I'm SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO sorry that I haven't updated in forever! I went through major writing block, then had a crazy and disorienting summer. (moving cross-country will do that to you…)
I do hope you'll someday forgive me, but I'll try harder to keep up with the writing from now on!
Well, let's see if I've still got it!
Despite his rather life-changing first day back home and the shocking realization that he was a grandfather at LEAST ten years earlier than he was comfortable with, Haru Hinata eventually acclimated himself to four of the five frogs. As a father, he mistrusted Giroro on principle, and sent out very clear touch her and I kill you vibes, despite the fact that he was the father of his only grandchild, and, though it pained both of them to admit it, Giroro was a really good dad.
This fact was especially obvious when Giroro did things like fly a very long distance (and fight some very dangerous foes) to get a very unique (and alien in origin) binky for her. The binky played a very soft Keronian lullaby whenever it was put in Kioshii's mouth, and with its arrival when Kioshii was about a month old, the infant, to everyone's amazement, or at least the humans', she started sleeping through the night.
"Finally!" Keroro whined. "I could hear her yapping from all the way down in my room!"
"You stupid frog, did you just say 'finally'?! Do you realize how insane it is!? Babies never sleep through the night! Fuyuki didn't sleep through the night until he was almost two!? Kioshii is a freaking miracle!" Natsumi sighed.
"Well, yeah," Giroro muttered, walking into the room after putting Kioshii to bed, her binky in her mouth. Thankfully, no one heard him.
"You Pekoponians are useless! You can't even sleep right! It would be much better for you if you would just submit to our rule and let us root out the helpless weaklings that are holding your race back," Keroro said, shaking his head at Natsumi's foolishness. Unfortunately for him, Natsumi had become kind of paranoid where Kioshii was involved, and took his comment as an indirect threat, since babies definitely count as weak and helpless.
After several minutes, a severe beating, and Keroro limping downstairs to escape Natsumi's wrath, Natsumi collapsed back to her seat on the couch. I'm so sorry, mom, for ever thinking that easier than anything else, Natsumi thought with a sigh. At least I haven't had to do it alone like mom did for so long… She glanced at Giroro, who was tracing patterns on his belt absentmindedly. Natsumi had always been curious about the belt.
He's weak without it, so maybe it's some weird alien technology that enhances strength? No, Giroro would want to earn his strength, not have it handed to him. Maybe he's just so used to wearing it that when he takes it off it feels like something's missing? No, that didn't make sense. Giroro wouldn't have such a stupid weakness as a wardrobe change. Maybe it has sentimental value? She vaguely remembered that it was a family heirloom. That must be it. He's keeping his family close to his heart, and when he loses that support, he's weak. It still sounded kind of strange, but it made more sense to her than any of the other ideas, and she didn't want to ask. She wasn't one to pry into people's business.
"Hey sis, have you seen…" Fuyuki called , walking into the room.
"Quiet! Kioshii's sleeping!" Natsumi hushed him.
"Sorry," Fuyuki winced. "I was wondering if you knew where dad was. I know Mom's at work, but I haven't seen Dad today."
"He must've gone out or something, how should I know? What do you need him for, anyway?" Natsumi asked.
"I don't know, just wondering. Do I need a reason?" Fuyuki asked, a little too quickly. Natsumi raised an eyebrow. Fuyuki sighed. "I don't want to talk about it. You're too closely involved."
"Ookaay…" Natsumi said, very confused. "Well, good luck with… whatever's bothering you, I guess. We should be heading to bed soon. We've got school tomorrow."
"Yeah…" Fuyuki sighed, and trudged upstairs. Giroro had disappeared outside, so Natsumi was left alone in the living room. She stood up with a groan. Although she'd already eaten dinner, she was still hungry, so she went into the kitchen and looked through the fridge. Nothing good… She thought sadly. Then she smelled the sweet potatoes. Normally, she let Giroro do his own thing unless it related directly to Kioshii, but the smell wafting in from his fire was too much to resist, and she found herself walking outside, her feet moving of their own accord.
"Hey, Giroro. Sweet potatoes smell good!" Natsumi said. Giroro jumped, looked around at her, blinked, blushed, and turned away just as quickly.
"Uh… yeah," he said lamely.
"So could you make me one?" Natsumi pressed after a moments silence.
"Um… sure," Giroro said, and hurriedly began preparing a second potato. Natsumi took a seat on the cinderblock next to him. There was an awkward silence for a while, neither sure what to talk about.
"So… Great about Kioshii sleeping through the night, huh?" Natsumi asked.
"Great," Giroro agreed, mentally slapping himself for his speechlessness in her presence. Pull yourself together, man! She's just a girl! A PEKOPONIAN girl!
She's also the mother of my child, another part of him argued back.
Yes, your genetically engineered child who was made for you by a psychopathic freak.
Well, yeah, but… she's NATSUMI.
… good point.
Even arguing with HIMSELF, he couldn't deny that he had feelings for Natsumi. He'd thought, briefly, after Kioshii had turned up, that maybe she would form a bridge between them, but nothing seemed to have changed except that Giroro longed even more for Natsumi to return his feelings so that Kioshii could have a normal... semi-normal... okay, a less weird family life.
Natsumi couldn't think of anything to talk about that would get more than a one-word reply, so she blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
"So what's with that belt, anyway?" she asked. Giroro looked at her.
"Huh?" he asked, caught off-guard by the sudden, unrelated, and potentially embarrassing question.
"Well, you get weak if you take it off, right? So, why? Sentimental reasons or something?"
"Uh, yeah. It reminds me of my friends who died in a Keron War, and it's been passed down my family for generations," Giroro said, carefully skirting around the real reason he couldn't bear to be without his belt.
"So you do use it to keep your family close to your heart! I thought so!" Natsumi exclaimed triumphantly, proud that she'd been able to figure it out.
"Yeah, you could say that. My family… they're right her," Giroro said, patting his belt buckle absentmindedly. Kioshii's my daughter, so that makes us family, right? And the new picture is of Natsumi holding Kioshii, so family is sort of accurate, right? I'm not lying.
"So," Natsumi said, trying to grasp onto the tiny strande of conversation she'd found and expound upon it while she had the chance, but Giroro cut her off.
"Your sweet potato's done," he said, holding it out to her.
"Oh! Thanks, Giroro!" Natsumi said happily, biting into her late-night snack. (well, okay, more like late evening, but whatever)
Anything for you, my sweet.
They ate in silence for a while, and Giroro accepted Natsumi's thanks wordlessly and watched her back disappear inside as she went upstairs to go to bed. Giroro sat there unmoving, staring into the fire, spacing out a little as he thought.
Natsumi, mother of my child, I hope someday that you'll be able to love me back.
He lost himself to his wishes and thoughts of an alternate reality, where the feelings were mutual, he wasn't a soldier with a moral obligation to hate and enslave the woman he loved, and Kioshii would grow up with two parents who loved each other.