WARNING: THERE ARE SOME POSSIBLY TRIGGERING TOPICS IN THIS CHAPTER INVOLVING PAST TRAUMA.

-The Toyomitsus-

Kuri sat quietly in the backseat, kicking her legs and watching the cityscape go by as they drove. They hadn't stopped yet for ice cream, but she assumed that they were probably going to get some once they were closer to the house. At least, she would have liked to stay awake to get ice cream, but the soothing movement of the car was putting her to sleep. Her head began nodding as her eyelids felt heavier and heavier. It was adorable to watch as her head would shoot back up as she fought off sleep to the best of her ability.

Taishiro had been watching Kuri in the rearview mirror every now and again, making sure the little girl was fine. He smiled to himself as he watched her tiny battle to stay awake. "Hey Doodles, look at Kuri," he said quietly as not to wake her up.

Hina carefully towards the back and her heart melted at what she saw. Kuri's head was laid against the door, her mess of honey blonde hair covered her face. "Maybe we should save the ice cream for later, Gummybear..." Fatgum nodded in response, and soon they were pulling up to their home. Upon parking, Taishiro went around to grab Kuri's box of items to put them in her room and Hina went to get her from the backseat. Opening the door, she crouched down and gently shook her shoulder. "Kuri? Sweetheart?" A whine escaped the girl as she tried to turn away from the disturbance. Hina chuckled as she carefully unbuckled the seatbelt and picked up Kuri. Despite giving a small sound of protest, Kuri wrapped her arms around Hina and laid her head on her shoulder.

Fatgum had come back outside to check on the girls, but stopped in his tracks watching the two. "Wow…" he smiled, a look of pure love in his eyes, "this really suits you, Doodles…"

Hina looked at him, eyes starting to get misty, "are you trying to make me cry again?" She whispered as she went inside. When she stepped into the living room she went over to the couch to lay Kuri down, but the girl just tried to hold on. After a few attempts, Hina was unsuccessful, as seen in the fact that she had round, golden eyes looking up at her. Taishiro chuckled as he watched the two and joined them on the couch.

A yawn escaped Kuri as she rubbed her eyes. "Hi…" she said as she stretched. Her eyes then scanned the room as she sat up on the couch. "Is this your house? It's so big…"

Hina laughed and brushed the stray locks out of the girl's face, "Good morning, sunshine… This is your house too now, Kuri."

"So this is for real?" She smiled up at Hina before throwing herself at her. " I really have a mom and dad?!"

That was it. That was the tipping point to make the woman cry. Tears filled her eyes almost instantaneously as she pulled her daughter into a hug. With a soft sigh, Fatgum pulled his girls into a hug, grinning from ear to ear. "Hey, hey… don't cry. It's okay now!" He kissed both of their foreheads.

Kuri looked between the two adults and smiled. "I love you guys! Thank you for being my mommy and daddy!" It was like she was trying to kill them with her genuine comments. Now it was Taishiro's turn to get a bit emotional. "Don't cry, Daddy!" Kuri cupped his cheeks in her small hands. "W-why are you crying?! Don't be sad!" She pouted her lips and pressed a kiss to his nose. "It's okay now…" she said, copying what he had said only moments ago. The next hour was spent in a cuddle puddle in the living room as the three of them let it settle in that this really was their own little family.

It was beginning to get later and later to the point where starting to cook an actual dinner now would end up with eating at 9 pm; it wasn't too late, but it was pretty late for a seven year old. It came to a consensus that tonight would be a pizza night as they cuddled and looked for a movie to watch. While Taishiro was on the phone ordering, Kuri and Hina had found a movie to watch. It was an older Barbie movie, "The Princess and the Pauper," but neither seemed to mind it. In fact, this movie was probably one of Kuri's favorites. She cuddled up to Hina's side and had her eyes fixated on the screen. Taishiro sat on the other side of Kuri and frequently looked between the little one and the movie. "It looks cute," he offered.

Hina audibly gasped, "'Barbie's Princess and the Pauper' is a cinematic masterpiece, good sir."

He put up his hands defensively, "sorry! I didn't know!" He chuckled softly and smiled as he heard Kuri giggling. "Oh? And what's so funny to you, little miss?" He tickled her sides, making the little girl squeal with laughter. Soon enough, the giggles died down, the pizza arrived and was eaten, and the credits rolled.

After bathtime and pjs, it was time for bed. Hina left out a nightshirt with hearts all over it for Kuri then helped the girl dry and brush out her hair, proceeding to put her hair up in twin buns. Kuri gasped out loud when she saw the room. "This is mine?" Both parents nodded.

"It's all yours, Kuri. Welcome home." Taishiro smiled as he lifted her onto the loft bed. He was tall enough to reach the lifted bed while Hina sat on the top step leading up to the mattress. Kuri dug herself under the covers and let out a yawn.

Hina leaned over and tucked her in, kissing her forehead, "Goodnight, Sunshine. We'll see you in the morning." Tashiro pressed a kiss to Kuri's forehead before he and Hina headed off to their bedroom.

-Kuri-

Despite coming swiftly, the sleep was anything but restful. It wasn't evident in the way she acted or held herself. To be taken away from family was a traumatic experience to say the least, especially at as young as three years old. The memory was a blur, much of it beyond her understanding back then. Kuri herself couldn't remember exactly what happened; it was loud, there were flashing lights, screaming, it was hot and bright, but the sky was dark. To say the past was just the past would be a lie. Even with little comprehension, it haunted the little one.

In her dream, she saw herself here, in the Toyomitsu home; it was night without question and she was tucked into her bed just as Hina and Taishiro had done. But then there was a loud crash, the shattering of glass. Jumping out of bed, Kuri rushed to see a burning bottle on the floor of the living room. Her heart was beating fast as she stared at the object before she heard footsteps and the two heroes showed up just as the bottle exploded; there was a big flash that made her close her eyes, but when she opened them, her parents were nowhere to be found. The flames grew and licked the air, suddenly surrounding the kid. There was no way out. No way out at all. She was stuck. No one was there. Could someone hear her? Help her? It felt as if she couldn't even open her mouth. The pressure of the sound building in her chest was almost unbearable. She felt a touch on her shoulder and jolted.

Her eyes shot open and a shriek escaped her as she pulled away from the touch. Tears she didn't realize she had cried were rolling down her cheeks. Her eyes, blurry with sleep and tears, kept her blinded from who was there. Kuri felt herself being picked up from her bed and cradled. She leaned into the embrace unknowingly.

-Taishiro-

The night had been quiet; to hear crying in the early hours of the morning scared him. His first instinct was to look over Hina and make sure she was alright. After the incident and not knowing how to help his wife, he wanted to make sure that he was there to be her rock when she needed some more support. There was a slight sense of relief. Kissing Hina's cheek and going to get out of bed, he gently woke her, "I'm going to go check on Kuri, Doodles." Hina made a slight noise of approval before slipping back into a deep sleep.

Taishiro was quiet as he let his daughter cry it out for a moment before speaking, "Kuri… it's okay. What's wrong, Sunshine?" He gently shushed her as a choked sob escaped the little girl. His heart broke hearing her cry like that.

"I-I heard a noise, a-and there was a bottle… and it was on fire! You and M-Mama came in and then you were gone and the fire got big!" She explained tearfully.

In her files, it had been mentioned how she ended up at the orphanage, but she seemed like such a happy-go-lucky kid that it had gone over the BMI hero's head. "It's okay, kiddo… No one's here. Everything is fine. Do you want me to stay with you until you fall asleep again or-" he was interrupted as Kuri shook her head. "No? Do you want to come to our room then? I promise you we'll make sure no one hurts you, Sunshine." He smiled softly as she nodded against his shoulder. Adjusting the way he was holding her, Tai brought Kuri to his and Hina's room. "We have a visitor." He chimed softly.

Hina looked over as she felt the bed shift lightly, nothing like when her husband climbed into bed. Peeking open an eye, she saw a small figure crawling towards her before turning to face the new addition. "Hi baby, what's wrong?" She asked with a yawn.

Kuri rubbed at her eyes, "I had a bad dream…" The little girl was pouting as she curled up with her mother.

The bed shifted completely as Taishiro got in. "We'll be right here for you, Kuri. I promise you. We're not gonna leave you alone like that ever," he said. Carefully sandwiching Kuri between himself and Hina, he started humming to try and soothe the little girl, making a smile spread on his wife's face. Within five minutes, the kid was out like a light. Stifling a slight chuckle, he put his arm over his two girls.