Prompt: Another Anon on Tumblr inspired this one 😉 They shared with me their headcanons on Chiro's past—which are absolutely fascinating. They asked me how I thought the monkeys would react, and so I answered…

Word Count: 1.9k

Summary: Chiro's past comes to light, and the monkeys are surprised at what they learn.

Familial Ties

Lady Cravenheart

"Skeleton King's forces are stronger now than ever before," Antauri said grimly. That much was obvious in that they needed special guns to fight them. Guns Otto and his fellow engineers were working hard to produce in mass quantities, so that all of their allies could have them.

"Yeah, that much was obvious, Antauri." The Fire of Hate had left Sprx's replies more acidic than normal—something that never failed to make the monkeys hide winces. Antauri and Chiro alone managed to stay stoic through it. Antauri because of meditation and his training in emotional control, and Chiro… well. Once upon a time, being able to carefully not-react to things had been an artform he practiced, day-in and day-out. He wasn't quite as good at it as he used to be, but maybe that was a good thing. He had left that life behind, after all.

Antauri ignored the sharp tone, as he always did, and continued. "We really must speak to the families of Shuggazoom. The citizens need an escape plan. They need direction and order. Places to hide. We cannot accomplish that and fight the war."

"How do you propose we do that, Antauri?" Gibson arched an eyeridge. "The families of Shuggazoom are notoriously chaotic and difficult to speak with. They seem to thrive in disarray."

Chiro crossed his arms. "We'll just have to play their game," he said decisively. A grin crossed his mouth. "Captain Shuggazoom can help us."

The monkeys shared glances.

"What do you mean?" Gibson probed.

"If his alter-ego, Clayton Carrington, was as prominent in society as he says, then he was probably a member of the Families. His disappearance would have ended the line, especially if he didn't leave behind a son. Gibson, can you run a DNA test on him?"

Gibson nodded slowly. "I—yes."

"Good. We'll need the results to prove that he is who he says he is. I can arrange a meeting with them, but it will take some time." It might not go through at all. Chiro hadn't exactly left on the best terms—but surely Grandmother would see the necessity of it? (And it would be nice to see her again…)

"Uh… Kid?" Sprx crossed his arms. "How exactly are you going to organize a meeting with these guys?"

Chiro straightened. "Because I used to belong to one of them." He lifted his chin.

"Chiro… You might want to look at this," Gibson called from the lab.

Chiro paused. He put his new-and-improved Undead gun in his seat and walked over. "What is it?"

"I ran Clayton's DNA, as you asked… and… Well. You aren't wrong. He was a member of the Families... and… Some of his DNA is still around today." Gibson gestured to the screen, where a family tree had grown.

Chiro followed the lines of it, the branches and the trunk. His brows came to his hairline with what he found.

Gibson got the DNA results nearly a week before his Grandmother finally replied to him. She welcomed them to her penthouse, though she did not address Chiro as her grandson. It did sting a bit, but Chiro understood. It was a complicated situation they were pressed into.

Chiro was crammed into the elevator with six monkeys and Captain Shuggazoom. He kept his hands behind him and his shoulders back. His head was held high. His Grandmother was good at spotting weakness, and while he didn't think she would exploit it in him, he was also no longer a member of the Family. It had been so long since he had seen her that he wasn't sure how she would treat him now.

They stepped into a carpeted hallway. Tall windows lined it, giving the perfect view of Shuggazoom City. Chiro smiled fondly. He remembered, as a child, sitting in the hall with his nose pressed to the glass, until someone came to scold him for ruining the windows. Cars whizzed by down below, the City continuing on as if the War wasn't happening right outside their noses.

Chiro wondered what it was like to live in such blissful ignorance.

They were let into the penthouse by one of the servants. He heard Sprx mutter something to Nova beneath his breath, but he wasn't listening closely enough to make out what it was. He could guess. And he could also guess that Nova elbowed him over it.

"Chiro." His Grandmother was older than he remembered. Her grey-white hair was tied in a tight bun atop her head, her face still severe despite the wrinkles lining her face.

"Grandmother."

"You've done well for yourself, over the years." She sounded impressed, and Chiro felt his chest buoy with pride.

He inclined his head. "I'd like to think so," he said cordially.

"I find myself weary of formalities." She waved her hand. "What is it you have come to me for, Hero?"

Chiro gestured to Captain Shuggazoom, in civilian guise. "As we were patrolling the Zone of Wasted Years, we came across a man trapped in stasis. We were able to undo it and found that the man was none other than Clayton Carrington." He pulled the DNA results out. "A prominent Family that disappeared eighty years ago." He handed them to her.

She studied them. "You want to reinstate him." It wasn't a question, but Chiro answered her anyway.

"I do."

"Why?" She peered at him over the paper.

"Because Skeleton King has brought a War to our doorstep," Chiro said firmly. "Shuggazoom is going to need strong, united leadership. If our voices are united with his—and yours, I hope—then we might be able to convince the Families to put aside their differences for a time. Or at least give them a portion of leaders they can look to." It felt odd to speak so formally, after years of being more relaxed and childish, but Chiro was going to pull out every weapon in his arsenal for this.

His Grandmother hummed, deep in her throat. "Each of them are going to want their own specialist to look these over. They may want to run the tests again, even. Those who inherited the Carrington family assets are not going to want to surrender them easily," she warned. "The process will take months." She offered the papers back. "You will have to make do with my voice alone."

"You'll help us?"

"The Families are nothing if Shuggazoom falls. Everything that makes us what we are is here."

Chiro took the papers, and bowed his head. "Thank you, Grandmother."

She gestured toward the door. "Go. This will require careful maneuvering, and they already aren't going to take well to a banished Family member attempting to tell them what to do. Focus on your war, and allow me to handle the politics of it."

Chiro bowed his head. He had wanted to speak his piece—but he knew his Grandmother was right. No matter who he was now, it wasn't the right time for him to step into the Family circles again. Not until they had answers.

"Of course." He turned towards the door. "Goodbye, Grandmother."

"Goodbye, Chiro." And maybe he was fooling himself, but he swore he heard her voice soften around his name.

He left. After a second, the team followed.

Sprx scowled at Chiro's retreating back, though it was directed at the woman they left behind and not the boy himself. 'Grandmother' wasn't just some title—he knew the second he saw those blue eyes of hers that she was related to the boy they called leader. But the callous way she treated him…

He clenched his jaw.

No wonder Chiro never asked anyone for help, if that was the way he had been raised.

Antauri frowned to himself. He floated as high as was comfortable in a building like this—his head level with Captain Shuggazoom's. Chiro's family was… not what he had expected. In fact… from observing Chiro in those first days, he had assumed he had no family left at all. It had hurt his heart, to think of a child all alone in the world—but at the same time, it had made taking Chiro on as leader easier. Nothing he had seen in these last two years had contradicted that.

Until now.

And now…

Antauri knew that he could be called calculating and cold. That he was distant and more pragmatic than his siblings. But to banish a child from the only society he had ever known…

Antauri restrained a shudder.

He would work with the woman if he must, but he didn't like her. Not at all.

"What did she mean, 'banished'?" Sprx demanded, the second they left the building.

Chiro shook his head. "Don't worry about it, Sprx." It hurt, sure, but he had found a way to use the skills and training he had been raised with and that had eased it. Seeing his Grandmother had been good—no matter how cold the welcome seemed. If only his siblings had been there too…

"Don't worry— Of course I'm gonna worry, Kid! That was your grandmother and she's talking about you being banished." Sprx scowled up at him. "If we have to deal with these people then we need a bit of an explanation."

Chiro sighed. "My parents were killed when I was younger," he said reluctantly. "Assassinated by one of the other Families. We don't know who. My Grandmother stripped my siblings and me of our family name and sent me off to a boarding school as a way of protecting us. And it worked. The assassins haven't come after me—or my siblings, as far as I know."

Clayton's hand came to rest on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Chiro," he said quietly. "The Families are ruthless. I wanted to change things, but…"

Chiro shrugged his other shoulder. "It's not your fault."

Sprx rubbed his face. "Kid… I… Sorry I pushed."

Chiro waved his hand. "You guys deserved to know," he said firmly. "Especially now."

"Chiro… are you sure you should step back into this? If whoever had your parents killed realizes that you're their son…" Nova wrung her hands.

"That's why Grandmother is keeping me out of it. Besides, it's not like we've been quiet these last few years. As long as I stay banished, they don't care. And so long as Grandmother is the one speaking, and not me, there's not anything to worry about." Chiro paused. "But, if you want, it won't hurt anything to increase the security in the Robot and the camps."

Compromise is everything. Whether you must give in, or whether you have led your target right where you want them, make sure everything is a compromise. Words from lessons long ago floated through his head, and he found himself smiling, ever so slightly, at them.

Chiro stepped away from the group. "Let's get back to the Robot, guys. We've got a war to plan… and video games to play," he added after a moment. He could use some fun before everything kicked off in a big way.