Chapter 3

Zero Two's POV

Watching the two lovers coming out of the medical bay, I watched the two of them carefully, knowing they were faking it. The smart thing to do for the time being. She knew if they acted like normal for even a second that they would immediately

Hiro sighed, seeming unsure of the serum had worked.

Futoshi looked saddened as he eyed the metal rings on Kokoro and Mitsuru's fingers, but even he could tell there was a special bond between the young lovers.

"Let's go, everyone. We have food rations in our camp. You two are probably hungry."

Mitsuru nodded.

"Yes, I'm famished." He turned to Kokoro, "Considering you were obviously under tune-up with me, I'm assuming you must be too? Let's go."

Kokoro nodded, doing very well at faking her confusion.

As we moved further and further away from any guards, I heard as Kokoro sighed.

She looked around, very wary about being caught.

I smiled.

"Don't worry Kokoro, there's no one besides us right now."

The group stopped and came in close together.

"What's up Kokoro?" Mitsuru asked, taking her hand lovingly in his.

The two looked around, noticing they were completely alone and in an area of no surveillance, Mitsuru placed a kiss on her hand.

"Huh?" Zorome asked, utterly confused.

"We had to lie or else we risked being taken back in again," Kokoro whispered. "We didn't lose our memories, thank god."

Mitsuru nodded. "I'm glad we did not. Though I think it would be smart to pretend we did in the majority of areas, we do not want Papa's eyes on us."

The group moved towards their area for sustenance, being provided a protein substitute alongside a vegetable with a biscuit and honey.

The group groaned, this food was indeed sustenance, but it was not as delicious as the food they had learned to make when we lived in Mistilteinn. The protein paste was awful, the only bonus in the mix was the biscuit with honey. Could we learn to make our own here?

For now, we were safe, but how long could that last? We still had to pilot the franxx. The day moved quickly to night, everyone being instructed to sleep in their quarters.

Mitsuru looked saddened when he could not sleep beside Kokoro, but we knew for now that this would be impossible for the couple, at least until the heat died down.

I sighed, "I know that this is hard, but it is best for everyone to keep up the appearance that their memories are gone..."

"Perhaps we should make a scene for Papa..." Futoshi wondered.

"That's a great idea!" Zorome whispered, seeing an adult passing by.

Zero Two decides to sleep between Mitsuru and Kokoro, Hiro sleeping beside Mitsuru. They had saved their friend's memories. How long could the couple last without making it known that they still knew one another and still loved each other with great intensity?

The weeks went by at a slow pace. When speaking with Papa, the irritation the group showed him, how could he erase their memories when love can be one of the most beautiful emotions that a human can experience. was papa himself not human? Did he not experience human emotions?

It was not until today... the klaxosaurs attacked with malice, more vengeance than there had ever been before. It was this same day that Papa and his companions were malicious energy known as virm.

"How could we have been deceived for so many years, so many decades?" Zorome wondered, all of his love for Papa now gone.

They had seemed somewhat human but even humans would at times question why their faces could never be seen. Now the answer was simple.

"They had no physical body to show... We... have been fooled. They controlled us for so long." Zero Two stated, as her hatred for the very people who controlled every aspect of her and her existence grew. The adults were destroyed when headquarters were eliminated, so it was just us... the teenagers, the children... we were here now to fend

"How could they!" Zorome cried out, slamming his hands down on the metal flooring.

The sudden sound of cries of Kokoro alerted them. Looking to the side, they saw Mitsuru holding Kokoro tightly, hugging his wife who he had not been able to touch in any romantic manner in nearly two months.

"Kokoro! We're free! We're free!

Kokoro blushed and smiled, hugging him back.

Without warning, Mitsuru pressed his lips hard to hers, sighing in relief to feel her touch and her soft lips against his own.

Futoshi's eyes widened. Of course, the wedding had been crashed, so he had not seen the kiss, but from what he saw now, he knew. He did not hate Mitsuru, of course, he was jealous, but he loved Kokoro enough to support her decision to love Mitsuru.

Mitsuru moved a hand into her hair and resulted in pulling a small moan out of her.

The group blushed as they witnessed the unfamiliar love that emanated from the young couple.

Hiro and Zero Two linked hands together.

They too had of course consummated their feelings long ago in Mistilteinn, but Zero noticed changes in Hiro, he was growing blue horns longer and she knew that soon his squad members would see the true side of his more klaxosaur side when rage hit him.

Looking to the side, Zero Two noticed that same female, the queen of the klaxosaur, beckoning her to come to her through her mind, 'Bring your lover.'

She was not sure, though she had not sensed any hostility. Was she wanting help? To destroy Virm?

Looking over to Hiro, she noticed a look on his face. She immediately knew he had seen what she had.

"Hey guys, we are going to go on an outside patrol for a bit. We will be back later."

Goro held his hand up in yielding. "Wait, we'll come with you."

"No. We must do this alone."

It was this exact moment that Hiro's horns and his eyes glowed bright blue, with the power of the klaxosaur, his fangs long now.

Goro gasped, "But... what if you run into trouble."

"We will be alright." He said, taking Zero Two's hand as they made their way to speak with the queen.

As they left, Mitsuru grabbed ahold of Kokoro's hand in excitement. "I want to take you somewhere."

As the words left his mouth, Mitsuru ran, holding her hand tight until they came to unoccupied living quarters right next door to the main Squad 13 living quarters.

When the two left, Zorome watched after them in curiosity, an evil smirk on his face. "Where do you think they went?"

"No idea, they did take off in a rush though," Miku said, crossing her arms. "We could check on them." She turned to the group, "Let's spy! We need to have some fun, for at least today before we get back to work."

Goro, Ichigo, Ikuno, and Futoshi followed cautiously, not sure how they felt about spying, but their curiosity took over.

When they rounded the corner, they warned as Mitsuru wrote on a sign outside some unowned living quarters before he took Kokoro's hand and gently led her into the room, where the door locked behind them.

"Oh! This looks good!" Zorome snickered. "Come on, let's go!" He whispered, wanting to get closer.

As they quietly moved closer, they noticed the sign was inscribed as "Squad 13 Private Quarters M & K."

"What do you think that means? Think they want to live in these quarters next to the main?" Futoshi wondered.

"I don't think that would be a horrible idea, they are married after all." Ikuno reasoned.

"What do you think they're doing in there though?" Miku wondered nosily.

She glanced as Zorome found the electronic panel on the wall and typed in a code, that suddenly made it possible to see through the wall, unknown to Mitsuru or Kokoro.

Goro gasped, "What? How did-"

Zorome rolled his eyes. "You learn things when the adults are not paying attention." He said, turning his attention back to the scene before them.

"Kokoro, I am happy. We have each other. We don't have to be afraid anymore!" He said, happily holding her to him as they sat on the floor.

"You're right, we do not have to be afraid anymore." Kokoro teared up, hugging her husband tightly.

Futoshi smiled for a moment, happy to see the one he loved so happy.

"I love you, Kokoro-san. With all my heart."

Kokoro smiled happily. "I love you too, Mitsuru-kun."

Mitsuru found himself so overloaded with passion that he pulled her close and kissed her hard, his arms holding her close, gripping her back and side, pulling her as close to him as he could manage.

Kokoro reciprocated as she pressed her body to his, gasping into his kisses. She moaned against him, moving to straddle his lap and press her lips more to him, her one hand moving into his hair.

Futoshi went red in shock, this was such a beautiful moment between his two squadmates and he knew he should not be watching, but he could not help it, he was so intrigued by the romance the two were sharing.

Goro found himself feeling hot under his collar as well, though his gaze moved to Ichigo. How many times had he thought of proclaiming his love and kissing her? Maybe soon, for now, he knew he was not ready just yet.

Zorome gasped, catching their attention when they watched Kokoro, who they had imagined to be quite innocent out of all of them, move her lips to Mitsuru's jaw as she kisses and even sucked on his skin there, while she moved her hand into his shirt, grazing his chest with her soft fingers.

The moan that escaped Mitsuru was low and deep, but still romantic.

Ichigo sighed and shook her head, moving away from the group. "Guys, this is not right. We should give them privacy, come on."

Ikuno and Goro followed. Goro looked at Ichigo to see her blush and could not help but blush himself, he knew what he felt was love, just wasn't sure how to show her.

Zorome held up a finger, intrigued a moment longer. Though once Miku heard Mitsuru's very loud moan and saw that his hands were going for Kokoro's uniform, she shoved him. "Shut it off!"

Zorome rolled his eyes, "No fun." As he went and messed with the panel again to make it not transparent.

Futoshi felt his heart swelling, of course, there was jealousy there, but he knew he could not force her to love him. She loved him, but not in the way he would always fantasize about.

Back in the room, Mitsuru finished unzipping her uniform and pressed his lips to her collarbone, the nape of her neck, and her chest, groaning as she massed his back with her hands as he peppered her skin with dozens of kisses.

It was not long until the two moved to one of the beds, now stripping completely to their bare skin, lips locked again in a rush of heated passion. This time was different than the last. They knew what they were doing now and their love blossomed around them, hot, steamy, romantic.

Their lovemaking went from noon to late evening, the time they went without touching one another seeming a thing of the past as they held one another.

Laying in their bed, Mitsuru pulled the curtain closed and held his wife tight, "I will not ever let you go again."

Kokoro hummed and cuddled closer to him. "I will never let anyone make me forget you."

To Be Continued...