After the unexpected series of events in their mission, Hiro and Zero Two have since returned to the Klaxosaur Palace. After docking their Klaxosaur, Aphrodite, in the hangar, Hiro and Zero Two walked down the large hallway of the palace leading to the throne room to meet with the Princess to explain their actions. Both Hiro and Zero Two were quiet with their surroundings being the same. Only the loud clanking of their bulky piloting boots echoing throughout the hallways was the only sound being made, disturbing a small Klaxosaur every now and again as it scurried away.

Both Hiro and Zero Two knew that they were going to be in serious trouble with the Klaxosaur Princess once they had to speak to her on account of their actions. Although Hiro and Zero Two knew what lay for them ahead, both did not speak with the other about the matter and were awkwardly silent to the other. Hiro on the other hand especially felt embarrassed for getting Zero Two into serious trouble by making her go along with abandoning the mission and going ahead with the ludicrous scheme that he thought of at that moment. Hiro glanced at Zero Two's face, with her face stoic and looking visibly upset, yet again reinforcing his own feelings of embarrassment for getting Zero Two involved in all of this.

"So… why didn't you tell me about your secrets darling?..." Zero Two said, breaking the silence, albeit with a mildly upset tone as she stopped walking.

Hiro glanced at Zero Two directly, then returned to staring back down the abyss of the dark hallway, not answering Zero Two's question and remaining quiet.

"Do not try to ignore me, darling!" Zero Two cried angrily, raising her voice, "I'm just trying to understand why you even put me through all of this! What was your reason for this darling? Why didn't you try to even tell me that…"

"Because… I thought I would look weak if I had told you before…" Hiro responded back bluntly, cutting off Zero Two.

Zero Two paused for a little after Hiro's response to process what he had said.

"So? Is that really your reason darling?" Zero Two responded back with scorn, "...and I thought that you would have a better reason…"

"All I can say is that I'm sorry that I got you involved in my mess…" Hiro responded back yet again.

"Have you forgotten the promise that we made? Why keep such secrets from me in the first place!" Zero Two continued to rant to Hiro, "You put our lives at risk and derailed our entire mission just to save the lives of our enemies? What were you thinking darling!"

"I'm sorry about that too…" Hiro yet again responded with a stoic face.

"Why did I even listen to you and go with your crazy scheme? What was I thinking even listening to you at that moment!" Zero Two continued to rant to Hiro, "What was so important about those humans anyways that you had to ruin our entire mission? You know they are our enemies right?"

"I would like to think that they were my enemies… but I could not bring myself to kill them like the others we had fought in the past," Hiro explained, "Those particular humans were… once close to me. I just couldn't make them my enemies…"

Zero Two glared angrily at Hiro after his response.

"Well, in case you didn't know darling, HUMANS ARE OUR ENEMIES!" Zero Two shouted back angrily to Hiro, "I don't care if they were your friends, partners, or something else I could care little about in the past, they are always going to be our enemies no matter what! I don't see what is so hard about that!"

Despite Zero Two's rant, Hiro still remained stoic and did not react in response to Zero Two, only meekly accepting Zero Two's scolding. Hiro's silence towards her would only infuriate Zero Two even more.

"Maybe you are right about yourself darling, you are just weak!" Zero Two scoffed back to Hiro angrily.


After what seemed like forever, Hiro and Zero Two finally arrived in the vast throne room of the Klaxosaur Princess. Both Hiro and Zero Two silently approached the front of the staircase leading to where the Princess sat atop her throne, their heads down sullen in shame, knowing what was coming ahead for them. Even the Princess' royal serpents behind the Klaxosaur Princess seemed to stare down with a condensing attitude as if even they knew what Hiro and Zero Two had done. Once Hiro and Zero Two arrived, the Princess looked directly down upon Hiro and Zero Two from atop her throne as they entered her presence.

Both Hiro and Zero Two could immediately tell already that the Princess was visibly frustrated, having a stern and stoic look on her face as she looked down at them.

"You two need not bother to explain your actions today…" the Princess announced condescendingly, breaking the silence, "What the both of you did today has broken my trust in you two…"

The Princess rose up from her throne, folding her arms angrily as she stared down at Hiro and Zero Two.

"So where do I begin?" the Princess began to rant, "First, both of you betrayed the orders that I bestowed for you two to follow, something that you two have never dared to do until now. Then, you both proceed to assist and save the lives of our sworn enemy, even striking against one of our own kind to protect the life of the enemy! What has gotten into you both!"

"But Hime! It wasn't who betrayed your orders… I can explain!" Zero Two inserted, "All of this was my darling's idea, not mine! I tried to follow your orders to the very end-"

"SILENCE!" the Princess roared.

Zero Two quickly returned to silence.

"I do not need any excuses from you two, the both of you are equally responsible for causing all of what happened in your mission!" the Princess snarled.

"Hime, if I must..." Hiro inserted, looked upwards towards the Princess, "Zero Two is correct. All of what happened today was all my making and Zero Two had nothing to do with it, I can swear to it. Zero Two tried to follow your orders to the very end during the mission, but it was me in the end who forced her to go along with my plan to betray your orders."

His head sulking in shame, Hiro proceeded to place his hand on his heart as he looked back up to the Princess atop her throne.

"If anyone bears the most blame for all of this, I should be the one to bear the brunt of the consequences, not Zero Two!" Hiro asserted.

After Hiro's admission, Zero Two looked at Hiro with a shocked expression, her face turning pale and her eyes widening. She was not expecting him to take the blame for the entire mention, not to mention standing up for her in front of the Princess.

"Hiro…" Zero Two uttered.

The Princess fixed her attention on Hiro, her eyes narrowing as she looked down at Hiro.

"So… it was you Hiro that betrayed my orders during the mission?" the Princess responded, her eyes narrowing, "A real shame, I expected better from a warrior like you Hiro."

The Princess released a heavy sigh, now having a calmer composure.

"Hiro, the both of us must talk about this matter in private in the Royal Garden," the Princess stated, "There is more to all of this that I need to know…"

The Princess then turned her attention back to Zero Two.

"As for you Zero Two, this does not mean that you are clear of your own actions in all of this," the Princess said firmly, "You should have known better than to capitulate to the demands of your own partner and willingly go along with betraying my orders. That is a sign of your own weakness, make sure to reflect on that. Otherwise, you are dismissed."

Zero Two accepted and nodded silently in return.

"As for you Hiro, you will come with me..." the Princess ordered.

Meekly following the Princess' orders, Hiro began to slowly walk up the long path of stairs to meet the Princess at the top of her throne, with each step he took heavy with shame. As Hiro was going up the stairs, he turned his head around for a brief moment back to Zero Two down below, giving a weak smile of reassurance. Without hesitation, Hiro continued his trek up the stairs and arrived to the Princess at the top, who then promptly escorted Hiro away from the throne room.

Now left alone by herself in the throne room, Zero Two did not know what to feel about all of this. Clenching her fists angrily, Zero Two's eyes began to water up.

"Darling, why must you always be like this!" Zero Two uttered to herself, a single tear rolling down her cheek.


After leaving the throneroom, Hiro proceeded to follow the Princess into the Royal Garden, both of them silent as they traversed paths surrounded by the lush forests of the Garden. After a long trek, the Princess approached a gate leading to a long arched bridge that spanned the vast calm lake in the center of the Royal Garden, with the bridge leading to an isolated island in the center of the lake. After approaching the entrance to the bridge, the gates would automatically open as the Princess arrived, slowly creaking open. The Princess proceeded to walk across the bridge, with Hiro trailing behind her.

As Hiro and the Princess approached the island where the bridge was leading, Hiro could see in the distance a large domed gazebo held up by large pillars that took up most of the island, surrounded by a dense forest. As Hiro entered the domed gazebo alongside the Princess, he could not help but marvel at the vast interior of the gazebo, as he had never been to this place in the Royal Garden all his life. The inside of the gazebo was essentially like another royal garden, with lush forest and flowers covering much of the interior space while paved paths snaked their way throughout the indoor garden. The dome of the gazebo was transparent, allowing rays of light to enter the structure, giving the environment a heavenly-esque appeal.

The Princess would walk to the center of the gazebo where she would stand still, her arms folded behind her back as she silently gazed.

"I know why you betrayed my orders in the mission, Hiro," the Princess stated, breaking the silence, "It is because you have sympathy for the particular humans that you faced in your mission, although you kept these hidden feelings to yourself from me for the longest time…"

Hiro stood shocked and awestruck, not expecting the Princess to already know that.

"How… how did you know that already Hime?..." Hiro stuttered.

"Because I can sense what you feel and think," the Princess responded back, "Even though you never told me about your hidden sympathies, I knew that you had special feelings towards a particular group of humans ever since I took you in. I thought it would not be a problem for your future as a warrior, though it seems that has changed now…"

The Princess swiftly turned herself around towards Hiro's face, her arms behind her back as her eyes narrowed.

"So tell me, Hiro, why do you still hold these humans so dear to yourself even now?" the Princess asked, "You know that even if these humans were your friends in the past, they no longer see you as one now…"

Hiro stood silent momentarily, thinking about what to say to the Princess.

"Well… I just can't believe that my old friends would see me as nothing more than an enemy Hime," Hiro explained, "They once saw me as their prodigy back when I was young, and I'm sure they have not forgotten about me even after all of these years. If I can just find a way to meet my old friends and tell them who I really am beyond my Klaxosaur, then perhaps, and just maybe, us Klaxosaurs and humans will have no need to fight and find common ground once they understand what we fight for..."

"You are naive in your beliefs Hiro," the Princess responded, scoffing, "You must understand that your former friends are nothing more than your enemy and you need to realize this. They no longer see you as you once were and they will see you as just another Klaxosaur. They have been indoctrinated like the rest of the invader's pawns, they only think of Klaxosaurs like you and me as nothing more than monsters that need to be exterminated. If they ever had the chance, they would destroy you and Zero Two just like what they do with our Klaxosaur kin."

"But how can you know that!" Hiro shouted back, "It might be easy for you to assume that, but I think that there is still some good in my old friends. Why must you always assume that all humans must be inherently bad in one way or another? Just for once, take my word that these old human friends of mine are not mindless enemies as you think. You just don't understand the relationship that we once had!"

"It seems that your human side is showing itself, Hiro," the Princess growled, "Your sympathetic feelings towards these humans will only serve as your future detriment, and you do not seem to understand this. Answer me, Hiro, aren't you a Klaxosaur?"

"Yes, I am a Klaxosaur." Hiro responded back.

"Then start acting like you are one then!" the Princess snarled, "A Klaxosaur like you should not submit to such naive beliefs like what you have just described to me. You should know better than that!"

Hiro took a step back, slightly baring his teeth. Hiro felt the anger within himself build up over how the Princess questioned his Klaxosaur nature. Though at the same time, deep down, Hiro could not deny what the Princess said held some truth to it. What was he doing in front of the Princess telling her that humans are not the enemy? Had he forgotten what the Princess had told him over the years of what the humans had done to the Klaxosaurs? Had he forgotten that he himself renounced his humanity and swore to defend the Klaxosaurs? It seems that the Princess was right, there still was some humanity within himself.

As Hiro let the Princess' words sink in, he began to realize the scope of the foolish beliefs he had subjected himself to. The anger that he felt building up within had evaporated, with instead a feeling of shame and regret now consuming him. Hiro stood silently, sulking his head down in shame whilst clenching his fists, trying to hold back his tears.

"I… I… I am sorry Princess." Hiro stuttered.

Seeing the state that Hiro was in, the Princess slowly approached Hiro, gently placing both of her hands on his shoulder and her horn on his head as it started to glow a luminescent blue, with Hiro's horns also glowing.

"I sense that you are conflicted over all of this," the Princess told Hiro soothingly, "I feel the anger within yourself over all of this, but also at the same time, you feel remorse and regret. I understand that there is more we need to talk about. Please follow me…"

The Princess proceeded to gently grasp both of Hiro's hands, with the Princess leading him to a bench nearby them and making him sit down on the bench. The Princess would sit down beside Hiro, her gleaming blue eyes looking at Hiro.

"Perhaps I was too hard on you back there Hiro, you are still a young warrior and you still have a lot to learn about this world," the Princess explained, "I need you to know that in the current life and death struggle that our species is currently in, there is no room for any sort of sympathy towards our enemy, even if they were once your friend. I need a warrior like you more than ever to fight out there for the sake of the survival of our species."

Pulling himself together, Hiro looked directly into the Princess' gleaming eyes.

"I understand Hime," Hiro responded, "I am deeply sorry that I put my own emotions ahead of the safety of our species' future. Can you please forgive me for that?"

"Yes, I can forgive you for that Hiro," the Princess said while gently stroking one of Hiro's cheeks, "Though it is important for you to learn that you must not let your emotions guide your thinking during battle. If you let your emotions get the best of you next time, it might result in the demise of both you and Zero Two. Hiro, you must know that your first and foremost priority is to always protect our brethren and nothing else."

Hiro nodded understandingly in return.

"What all I need from you Hiro is to know your destiny, and that destiny is to protect and defend our Klaxosaur brethren," the Princess continued, "Ever since I brought you into my palace, that was your destiny from the start, which is why I raised you as a warrior like you are. You are destined to command and lead our species to victory on the battlefield. You must always remember that destiny no matter what Hiro, don't ever put that aside for something else, do you understand?"

"Yes I do Hime, and I promise to you that I will fulfill my destiny to the very end," Hiro reaffirmed, placing his hand on his heart.

"That's the spirit, Hiro," the Princess replied, patting one of Hiro's cheeks, "I trust in you to fulfill your end of the promise."

The Princess shifted her attention away from Hiro, tilting her head up as she gazed at the expansive beauty of the gardens within the gazebo.

"Even with my thousands of years worth of accumulated wisdom and knowledge, I may never understand something as complex as you Hiro," the Princess pondered out loud, "From the decisions that you make to how you see the world as you will always remain an enigma to me Hiro, and it seems it will remain that way even after today…"

"I'm sure you'll figure it out Hime," Hiro replied back, joining the Princess in gazing at the gardens, "Perhaps is it because it has been so long since you have been with someone like me. Before you brought me here, you lived in isolation for eternity after the last of your kind disappeared. From the way I see it, you are still getting used to understanding somebody like me after not knowing what it is like for so long."

"Hmm… it could be because of that." the Princess commented back.

After finishing their conversation, both Hiro and the Princess sat together silently as they gazed at the expansive beauty of the royal gardens of the gazebo. After a while, the Princess raised herself up from the bench, stretching herself.

"Well, it seems that we have concluded what I came here for," the Princess announced.

Turning herself around towards Hiro, the Princess lowered her hand down to Hiro.

"Let us go now, I am sure that your darling will be eager to see you once more," the Princess stated, "I hope that you have learned a good lesson coming here with me Hiro. Reflect on what I said to you here today."

"I promise that I will Hime," Hiro said as he held onto the Princesses' hand.

After helping up Hiro, the Princess proceeded to escort Hiro out from the gazebo, with Hiro following in her path.

As Hiro walked alongside the Princess as they left the gazebo, he could not help to think about the Princesses' words. Although he knew it was right to follow the Princess' words, he had mixed feelings about what she said. Hiro knew that the Princess was right in that Hiro had a destiny to fulfill. Hiro knew that in such a struggle like the one he was fighting in, he could not put his emotions ahead of the protection of his own Klaxosaur kin. However, Hiro still could not fully accept that his past friends from the garden were unredeemable enemies as the Princess would like him to think, especially at the prospect that he himself one day will have to fight and destroy his past friends if he ever crossed paths with them sometime in the future.

Though Hiro knew that his destiny would eventually lead him to the fate of having to destroy his past friends as enemies, just because they were on the wrong side in this struggle, whether he liked it or not.

"Am I prepared to follow through with my own destiny, knowing what lies ahead?" Hiro pondered.


Since the meeting with the Princess and Hiro being taken along with her, Zero Two now found herself alone in the drawing room of the palace.

The drawing room had a distinctly regal atmosphere, with intricately designed trims covering the black walls and ceilings as the chandeliers in the room glowed a luminescent blue while the rest of the room's space was taken up by well-arranged furniture. Zero Two, now dressed in her normal clothing, was wearing a plain white dress and sitting on a sofa in the middle of the room by herself. Laying upon her lap was Kyro, Hiro and Zero Two's little Klaxosaur friend, with Zero Two gently stroking Kyro's head repeatedly as he purred. As she continued to stroke Kyro, Zero Two stared silently at her surroundings, an anxious look stuck on her face.

Zero Two's mind was currently occupied with one thing, her darling, Hiro. It seemed like it had been forever since Hiro was taken along by the Princess to consult with him about what he had done during the mission with her. Zero Two worried about what her darling might be going through since he left with the Princess. At the same time, Zero Two also began to feel deep regret for the way that she treated Hiro earlier after the mission. Although she did not understand why Hiro turned against the mission just for some humans that he once knew, Zero Two thought that she should have been more understanding at first to understand what Hiro was going through.

As Zero Two reflected on what she did, she looked down at Kyro, who was still lying on her lap.

"What do you think Kyro, was I too harsh on him then?" Zero Two asked.

Raising his head up, Kyro tilted his head in curiosity at what Zero Two said.

"Well… I'd say that I was too hard on him back there," Zero Two admitted, "I should have known better than to unload all of my feelings on him at that moment. Yes, I do not know why Hiro did the things that he did, but Hiro is still my darling in the end and I love him. I should not have called him weak, he was strong for taking the blame for all of what happened, and also for having the will to go against the Hime's orders during the mission in the first place…"

Zero Two let out a small laugh, continuing to pet Kyro.

"Oh darling, when will you be back with me again?" Zero Two bemoaned out loud, "There is so much that I need to tell you if you were here with me. Just please come back already, I just want to see your beautiful face once again..."

Zero Two returned to silence, sulking her head as she stared at the room's walls, her eyes beginning to water slightly. As Zero Two continued to aimlessly stare at her surroundings, the silence of the room was broken by the sound of the doors to the room sliding open. Zero Two quickly perked up, turning her head around.

It was no other than her darling, Hiro, now dressed in regular Klaxosaur attire, a tannish-brown tunic and pants. Hiro immediately looked at Zero Two after he entered the room, a smile on his face. With her sights on Hiro, Zero Two's eyes widened in joy and happiness as she made eye contact with him.

"Sorry that I took so long Zero Tsu," Hiro explained, "It's just that I had a lot to talk about with the Hime over what I did-"

Zero Two quickly leaped off of the sofa that she was sitting on, running towards Hiro where she gave him a tight hug on the spot, interrupting what Hiro had to say. Hiro was surprised by Zero Two's sudden action, but quickly accustomed to her, with Hiro hugging her in return.

"I'm just so glad that you are back with me darling!" Zero Two exclaimed, "It felt like it had been forever since I saw you last!"

"Heh… my mistake that I kept you worrying here for that long Zero Tsu…" Hiro commented.

"Though… there is one thing that I want to say to you darling that been on my mind before you left with Mama earlier," Zero Two said, her head sulking down in shame, "I just want to say that I regret the way that I treated you after the mission, I should have known better. I did not mean it all when I said you were weak. You have always shown strength all the time, be it piloting Aphrodite with me, protecting me at all times, and standing up for me. All of these qualities make you stronger than I can ever desire!..."

Hiro smiled in return at what Zero Two said, gently putting his hand under Zero Two's chin as he raised her head back up.

"It is all okay Zero Tsu, I forgive you for everything," Hiro said, conformingly, "In the aftermath of that mission, I was expecting you to have such a reaction after what had happened during the mission, so don't think that I hold any grudges because of what you said back there. Though I'm glad you see me as strong, and I will always remain strong if it means protecting you and our future together!"

"Thanks for understanding, darling," Zero Two responded back, "And not to mention too… you're strong enough to defy the will of Mama's orders during the middle of a mission…"

"Yeah, can't forget about that…" Hiro said, embarrassed, looking aside as he blushed.

"I had to give you some kind of compliment for what you did darling," Zero Two snickered.

After blushing even more, Hiro focused his attention back on Zero Two, now having a more serious expression on his face.

"Though there is one thing that I too want to promise to you Zero Tsu from this point forward on my own behalf," Hiro stated, gently placing his hands on Zero Two's shoulders, looking directly into her eyes, "I promise that I will no longer hide my secrets from you any longer. I should've known better than to keep my personal secrets from you Zero Tsu, and I promise that I will never hide any from you starting from this point forward."

"You promise, darling?" Zero Two reaffirmed.

"Yes, I promise Zero Tsu," Hiro said firmly, "And there is one more thing I want to say. I learned a lot with Hime since talking with her, and I now realize the importance of my destiny. That destiny is to protect our Klaxosaur kin, and most important of all, secure our future together. Yes, those humans were past friends of mine and I am not sure to think of them as enemies, but if they happen to come in the way of our future together, then I will have no other choice…"

"Hiro…" Zero Two replied.

"I want to promise to you that I will not set aside my destiny to protect the Klaxosaurs and our future together," Hiro continued on, "I have learned a lot since, and it was foolish of me to disregard my destiny by letting my emotions get the best of me, that was not the right thing to do. From this point forward, I promise that I will follow my destiny to the very end, and that means that I will secure our future together so the future can belong to us!"

After Hiro concluded, Zero Two smiled in return, albeit whilst heavily blushing.

"Oh darling, you didn't need to say all of that…" Zero Two replied.

"I need you to know, our destiny is to remain together forever and to secure that future for us!" Hiro stated.

After gazing into each other's eyes for a moment, Hiro and Zero Two promptly kissed each other, locking their horns together while smiling at each other.

"I love you, darling," Zero Two said.

"And I love you too, Zero Tsu," Hiro responded back.

"Let's go to the gardens darling, I want to take a swim," Zero Two said, "We can enjoy ourselves for hours and hours, together."

"I agree, Zero Tsu," Hiro responded back, "Nothing is better after all of this than being with you again…"

Just before Zero Two and Hiro were about to leave together, a whining sound came from the other side of the room. Coming from behind a piece of furniture, Kyro approached Hiro and Zero Two, whining as he begged to come along with them.

"Why, look who else wants to join us too…" Hiro commented, patting Kyro's head, "Of course you can come along with us Kyro, we can't forget about you!"

After what Hiro said, Kyro's attitude shifted quickly to that of excitement, with Kyro running around in circles and jumping around, now full of energy.

"Why, look who made you happy darling…" Zero Two teased.

Holding each other's hands, Hiro and Zero Two left the room together, with Kyro also joining along by their side.