, you know?" Shou tries to laugh. "This is not a bad thing. I still don't understand this whole magic stuff like you do, but… I don't fear it. Not even a little…. And I don't want my children to fear it either."
Juudai feels Shou's lips on his forehead, he closes his eyes for a second.
"I'm not worried about Ako because…" Shou laughs again, this time it was sincere. "Well, if the people in my life who can see spirits are anything to go by… She's gonna be perfectly fine."
The young bluenette was not prepared for what happened after.
Juudai wrapped both arms around him and squeezed him hard, causing Shou to suddenly be underneath him.
"Shou…" Juudai whispers into Shou's ear. "Thanks… I didn't mean to insult you by comparing you to them, it's just… I guess I was afraid of…. History repeating itself and stuff, I guess."
Juudai doesn't need to look up to feel the gaze of sadness and pity that Shou had made right now.
So, in an attempt to ease his boyfriend's worry, he grabbed Shou's hand. The young brunette felt how he sighed after he intertwined their fingers together and gave his knuckles a kiss.
"Juudai… Did they ever…" Shou stopped for a second. "Hurt you?...For the things you were able to do?"
"N-no! They just… Back then, they didn't believe in spirits, so it was fine! I-it was even cute at times! You know? They thought I had an active imagination, and would always put my drawings on the fridge… Mom used to say that one day I would be writing comic books or directing movies with all the… 'colorful characters' that I… Made up… Dad wasn't a big fan of me talking about weird things and… Making up stories, but he was happy because I was happy, you know?" He pulls away from the other's embrace, ready to make eye contact.
Shou nods and holds Juudai's hand a bit tighter.
"But then… When things got too real… They changed. They got scared and wanted me to stop… Doing it… While they looked for a way to "fix me"… But… After that… They just left me alone. I guess they were afraid of me and…" Juudai sighs. "I-I… I guess I get it, but… After I forgot everything, I… I didn't know what I had done wrong, so it was years of thinking they just… That they just didn't care about me anymore …"
Juudai sighed.
"And… I guess the most messed up part is that… That was fine." Juudai mumbles. "I was okay with them ignoring me, you know? I was fine reading mom's notes and dad's vague postcards. I was fine thinking that they were just… That they were busy with work and stuff."
After saying that, Juudai feels Shou's body touching his own as well as the ghostly embrace of Yubel's wings. They were quiet, and a feeling in his soul was telling him that there was fear and anger burning in Yubel's chest, but it was as if a warm need for comforting Juudai was obscuring those intense feelings inside the spirit.
"But… Looking back now that I remember everything… They were afraid…. They still are…" He tries to laugh just so he can forget how much it hurts. "I told them, you know? I've told them everything like 3 years ago and… They just don't get it."
He closes his eyes.
A memory replays in his mind.
He was eleven years old and was leaning against the door of his room.
He didn't need to acute his hearing, the screamings were so loud.
"This is all your fault! If you hadn't gotten him that damn card-"
"You think I don't hate myself enough already for it?! This is why I want to fix my mistake!"
"You are NOT taking him to one of those places! Someone could take him away from us!"
"What are you suggesting, then?! Those therapists didn't help, those monks traumatized him after calling him a demon child, and that stupid fraud tried to scam you out of your money!"
"But if the medicine helps? We could find a way for Juudai to manage it! If we convince him none of that is real and teach him to ignore him, maybe the nightmares could go away on their own!"
"I don't want to manage it! I WANT TO CURE HIM! My boy is in pain and it's all my fault!"
"But what if he forgets everything?! What if he forgets me?! Us?!"
"I don't care what he forgets as long as he is normal again! I'll shred EVERY card he owns myself if I have to!"
Juudai backed away from the door.
He grabbed his deck and hid in his closet with his toys to guard them.
He stayed with his monsters all night, doing everything in his power to stay awake for the whole time and protect them from his parents.
Juudai laughs again, this time he can feel now how he is barely able to hold back the tears forming in his eyes.
"Heh… I'm literally projecting my family drama onto you and your kids…. How fuck up is that, huh?" He tried to smile, even though his lips refused to. "You are already better at the whole parenting thing, to be honest."
Shou looks down for a second, but then raises his gaze once again and smiles.
"And so are you."
"Huh?" Juudai blinks.
The bluenette just shrugs.
"Look, I know I've never met your parents, but… Those jerks should be glad they got someone as strong and caring as you, Juudai." Shou cups his boyfriend's cheeks. "If there is one thing I have known for a very long time is that you would do anything for the people you love.… You treat people the way your parents should have treated you… Juudai, you deserved unconditional love."
Not being able to hold back anymore, tears streamed down Juudai's face. He turned pink with embarrassment, but still looked straight into Shou's comforting gray eyes.
"You didn't fail them." He whispers, using his thumb to brush away the tears that just kept flooding. "They are the ones who failed you."
Juudai sniffs, but then he nods.
"I… I've met people like me in many places." Juudai mumbles, places his hand over Shou's. "Some of them were… Lonely… Even though they were surrounded by people. They needed someone, but I was just a stranger so they didn't want my help. They… They preferred to be alone."
Shou nods.
"I'm sure you did what you could."
"Ako will probably need someone…. Someone who can understand what she's going through." He whispers. "As much as I hate to admit it, things could get rough for her….If Ako has questions or… If she feels alone… I want to be there to guide her… If it's okay with you."
The next thing Juudai feels is Shou's lips on his own.
It's a very gentle kiss, one that tells him that everything is going to be alright.
After they separate, Shou grins at him.
"Hey, what do you say about… Ice cream for breakfast?" He pokes the brunette's nose.
As if it was its cue, Juudai's stomach grumbled.
They both laughed.
"You just read my stomach." Juudai keeps giggling. "Let's hurry, before the little sluggers wake up and force us to share!"
Shou attempts to get out of bed on his own, but he squeaks as Juudai scoops him up without warning, and carries him bridal style while he walks to the door.
Instead of complaining or yelling, the young bluenette sighs and kisses his boyfriend's cheek. Then, leans into his arms as he holds tight on Juudai's shoulder.
"Abbu!"
"Yeah, but even if they can't touch you, you can't let your guard down around a spirit that likes to play pranks…. That's how you wake up in a lake."
"Um, Juudai?"
The brunette looks up and sees his boyfriend standing in front of him.
"I know these kinds of things will be important for her to learn but… Don't you think it's a little bit too early?" Shou laughs awkwardly.
He gestures at the little set up that Juudai has in the carpet. The young duelist had made drawings, diagrams, and even written down tips in a big notepad.
He had also used some toys to act as models to illustrate what he was talking about.
Juudai blushes a little bit.
"I-I mean, y-yeah!" He scratches the back of his neck and deviates his gaze a little. "But you never know! She might understand me already!"
Shou gave him a look, then pointed down.
His eyes followed Shou's finger and saw the triplets playing around with his lesson plan. They were throwing toys around and giggling incessantly.
"Tah!" Ryoko cheers as she grabs a sheet of paper and tears it.
Ako and Yukio seemed marveled at that, and immediately crawled up to the notepad to copy their sister's action.
The two adults can't help but to smile as the kids seem to be having the time of their lives with ripped sheets of paper.
Juudai sighs.
"Okay, yeah. Point taken." He giggles softly. "Maybe… I should make it smaller and save it for when she's ready!"
With that, the young brunette gets on his feet and takes Shou's hands.
"Juudai, wha-"
"We should make a journal!"
Shou blinks.
"A journal?"
"Yeah!" Juudai nods enthusiastically. "We could write about our adventures and what we learned when we were kids! That way, when Ako has questions about spirits, she won't only learn how it works, but see how it was from someone who already lived it!"
Shou thought about it for a second, that was actually a pretty good idea.
"Well… That does sound practical." He admits. "We don't know if Ako will grow up wanting to talk when something bothers her, and a journal might be the best way for her to find guidance everywhere, so… Yeah, I would say we should give it a try."
Juudai almost jumped from the excitement, and his smile only grew bigger.
"Okay, first we are gonna need a book!" Juudai points out. "Oh, and a pencil too!"
"Mmm… I have pencils and spare paper, but I don't think there's an empty journal here." Shou starts thinking out loud. "But I've seen that the bookstore sells notebooks. It's just around the corner from here, we could go and check them out."
"Oh, right now?" Juudai asks, he had gotten used to having to drag Shou out of the apartment to get some fresh air.
His boyfriend shrugs.
"Why not? The day looks nice." Shou smirks. "We deserve a little joyride, don't we? I'll go get the stroller and the baby carrier, wait here."
Juudai nods and turns back to the kids.
Ako and Yukio were still waving the pieces of his lesson plan, their eyes sparkling with joy at how the crumbled paper moved around.
Ryoko, however, had already abandoned her piece of paper and had started to grip on Juudai's pants in an attempt to climb his leg.
"Uwa!" She chirped.
The young brunette leaned down and grabbed the little girl. Lifting her over his head as she giggled.
"Did you hear that, monkey?" He cooed. "We are going on a walk!"
"Tah!" She kicked her feet, all while giggling.
"Yeah, I guess your dad finally understood that going out is good for him." Juudai nods. "Isn't that nice?"
"Tah!"
"Yeah!"
"Are you sure you want to write about everything?"
Juudai's laughter is suddenly cut to an abrupt end. He turns his head and sees Yubel had made themselves present, floating at his side.
Crossing their arms and looking at him with their usually cold gaze.
Juudai beamed at his friend.
"I sure do!" He giggled. Even though he was looking at Yubel, he was still holding Ryoko over his head.
Yubel didn't say anything, but the way they closed their eyes seemed like a nod to Juudai.
"I know there were… Weird moments, and… Some very bad moments, but… There were a lot more good moments overall, even during the bad stuff! I… I won't include anything that makes you or Shou uncomfortable. But I want to do this. I want to make something that will help a lot in the future."
"...Mm"
"I know it sounds weird, but… I think it would also be good for me too. Don't you think so?" He asked, still smiling.
Yubel turned their head.
"If it's good for you, then… I want you to do it."
Juudai snickers, and then nods.
"Thanks, I-"
"Uwa!"
Juudai turned his head quickly, he had almost forgotten about the eager baby girl he was holding..
"Sorry, monkey. I was just-"
"Awo! Aaah!"
Juudai blinks again.
Ryoko is kicking and stretching her arms out with excitement.
Now, this was normal, Juudai was so used to Ryoko's hyper nature, and how affectionate it made her.
However….
She was not reaching out for him this time.
"Uh… Yubel?"
"Mm?"
The spirit opened its eyes in a calm manner.
However, they were taken aback as they quickly noticed the little blue haired baby trying to reach for them.
"Tah!" Ryoko kept stretching her hands.
"I think….She can see you."
Yubel was petrified, their face completely covered by a shocked expression.
Without knowing what to do, Juudai stepped closer to Yubel to see if Ryoko was really able to see the demonic spirit before them.
"Uwa!" Ryoko chirped, she stretched her little hand again, she brought it close to Yubel's face and giggled.
"Yup." Juudai looked down at the baby. "She can definitely see you."
Yubel tried to back away as the little girl tried to touch their face, but couldn't, they were still frozen in shock.
"Tah! Awo- Wah?"
Ryoko stood quiet for a second as her hand just went past Yubel's face. She tried to touch them again and again but each attempt continued to be unsuccessful.
Juudai smiled in pity. He noticed how Ryoko was getting more frustrated with each try.
"Hey, what if I materialize you?" He looks up, but notices that Yubel was not there anymore.
Apparently they vanished at some point.
He was gonna attempt to talk to them, but his attention got taken over by a sound.
It was a whine. A loud one.
He looked down at Yukio, but he only noticed him and Ako looking up in confusion.
Then, it hit Juudai.
"Waaaaaaah!"
Ryoko was upset that she couldn't touch Yubel's face.
"C-calm down, monkey!" He tried to rock the baby girl in an attempt to comfort her. "It's okay! I'm sure Yubel wants to be your friend too!"
"Waaaah!" Ryoko kept bawling her eyes out.
"No, really! I swear!" Juudai tried to giggle. "They are just shy!"
"Waaaaaah!"
Juudai sighs, he cradles Ryoko in his arms and let's her cry in his chest.
"It's okay, kiddo." He whispered while gently patting her back, but she just kept crying just as loudly.
He sighs again.
"Yubel, buddy." He called his friend. "Please, a little help?"
No answer.
Yup.
Yubel is embarrassed.
He's gotta give it to Ryoko. Not everyone is capable of making that happen.
Shou comes back, with the baby carrier in hand.
"...I was gone for two minutes, what happened?" He asks, incredibly concerned.
Juudai greets him with a nervous smile.
"Ryoko can see spirits too." He giggles awkwardly.
He is surprised for a second, but then gives his boyfriend a gentle smile.
In retrospect, maybe they should have seen it coming.
"So… Should we go ahead and buy two journals instead, or…"
And this is it for this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it!