A big thank you to shadowphoenix101, Lamanth, Moonlight Memories, Purple-Kissed-Wishes, OnlyNotReally, Taco, alanacrystal, Petalwhisker X Fireheart (your name is refusing to underline) and Beywriter for your reviews!

Hope you all had brilliant Christmases/other festive/religious celebrations! I know I did!

I'm almost late! I must've assumed I'd done it this morning.

I am the father who has never hugged his son because I grew up afraid to show affection to other men.

He came to me the other day, dragged by his infernal mother to my office and stood there like a wet dish rag while she raged at me that I wasn't taking even halfway decent care of him, how could I be, to let him get bullied like this?

I saw the bruises and the cuts and the look in his tired nine year-old eyes. Get out, I told his mother, get out and let me talk to my son without your nonstop bitching, and I held my tongue from saying worse because he was there and he had heard enough over the years.

"Gou," I said when the door was shut and he was sitting on my desk, swinging his feet against the polished wood.

"Yeah, Dad?"

Almost against my will, out the words came,

"What?"

He swallowed, dragged his sleeve across his nose, repeated himself,

"Yes, Father?"

What few facts there were, I got from him with ease. How he felt about it … no, that I wasn't so good at. That was the one area his mother was far better in than I, so when his voice clogged up and tears began to well, I opened the door again.

"I'll sort it, son, ok?" I put a hand on his shoulder. He moved his head so that his cheek rested against my knuckles. I twitched involuntarily, felt my heart rip as he quickly moved his head away.

"Thanks," he whispered as he walked over to his mother. She instantly enfolded him in a tight embrace.

I turned from the remnants of my family and shut the door on them, on that sight. Only a few moments later did I realise that one of my arms was wrapped around my torso as if I had a stomach-ache, providing a weak comfort against the knowledge of what I couldn't give my son.

It's another shortie, but I really like this one.

For those who don't know, that was Kai. Ask and I'll PM you the link to the pages in the manga that show you Gou, Makoto and R/Lin - Kai, Tyson and Ray&Mariah's children respectively

I'm now panicking - I don't have any more written! I have ideas but please(!) feel free to contribute your own, I'll give full credit if I use anything of them.

Opinions? Review?

xIlbx