Hide groggily felt the call of nature waking him.

Trying to instinctively answer that call, he tried to rise from the bed… only to find himself pinned down.

Something held him in place, around his stomach area. A sleepy glance showed it to be a hand. He mentally checked his, and found that neither was there, though. Turning to look at the hand, with the determination of the confused half asleep, he saw it going towards the sleep form of Kaneki. With the last vestiges of baby fat lost shortly after his transformation into a ghoul, and his hair white, Ken looked serious and broody and beyond his age when awake. Now, asleep, though, his face regained youth and innocent appearance.

Still... There were more pressing things… like his displeased bladder.

Unfortunately, trying to remove the hand proved futile fast. While the hold was not tight, Ken held him in unbreakable grip.

"Lemme go, 'neki, I can't breathe." No response.

"Ken, if you won't let me go right now, there will be consequences you will regret!" as if to spite him, the white haired one leaned into him, tightening the hug.

Hide thought poking him in the face, but reconsidered. A sleepy kaneki might mistake the finger near his mouth as a snack…

"Yo, Ken-man, if you won't let me go now, I will-"

A cutesy giggling interrupted his words.

Turning to the other side, he saw the pajama clad Touka looking at him, mirth in her eyes.

He couldn't help it, he pouted. "Touka-chan, help me. please! Before shitty kaneki ends up pissed on Kaneki!"

She outright laughed at that.

But pleasant as her laugh was, as much as he enjoyed her smile, it wasn't helping him. he told her so.

"This isn't helping!"

"Sorry, Nagach- I mean Hide, hold it in for a bit." And reached out, her hands taking Kens, and with visible effort, prying it loose, granting the strawberry blond his much needed freedom.

Getting out of the bed, and taking a cane and walking was still not easy, but he was getting better.

He was just about to flush, when he heard a voice on the other side. "Hide, I think we need to talk."

Hideyoshi did not like these words, they rarely were followed by anything good, and the weary tone they were said in did not bode well. He took a calming breathe and closed his eyes for a moment, before finally flushing, and opening the door, greeting her with a smile. "Want me to wash my hands first?"

Okay, maybe that one was a bit obscene, but it worked to divert attention in the American comedy where he watched such a scene once, and it did the same here, giving him some moments to try figuring what this would be about.

Afterwards she led him to the kitchen, and went to the refrigerator.

"Lets have breakfast."

"Touka-chan… I know I'm delicious looking , but-"

"Not like that!"

"Oh? Ah… I think Kaneki will not appreciate being left out of those activities…" his face reddened.

"What are you talking abou- Not like that either!" she yelled, blushing hotly as well.

"Oh? Then wha…" and realization dawned on him. his smile disappeared as he let out a resigned "Oh".

She opened the refrigerator, and took the milk, as well as a rectangular brown package, one of those he was specifically instructed by his best friend NOT to touch.

He gulped.

Touka carefully looked at him, as she unwrapped it. Inside was a cut piece of meat, and though it was not obvious as to what kind of meat it was by its look, he had no doubts. He really didn't want that part.

As Touka cut a piece of it, and started eating, he turned around, not wanting to look, to think too much about her eating what was a person.

As much as he accepted her, this was not pleasant.

"Hide!" the girl called him, after she finished chewing and swallowed the small cut of someone.

There was weariness in his eyes as he looked at hers.

"I want you to know, that we don't kill. We… there are certain spots where people come to commit suicide, we visit those places, and take the bodies of those who killed themselves, so that we won't have to kill. So that we won't be forced to attack innocents. Those people chose to die, but we use them, to minimize predation on humans."

Hide asked in a cautious voice, as if afraid of the answer, "how long have you been doing that?"

"For years… ever since I joined the group. I'm certain they have been doing it long before, though. With time, other ghouls joined us, too weak to hunt by themselves, or not wanting to murder, sometimes both."

"Why are you telling me this?" he asked, confusion visible on his face.

"Hide, you didn't betray humanity for Kaneki, for us. We don't want to kill, and don't prey on humans, we seek to exist as peacefully as we can, and make effort to keep the territory peaceful. For both ghouls AND humans. We are trying to coexist, and it was not wrong of you to stay with Kaneki."

Hide was silent.

"Kaneki doesn't want to talk with you about that part of his life, but he didn't kill humans. I wanted you to know."

He knew better than to ask about her.

"… Thank you for telling me."

"Also, you probably weren't aware, but before you… 'joined' us, Ken used to have nightmares, he would scream into the night and wake up often. Your presence really helped him. He was tortured and-"

Hide turned his look aside as he grimly interrupted her. "I know. Aogiri tortured him…"

How did he-

"I was at the CCG for some time, I learned a few things, about Aogiri, and about him. Just don't ask for the details…"he grimaced.

"Do you know why they attacked Anteiku?" a masculine voice asked behind him.

Turning, Hideyoshi spotted the white haired man, wearing that coat even inside the apartment.

"Yomo-san!" Touka exclaimed.

Hide sighed, and answered.

"I don't know exactly how they figured it, but the main goal of that raid was to hunt down a powerful, dangerous Ghoul called 'One Eyed Owl', the leadership kept it all confidential, only revealing it at the last moment."

The man nodded, and left.

OMAKE:

"Sensei, where do babes come from?"

The teacher was surprised at the question, though in hindsight figured she shouldn't have been. That girl was always asking questions.

Now, how to avoid it…she was just recently married herself, she wasn't ready to answer a question like that!

"Kirishima-chan, did you ask your parents?"

"Yes! But they didn't say."

"What did they say?"

"Well… When I asked mom, she said that she will tell me when I got older, and then refused to say how much older. When I went asking papa Ken, he choked on his coffee, and when I asked papa Hide, he said that if he tells me, mama will eat his face!"