The next morning I woke up after not sleeping that good.
I yawned as I walked into the kitchen. Poppy was cooking as usual, and I saw Hope eating breakfast with… a rather large smile.
"Oh? What's got you in such a great mood this morning, Hope?" I asked, feeling my heart warm up a bit at seeing Hope with such a happy smile.
"Ah! I uh… made a new friend…" They said, putting a large piece of pancake into their mouth.
"That's great to hear." I said with a smile. "Who was this new friend?"
"That Mantis kid. He said you and Saw brought him here to beat mom up."
"Okay so the…beating up your mother bit was Saw's idea, not mine." I said carefully. "And also that's great to hear you and Mantis are friends, and I'm pretty sure…you showed him all your great notes and ideas didn't you?" I asked
"Heh, yeah and he was able to run them into a simulation program in his head and display their uses and the different tunable variables to show all the probable outcomes. It was awesome!"
Heh, that does sound cool.
"That does sound awesome." I said with a smile, lightly patting Hope's head. "Proud of you both making a friend and not being scared to share the things that make you happy, that's how you know you met a true friend."
"Yeah. IT was fun. He didn't think it was weird, was able to keep up with my mutter stream, and he even let me-" They stopped themselves before giving me a quick look. "Uh, let me try out some cool new Quirk Combinations."
"Is that really what happened? Cause if not, you can tell me later…but if it is true," I then pulled out my own Quirk Combo notebook and pencil and flipped it open. "What Quirk Combo's did you come up with and test?" I asked eagerly, seeing the spark of joy in Hope's eyes as I was about to nerd out with them at this.
We did end up talking for a while over breakfast. After though Hope went to their room really fast. Huh.
"Morning." Delilah said, giving me a kiss as she grabbed her own plate.
"Morning Delilah." I said. "So two thing's, one, Hope made a new friend and two…something is a bit suspicious with Hope."
"Oh, they have a crush." She said, starting to eat as I… processed that…
"...Oh~, that's why…" I muttered. "No wonder why they cut themselves off…"
"Yeah. They're being cute about it. First time crush they're probably gonna make an excuse to go visit them to hang out today."
"That's if Hope didn't suddenly figure out how to teleport there themselves with Warp or something." I admitted.
"They might but odds are they'll want to try and establish more trust with Mantis before they use that Quirk to just be with them 24/7."
"Fair enough." I nodded. "They're growing up so fast."
"They went from infancy to like ten in a day. I think they can be whatever age they want."
"I know but still." I pouted.
"Either way, still adorable." Delilah chuckled as she ate. "So, just another lazy day waiting for the babies to decide they want out huh?"
"Yeah…" I sighed. "Just waiting for the day for all that to happen."
"Hey, at least it got you to take a vacation."
"Yeah yeah." I rolled my eyes. "But I've got a lot of things to do soon…"
"Ever the busy body."
"Partly by choice, mostly by necessity." I stated. "As I'm the de facto leader of this entire place it's…just a lot…"
"Says who?" She asked. "All these people came from towns that operated before you showed up. Yes the safety factor is nice but for the most part they all govern themselves pretty well. There's no real 'leader' role here."
… I mean, true… uh… huh… there really isn't a mayor or… anything huh? That one town has a council I remember…
"Well…considering how the few towns here have been looking to me for an example and the like, remember when I basically stocked an entire library of books for all the children to learn?"
"You mean when the teacher just asked for some basic text books and you waltz in with Creation and dump a whole lot of other books, including a lot of All Might manga?"
"That part was an accident." I said sheepishly. "But…just a lot of things to think about…"
"Do you even need to be in a defacto leader role now that the New Foundation is here? While you and Saw were away they installed internet, helped modernize the farms, set up a power plant and water and plumbing system, and the guards all took watch on the Outposts and they began working on expanding development across the planet room. You don't have to do that much anymore."
…
"I still need to do something…" I said carefully.
"I'm not saying do nothing, but at least give it some thought before you just head first into something crazy. Maybe talk with Saw and try and figure something out. You two are still gonna be doing those raids on Chaos Guild bases so maybe some backup from New Foundation would be good?"
Not gonna like, back up sounds helpful… at least that's a plan. Actually, specialized strike teams and forces would be perfect. And with all the zones we can now access, we can strike from everywhere. Well, maybe not everywhere but everywhere the New Foundation has reach.
"Well…I suppose you're right…" I sighed. "Ugh…wish this would have been a bit simpler."
"Let's be honest, if things were simple, you'd be out of your mind with boredom."
"No, I wouldn't." I shook my head. "I have lived with simple for a long time Delilah."
"Only because the Hero job you finally got ended up having bare minimum to do and you spent the rest of that time either going on dates with us or Three. Then, well, this all happened."
I sighed. "I know I know…just…" I shook my head. "Never mind…"
"Hey, remember, talking. Keeps the arguments from happening."
"I know I know, it's best I talk but…I'm just going to go back to…being nobody." I admitted. "And before you say I'm not 'nobody'...I've had to deal with my bullshit heart nonsense three times, I can openly admit I'm…selfish, and I want to be a Hero, and…while you all are my absolute world…its…just one of those stupid things about me."
"Hey." She said, kissing my cheek and taking my hand. "It's okay to be selfish. To have your own dreams and desires. You can still be the hero you want and enjoy the peace. Heck, you did a lot here before the New Foundation came along and you did lead the successful raid on Lust that got you 682 and the deal with Midas. Being selfish isn't inherently bad as long as you don't let it consume your every thought. Alright?"
"Alright." I said softly. "Just…don't want to be shoved to the background is all…"
"Don't worry. You aren't gonna become some background character. This isn't a TV show or whatever. So, that just leaves the question of what do you want to do today then Hero?"
"Well…I suppose I should start with seeing why 682 was…happy to have gotten her shit pushed in…" I admitted.
"Oh she let you do anal?"
I managed not to fall off my chair.
"Not that!" I whined as she laughed. "I mean when Mantis beat her in a fight."
"I know, but it was right there and I could not resist." She chuckled. "But maybe it's because she's an Apex Predator. Finding someone strong enough that was able to best her probably thrilled her. I mean, she hates everything and finding someone that her hate and power can't destroy must be exciting in that murder focused brain."
"That…sadly makes sense…" I sighed. "And…due to my pregnancy I can't really try to put that to the actual test…"
"Personally, I think when you can, challenge her."
"Just…hope her programming won't suddenly fuck up and do something bad." I sighed.
"Look, it's very clear that despite her programming, she hates you. You've told me she told you as much. Her very nature is strong enough to just barely let her true self pull through the programming. Even if her true nature is, for lack of a better word, a bloodthirsty monster, if you can challenge and best her fairly in a fight then I bet just a tiny bit of that hate would turn into tolerance. Maybe even respect."
"I know I know…" I sighed. "Just sucks that…she's just Hate, I don't know why that would be a thing as her existence would be pure pain…"
"Well considering she's still a 682, there's likely a reason for it."
Right… Scarlet King… there's a whole Zone here about him… his kingdom of death and chaos…
"Yeah…I know…" I sighed. "Just wish I didn't have to literally beat some sense into her…"
"Some people don't learn unless you rather physically knock it into them." Delilah chuckled.
I was about to reply when suddenly Hope began calling out. "Bye Dad, bye Mom I'm going to a friend's be back later!" They called out then were off, using Warp.
Again, Delilah chuckled. "Called it "
"Yeah, that is adorable." I chuckled.
"Think it will work out?"
… Huh… knowing how Mantis is… uh… huh…
"Well…unless Mantis took a bit of my advice then I'm sure Mantis will make it work out." I said honestly.
"What was your advice?"
"So for context he was a former Mantis unit for Nokori hunting…so he doesn't fully understand emotions." I said carefully. "But the advice I gave him was to understand why he saw two people from his past life as family, so that he can understand how to see his new family as such."
"Ah. Well, I guess in the end it's up to him. Do hope he finds happiness at least."
… That reminds me… Saw can… help her regain her memories…
"Oh…there's…also another thing that I learned from Mantis…" I said carefully.
"What's up?"
"So, apparently Mantis's mother is the Leader of the Fourth Mother Run Guild and…she helped give Mantis back his memories cause he was also a Prize Pod Person." I said. "That…means you can also get your past memories…"
"..." Delilah was silent for a while. She seemed to be thinking that over. "I can… remember who I was before you opened my pod?"
"Yeah…apparently it's a whole…genetic memory thing so…if you want…"
"... Wow. That's… an option… I never… wow…"
"It's if you want." I said honestly.
"I… think I'll have to think about it. I've lived so long without them…"
"I understand, take your time." I said with a raised hand.
Later that day, I met up with Saw for our usual lunch… there were a lot more restaurants now, so we went to a sushi place.
He honestly looked like I felt.
"And what happened with you today?"
"Two boyfriends and a lot of kids. I'm sure you can relate." He said with a yawn. "What about you?"
"I understand that, but I'm doing well, Hope is friends with Mantis and had a cute crush on them, and I told Delilah…about your new line of work." I said.
"Oh yeah, the memory thing. How'd she take it?"
"She was surprised and needed some time to think about it " I answered. "Spent so long without them she's not sure if she wants them."
"That's fair. So, enjoy the New Foundation Internet yet? They got a lot of wild movies."
"Not yet…just been trying to get through some stuff." I said honest
"Some are good. Some are weird… got a lot of porn though so that's nice."
I managed not to choke on my spring roll.
"Why?" I managed to ask through my coughing fit.
"Oh like you never saw porn before mister million wives."
"Oh hush you." I huffed. "And the million wives was because I wanted to rescue the Prize Pod people, the other half was Delilah having a Harem fetish."
"Yeah yeah. Point is there's more to watch and a lot of ways to be entertained now. Heh. I can already picture the shit you'd watch."
"Yeah yeah." I said with a wave of my hand. "But at least we have Internet again."
"Yeah. Speaking of though, I was looking into some possible jobs and found something you might be interested in." Saw said, pulling a paper from his Assistant.
The paper read,
'Now Hiring office and field agents for the New Foundation Expansion and Exploration Division.'
"Well…that's convenient." I said. "And very much a great thing to know."
"Yeah, it's basically what we're doing, and get this, it's headed by some Nokori and another victim of the Doc." Saw said, making me look at them. So that's the other Phoenix I felt when we were in Infection Zone… Jada's dad, Button Mash.
"Huh, small world." I said honestly. "But at least we'll be getting paid more with this."
"You mean getting paid in general?"
"Eh, true." I shrugged. "We're technically paid with the bases we raided but still."
"Yeah. Plus for once I'd be getting paid to break into other people's property and steal shit. It's literally perfect for me." He laughed. "In other news, Scotch and Zach are getting along well. Zach has been helping Scotch towards earning that Master of the Golden Smithy Legendary Ability."
"Awesome." I said with a smile. "Glad to hear those two are getting along great."
"Both are adorable nerds, so of course they would. Kids adjusted quick. They like the New Foundation School. Lot more kids, lot more friends. That reminds me, they said there's a special place the New Foundation Built for the Violence Y Labs victims to reside if they wish. Little Leto they called it. Pfft. Yeesh if that city is the birthplace of Nokori across the multiverse that's kind of hilarious. But there's a lot to do there so it will be fun. Lot we can do between getting a new job and such."
"Cool." I nodded. "Do you want to visit Little Leto?"
"On a later date, sure. Right now though since I'm kinda one of the farmers the New Foundation guys are asking me to help use that shared ability for agriculture you gave me to fix up some land they scouted for it. Not gonna lie, there is way more to see in this planet room than I initially thought. Did you know we had Zebras?"
"Yes, as I spent a lot of time in said planet room on all sorts of dates." I admitted.
"Pfft. I imagine most of them and you are VIP members of the mile high club?"
"Yeah, we certainly felt miles high that's for sure." I chuckled.
"Yeah, you are a pervert, just less open about it." Saw chuckled. "This is good sushi though." He assed, putting a salmon roll in his mouth.
"Yeah, this sushi is amazing." I nodded, eating my own salmon roll. "Wonder if they got it from a different area or they farmed with a built in ocean or a planet room."
"I know they were serving fish with some of the fishing boats we had found, fixed and built. Maybe it's just from here. Either way, nice to have options aside the bar for our usual lunch meet ups. Kinda don't remember when or how this even became a thing with us."
"You liked to tease me while I became an alcoholic?" I pointed out. out.
"Funny how it ended up huh?"
"Yes, yes it did." I nodded. "Enough time and effort could do a lot of things."
682 has been abnormally… relaxed, since Mantis beat her. I mean, she's still grouchy, growling and such, but she's less vocal. Before she'd state regularly her hatred for me and disinterest in the eggs she laid and the kids that hatched from them.
Now, she just… let's things happen. When time comes we have to do it, silent. The birthing process, silence. Even when I ended up talking about Hope and the others she didn't stop me or even growl in annoyance. Just… kind of half listened.
"Alright you, what's wrong?" I asked.
"Would you like that list in alphabetical or in order of what annoys me most?" She asked dryly, back to me as we laid in the bed in her room. No sheets given… well, yeah. Just finished that up…
"I want to know about ever since you got your ass handed to you by Mantis, why have you been so…silent?"
"I wouldn't expect you to understand."
"Well you can't expect me to understand if I have no idea what's bugging you." I pointed out.
"..."
I sighed as she didn't answer. I laid down, turning my back to her and used Creation to make myself a blanket. So far out of all our kids at least Hope is doing alright. The others… not so much luck…
"I…wish there was a way to help the kids…" I thought, as there were so many that…that need help, to lose the curse of their rage…"Damn it…"
[Notice! You have received the title, Estate!]
… Estate?
[Yeah that's me. Put some clothes on.]
The blue text box with white letters read, appearing above and near my face.
"Uh…you can talk?" I mentally asked.
[Well I make words appear on a blue screen only you can see, so if you consider that talking then yes I talk.]
"Right…so what do you do?" I mentally asked.
[Mainly, help you with your relationships. I also do other stuff but you need to do some other stuff before that becomes available to you.]
"Fair enough." I thought, as I decided to look back to 682 and test Estate out to see if they could tell me what's bugging her.
[682
Relationship Status: -1,244
Don't put your dick in- Too late…]
"Jeez, I know she hates me but didn't expect it that low…" I thought. "Can you tell me what's bugging her or do I have to follow hints?"
[As a 682 entity, she exists to hate and kill, however her breeder Programming prevents her from doing this. She hates you the most as her programming binds her to you, forcing her to feel attraction and lust towards you. She has begun to accept that her desires of slaughter and carnage will be unobtainable. After Mantis beat her in combat, she felt a thrill she long since expected to never ignite again. The thrill of a battle to the death between two immortals. Emerging as the loser, she realizes she'd be more okay with her role had her owner not been a weak twiggy femboy birdman.]
… Bruh!
"...You could have just asked…" I stated carefully. "Okay, seriously what the hell…" I thought at what she thought about me.
[My good shemale, she thinks of you as weaker than herself… and to be honest you basically are. Where you stronger, strong enough to beat her in a fair battle, she'd at least have respect for you and accept her role as your Breeder, but you aren't and a fair fight is impossible as her programming doesn't allow for her to harm her master.]
"Like hell I'm weaker than her!" I thought to myself. "But currently I'm pregnant and this needs to take president before I kick her ass." I thought.
[Again, fair fight! Her programming won't let her attack you back. A one sided fight is not a real battle.]
"She's supposed to obey any and all commands I make, right? As long as it pleases me?" I mentally countered using the 'rules' of the Breeder coding to show that I can have this fair fight.
[Not if it causes harm to you as her Master.]
"Hmm…" I mentally hummed. "Has to be someway to get around this to help her…"
[Either way, fight is out. You can't beat her anyway.]
"Says fucking you, her stats shouldn't be higher than mine and I know how to get past her regeneration." I mentally countered.
[Have you seen her stats?]
I rolled my eyes and used Scan on 682 to see her Stats.
[682
HP: 682/Max+
MP: 682/Max+
ATT: 682/Max+
DEF: 682/Max+
PR: 682/Max+
MR: 682/Max+
ER: 682/Max+
Status R: 682/Max+
Poison R: 682/Max+
Fear R: 682/Max+
Bleed R: 682/Max+
Acid R: 682/Max+
Psychic R: 682/Max+
Disease R: 682/Max+
—
Strength: 682/Max+
Agility: 682/Max+
Vitality: 682/Max+
Vigor: 682/Max+
Intelligence: 682/Max+
Endurance: 682/Max+
Dexterity: 682/Max+]
… Well that's kind of lazy…
"Lazy stat distribution and…what the fuck how is she so strong!?" I thought incredulously.
[These are the 682 entity stats. These are the defaults they all receive from The Scarlet King. Some are stronger. Should Hope or your other kids give into their rage, these stats will also be theirs.]
"I'm going to make damn sure that they don't succumb to their rage." I thought carefully. "And…I have no idea how to even get that many stats…"
[There are a few ways. EXP and Skill Points Farms for one, or some Legendary Abilities let you absorb stats from an enemy you consume.]
"True and…I don't have an EXP and Skill Point farms…and Consume is a concerning ability all around…"
[Wuss.]
"And the reason you said that is?"
[Because you are.]
"I am not a wuss, having standards is not wuss worthy." I mentally stated.
[Well there is one other way I can think of but odds are you also won't like it very much.]
"And…what would that be?" I mentally asked.
[... How'd you like to let her indulge in her murderous tendencies in a Chaos Guilds Base Raid?]
"Well…I suppose that would work, but is EXP sharable?" I inquired.
[Get her killing and more than EXP will be shared.]
"Really?" I thought, cause I haven't really tested out the new Update given I was still pregnant. "I mean, yes Mom can put them under her Custody and move the Skill Points…"
[That's gonna be needed but not what I'm referring to.]
"Then what are you referring to? Cause it sounds like your referring to something completely different than what I think." I mentally told them.
[Can't say. I do have protocols to follow.]
"Of course…" I mentally grumbled. "...Want to go murder some people?"
"YES!" 682 shouted. "Finally! Best thing you ever told me ya rainbow bitch!"
"...Okay first, rude." I huffed. "And second…let's get washed up first then go find a Chaos Guild base.'
"But the town is so much closer…" She groaned as she got up and began stretching.
"No harming the town." I frowned. "But maybe there will be some strong opponents for you to fight if we head to a Chaos Base."
"Sounds like fun. Let's head out." She said, picking me up off the bed and carrying me in her arm…
Wait, wait we're still naked!
"We're still naked hold on!" I yelped with a bright blush. "I am not going Chaos Guild hunting naked again!"
"I don't have a problem with it. Let their last moments of life be filled with our bare skin as we bathe in their blood." She said with a grin as she left the room.
…
"Uh…huh…" I said carefully "You are…really excited about this…"
"Unlike you, modesty is not something I care for. Let them look, they'll die either way." She chuckled as she headed to the front door.
"PFFT- HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHA!" Saw laughed.
I was a very deep shade of red looking at the new Wanted posters…
682 had her own now, showing her blood soaked body decorated in some poor Chaos Guilds members organs as half a torso in her maw. The bounty for her was set at 400 trillion rem.
Mine… showed my body, also covered in blood… enough dried and caked on. I used some fire as makeshift covers and despite that I still looked sexy as hell and insane…
It also got a really good shot of my pregnancy belly…
Bounty was now 4.9 billion rem… and an extra 50 million if they capture my spawns… the posters phrasing not mine…
"I…just wanted some positive outing…but no…" I groaned as I hit my head against the table.
"D-d-d- did she then bang you in the gore?" Saw asked, shaking as he was pushing himself up on my dining room table.
… "Y… yeah…"
Saw was back on the ground laughing.
"Sh-shut up!" I shouted in embarrassment.
"You loved it~." I heard 682 growl at me, either because they enjoyed watching me suffer in this burning embarrassment or because they genuinely did like the…weird gore covered fuck fest we had…I don't know…
[Estate Title Generated!
Apex Predator Waifu
When 682 kills, slaughters and devours, you will gain all her victims stats, abilities and inventories as long as you two end the slaughter with a literal bang.]
"Are you fucking kidding me?" I mentally groaned…but I decided to check to see if it worked retroactively…
… Well my stats sure jumped… glad to know it applied all that prior… holy shit… also what the fuck?!
"Okay so…first, how did you do that? And two…holy shit…" I thought as I looked at all the shit I got from…all that.
[Part of my function is that I can create new Titles, referred to as Estate Titles. These normally give you small buffs, give you a set amount of RP every so often, or just help in some way that's beneficial to you. Course I can name when whatever I want and set their requirements to whatever I want so, enjoy after murder sex with your SCP waifu you monster fucker.]
"...I don't like this…" I mentally groaned. "So…to add insult to injury…a sentient AI title I just obtained called Estate…gave me a title that…does something's…" I said carefully.
[AI? Bitch that AI better stand for Actual Intelligence!]
"You are technically Artificial due to you being a Title that was most likely crafted by the Family, most likely from Lord cause he's a petty bitch." I mentally answered.
[Keep talking and you'll see he's not the only one who can be petty…]
"Alright alright." I mentally rolled my eyes.
"And…what does the title do?" Saw asked.
"I…get a lot of things from whatever 682 murders." I said. "From stat boosts, skill points, all the items they owned and the like."
"Damn, that's impressive… and weird you'd be alright with her murdering people in exchange for power. Cause ya bitched like hell when I did it."
"I hate it immensely." I stated. "I don't want this to happen cause it's sick and twisted and goes against every fiber of my being…but I learned that 682 has been in a mild depressive slump due to fighting Mantis and…I wanted to do something to at least cheer her up." I said carefully.
"... That bitch? DEPRESSED?!"
[Less depressed and more… if she could choose she'd prefer someone stronger than you to be her master. There's literally no room in her mind nor heart for genuine love and affection, instead there's a primal desire on an instinctual level for her to breed with the strongest. Which is at the moment, not you. Think of it like how some animals fight over a female and then the female picks the strongest to breed with. Same principle.]
"Well, more like she has a primal animalistic desire to breed with someone strong, stronger than her…and I'm not because her Stats are Max/+, which is over nine hundred and ninety nine centillion…" I said carefully.
"... So what you're saying is that she so much as grips you too tight while you're fucking her and your junk's getting ripped off… yeah, like you didn't already have a million reasons not to stick it in her…"
"And Mantis is stronger." I said, which made Saw go a bit pale at that realization. "And Urus is most likely as strong if not stronger than Mantis…and then there's the Majority that kidnapped Three, who was fighting in the All Maker War…and unless I figure out a more humane way of getting stronger…"
"... Well, could be worse."
"I'm pretty sure it's getting worse…" I frowned. "So…unless I figure out something to make getting stronger easier…I just have to…do the things…"
"Do the do after bloody, messy murder… I feel like I need a shower…"
"Trust me…it's worse when you actually have to do it…" I sighed.
"... My condolences. Still think you're nuts for keeping her but at this point there isn't much you can do to get rid of her." Saw shivered.
"Hey, have you seen Hope around?" Rin asked me.
"Hmm, they are either with Mantis or they are…somewhere else." I hummed, using Township to find where Hope was.
"They've been gone for two months if they're with their boyfriend." Rin said, there was some amusement in her tone… but two months was… a while…
"Yeah…while it would be adorable it's…extremely concerning." I said, trying to find Hope in my Township list to see where they were…cause it's been two months…
Hmm… Yeah, here they are. Demonic Invasion Zone. Yeesh, knew they liked Mantis but… this is… a lot.
"I should go see them…" I said carefully. "Hopefully they didn't do something weird…"
I got up and headed towards the New Foundation Portal Hub. It was nice to see all these people just… being safe here. Once I give birth and the babies are a few months old I'm gonna apply for that Expansion and Exploration job.
I arrived at the Demonic Invasion Zone and… wow. A whole mountain, surrounded by tall stone walls and a barrier, all for farming… this looks amazing. But where are the people?
I took a few steps and- SHIT!
"Hello again Hero." Mantis said as he looked at me. Rather expressionless as usual.
"Hi Mantis…" I said. "Please…don't scare me like that." I added as I put a hand playfully to my chest.
"My intention was not to scare you. It was to greet you. I assume you're here about Hope?"
"Yes, Hope has been here for two months and I'm concerned." I admitted.
"Yes. They said they live here now."
Wat?
"...Why?" I asked, as I wasn't sure if this was them going through some rebellious phase or…worse…
"They said we're dating now and couples should live together."
I managed not to fall over at that absurd statement.
"That's…not entirely how that works…" I said carefully.
Mantis shrugged. "Heather argued, then Hope became ten feet tall, suplexed her into the wall, and that ended any discussions of Hope moving out. Heather is still… I believe Urus used the term… salty, about that."
Hope did what?!
"That's not good at all." I frowned. "Not good in the slightest…"
"Aside that incident, they've been helpful and nice to everyone. They help get Meat from demons to sell and sometimes goes out to deal with Demon Lords and Titans."
"Well…at least they've been doing good…" I said. "Mind taking me to them?"
"Alright." Mantis said with a nod as he led me to a cave where a huge portal took up most of the back area. Ah. Neat.
Once through I was in… someplace else. A giant… kind of gothic castle.
Mantis walked me towards some doors, when he opened them revealed a fairly empty bedroom, a desk, some books, paper… and Hope who was scratching the head of another little lamb Nokori boy. One arm, only one pair of feathered wings on their back. They were identical to Mantis.
"Uh…hi there Hope and…I believe you must be Matthew right?" I inquired to the identical twin of Mantis.
"Hi!" Matthew said, with enough joy and genuine happiness in his tone I felt some minor whiplash.
"Hi dad. What brings you by?" Hope asked, still stretching Matthew on his head.
"One, it's been two months without any of us seeing hide, scale or feather from you." I pointed out. "And two…it's nice to meet you Matthew, my name's Hero."
"Hi. You're feathery." Matthew said.
"I'm just enjoying being in a relationship with Mantis… and Matthew."
"I am very feathery, and Hope…you need to come home." I said carefully.
"Nah I'm good." They said. Scratching Matthew's head some more.
"You need to come home Hope, we're worried about you." I said carefully.
"But I live here now."
"No, you live back in the Nightmare Settlement with your family, you claimed to live here under a misunderstanding, than assaulted Mantis's mother when she tried to explain." I stated.
"Misunderstanding?" They asked me with a raised brow.
"Tell me, why do you think you should be living here?" I asked.
"Because I'm dating Mantis and Matthew."
"That's not how dating works." I sighed. "Dating is spending time together yes, but not literally living together until you are older, maturity that isn't physical…and at the time when you would want to get married and spend the rest of your lives together." I stated.
"You lived ten plus years with all your wives before you got married and that didn't stop you from living with them and having kids with them. Mama Delilah has been with you since you were fifteen and you two were living together while you dated."
… Uh…
"Thats because all my wives…" I sighed. "All my Wives are Prize Pod people, they…didn't have homes before I came along, and also, when we were stuck here for ten years, even if they did have homes before…they would have lost them." I explained the best I could to Hopes otherwise sound logic.
"And in Delilah's case where she swiped your V-card in the bath? You two shared a room and bed back then even."
… Uh…
"You shouldn't know these things." I huffed.
"I have all your memories!"
…
"And like I said, you shouldn't know those things." I said.
"Did you forget what I told you the day I was born?"
I sighed. "No, no I didn't forget." I answered, hoping Estate can chime in like they did with 682 just to help me figure out what the hell is going on here.
[Hope
Relationship Status: 15
They are a fully independent entity of a species where the concepts of age are irrelevant as they could appear physically whatever age they want with the mental faculties of both parents combined.
Hero, they may be your child, but they've never been young. They were born intelligent and aware of the world, themselves, and the maturities of their progenitors.]
"That doesn't stop this from feeling like Hope just abandoning family for the first person to show them kindness!" I mentally shouted. "...Do you dislike your family?" I…just had to ask, as they were here for two months straight without so much as a word…
"No. I like my siblings, my moms, I might even say I've started to like you. I'm just trying to have my own life right now. Is that a bad thing?" Hope asked me.
"That isn't a bad thing…but leaving for two months straight without a single word of your whereabouts or if your safe is a bad thing." I stated. "We were worried…"
"I told you, but you just were muttering about 'blood doesn't go there' and 'that shouldn't be used as a lubricant' and 'I could still taste that off her lips' and other stuff like that."
"That was still two months ago…I just assumed I kept missing you when I went to check on you and the other kids…" I frowned.
"I'm not much of a kid though dad. I mean, Matthew here is technically eighty seven… maybe older?" Hope asked as they looked at Matthew.
"Older but that's technicalities." Matthew said.
"And Mantis is also kind of basically fifteen, sixteen but physically he and Matthew are both seven."
"And the part where you up and left with practically no word to live with the first person that wasn't family to show you kindness?" I asked, cause that was a big red flag no matter the context. "Like, I get you wanting to spend time with your boyfriend here but…even then that's a red flag right there."
"Mantis doesn't mind."
"I believe he meant that I could have been some Shapeshifting predator that would have taken you to one of these Chaos Guilds." Mantis pointed out in his more or less unfeeling tone. "With your love for me blinding you to the dangers and rush to this kind of commitment."
"... Look, dad, I get you're worried, I do, but at some point we're all gonna leave home at some point. My siblings and I, the ones born from mom, 682, can basically all just live on our own already. Do I need to remind you about Tyler?"
I winced… Tyler hatched, ate, matured… took one look at me and just… Warped out of there… I haven't seen him since… that was four months back…
"...I know that…I do, well and truly…" I sighed. "Just…"
"It was without warning, and while you approve of our relationship you think two months is too fast for our current arrangements." Mantis stated.
"Yes…thank you Mantis." I nodded. "Age might not matter, and mentally it's all over the place…also, technicality on age doesn't work due to how Echoes work and it's a whole thing…" I shook my head.
"Dad you're starting a mutter storm…" Hope said with a flat look.
"I am not." I stated. "I'm just pointing out that Echoes and ages mean nothing as I am technically a fusion of an Echo." I stated. "But…if you're happy."
"I am. Mantis is… different. Yes emotions wise he's maybe not there but I like to think I'm helping. And Matthew here is adorable!" They said, giving Matthew a tight hug. "And they're both so soft and fluffy!"
"They cuddle us both at night." Mantis said.
"Yes, Nokori fluff is weirdly insanely soft." I admitted.
"Besides, it's not like we're doing anything lewd dad. We hang out, fight demons, play video games. Basically Matthew teaches me to actually act like a kid and we both help Mantis learn about emotions." Hope said.
"True. When I first came back, Mantis cried." Matthew said.
"Well, considering what he told me about you being one of the only two people he saw as true family, I'm not surprised." I shrugged.
"I uh… it was… a new sensation." I actually blinked as I looked at Mantis as he said that… was he… flustered?!
"That's another new emotion. Embarrassment." Hope said.
"Yeah." Matthew nodded.
"Making great strides I see." I chuckled.
"So as you can see, it's all good. I guess I should visit more. I've just been having fun I… kind of forgot from your perspective I'm still your kid…" Hope said.
"Yes, you are still my child, and I care about you dearly." I said softly.
"Sorry… So… that everything because now it's a little awkward."
"No, that should be everything…just don't fight Mantis's mother again alright? She was just as confused and worried about the situation as I was."
"Fine. Actually, do you want to talk to her? I think she's in her throne room."
"She is." Mantis said with a nod.
"And where's the Throne Room?" I asked. "Cause I'm pretty sure I have to apologize for you suplexing her."
"Ten doors down to the right."
"Thank you." I nodded. "Love you Hope." I told my child as I headed off to meet Mantis's mother.
Well, this will be interesting. I walked down to the door. Ten down and to the right… ah, they're bigger. That helps. I opened the door and-
"What do you mean fertility festival?!" I heard a woman's voice scream.
"Exactly that my lord. For the next two weeks the demons of your domain partake in sexual relations day and night for two whole weeks. It's the most population boosting period for the demons." Another voice, a bit gravely and a bit high pitched said.
… Did I come at a bad time because I'm pretty sure I just heard there's a two week long demon orgy happening here…
"Uh…I can come back later if need be…" I said sheepishly.
I closed the door and… left before anything else happened.
I was sitting in the living room reading a book. The day was calm, six months along now. Three more and I'll have given birth and be able to do more stuff. Thankfully Hope has been visiting… once a week but better than nothing-
I blinked as I heard the sound of… a golf cart?
In driving through the livingroom was a golf cart with two other pulled attached seats behind it. Saw at the drivers seat and all his and some of my kids sitting in the other seats.
"And to your left is the legendary Phoenix, this bird burns with the heat of the sun and is currently nesting her three soon to be hatchlings." Saw said in a tour guide-like voice.
The kids all went 'ooh' and took photos with various cameras.
…
I raised a hand and Saw was yanked from his drivers seat and his throat was in my hand. "And this phoenix is trying to rest…" I said carefully with a mildly strained smile. "So tell me…why?"
"Long story short, I lost a bet with Kelly." Saw chuckled. "But I did bring a peace offering." He said, a Warp portal opening next to him as he reached in and pulled out a large packet of barbecue flavored rice cakes.
"...Just be glad I'm hungry and not pulling a Hellsing Abridged reference." I said carefully, dropping him as I grabbed my race cakes and let food quench my hormone induced anger.
He then warped back to the drivers seat. "And remember kids, no animal is more dangerous than when they're pregnant or defending their young." Saw said, his tour guide voice returning as he drove off with the lot of chuckling kids.
… I'd be more mad if there were no kids present…
"Really lucky he had the kids and peace…I would have ripped him in half…" I grumbled as I ate my rice cakes.
Still, what kind of bet did he lose with Kelly to have to do that? Yeesh…
"Whiskey is fine, Hero, for the last time today…" Kelly growled as I checked on the newborn… again today…
"Well, that was partly why I'm here, the other is what bet did Saw lose?"
"Heh, I bet him I could chug two gallons of honey in a single sitting." She chuckled.
…
"Why?" I asked.
"My pregnancy cravings are weird and he didn't think I could drink two gallons of honey." She shrugged. "Just wish I could have seen your face when he drove up into your livingroom with the kids on that golf cart. He told me you choked him." She chuckled.
"You ever seen those strained smiles holding back pure unbridled malice?" I asked, which made her laugh.
"Yeesh, you an angry mamma birdy." She laughed. "But the kids had fun with him and be honest, it was kind of funny."
"Only reason why I didn't shear him and set him on fire afterwards was because the barbeque rice cake offering and the kids." I admitted.
"Yeesh. Take a joke much? Not like anyone got hurt, nothing was damaged and it was more for the kids enjoyment. That's a bit of an overreaction."
"Hormones, grouchy about 682, and just a lot of other thing's bugging me…"
"Relaxing and going with the flow isn't really your strong suit is it?"
"I try, I really do…then I either step into something weird or…I just remind myself how little things matter…"
"Alright enough of that you're coming with me." She said, yanking me by my wrist and into her house.
I was pulled along until we came to… woah it's humid in here… wait is that a fucking hot spring?!
"Alright strip, get in the water and relax. I don't bring just anyone in this room, even for sex, so consider yourself lucky." Kelly said as she took off her few bits of clothing and began heading into the water.
I took off my clothes and followed into the water as I…haven't been to a hot spring in ages. "It's…been forever since I've last been in a hot spring…"
One thing I find both useful and upsetting is that my body adapts. Extreme heats just feel like a gentle warmth to me, and extreme colds, my body heats up, generating heat like an engine and warming myself and everyone around me.
Once I was neck deep in the water I sighed. The heat felt soothing, warm and it was nice to let my wings just soak in the mineral rich hot spring water.
"Heh, feeling better already?" Kelly asked.
"Immensely." I sighed happily.
"Yeah. Back before I had Scotch, the various pains and such were getting to me. Met this guy that made mini planet rooms. Made me this place and I ended up adding a few things, but this is genuine volcanic hot spring water and it feels oh so good on the muscles. I usually take a bath here once a week or so to de-stress and feel refreshed."
"Yeah…this is incredible." I said in bliss, just enjoying the warmth and all the soothing things.
"Considered getting a fully automated spa room once. But this does the work and then some." She sighed as we both sat and relaxed in the warm mineral rich water.
"It's any day now. You can enjoy the bed rest until your labor starts." Three said, giving me my lunch. Nine months pregnant with triplets, and yes I did check, triplets, makes moving very hard so… yeah… ugh. I genuinely do feel like a mamma bird in the nest with my one massive egg… other wise known as my stretched beach ball of a belly…
"I…should probably invest in the Mother skill tree to…make this a bit more bearable…" I grumbled at the mild discomfort of this. "But…it's all worth it I suppose."
Three chuckled, leaning down and kissing my cheek. "It will be. Over three Era's we waited to have this…" He said, gently placing a hand on my stomach. "Might not be how we expected it, but it's finally happening."
"Yeah…it's finally happened." I said with a smile, but…something just…felt off, like someone was missing and I don't know why. "And this'll be an absolute wonderful moment for the both of us."
"What should we name them? We haven't been talking names yet."
True. Hmm, triplets… my three babies. Two are twin boys, and the third is a girl. Ultrasound told us such. All three are half Phoenix Nokori and half Clockwork synthetic like their papa. Hmm…
"Well…I want to name the girl Katsuki." I said softly. "Then for our sons…" I hummed.
"Katsuki? You mean the female pronounced form of your… uh, old acquaintance, Kaachan?" Three asked.
"Yes…cause…something about me calling her that name feels…fitting." I said, putting a hand to my chest. "Like…it'll finally be a piece of my heart that I've been missing for a long time will come back."
"Heh, if you insist. And what about our boys?"
"Hmm…" I hummed, thinking about what to name the boys. "How about one being named Hisashi…and the other Four." I said.
Three laughed. "Okay, but if they ask I'm letting them know you named them that."
"Well do you have any better idea's smart guy?" I asked playfully.
"Never said I did." He said, chuckling as his laughter died down. "So, are you looking forwards to greeting our kids?"
"Yes, I can't wait to see our kids after so long." I said with a warm smile.
"What do you think they'll be when they grow up?" Three asked as he sat next to me on the bed.
"No idea…cause I'm having a lot of whiplash having great times with my kids and…then 682's kids exist…"
"Hope moved out, one ran off, the others largely ignore you… Not a good thing so far…"
"And I still have no fucking idea how to fix any of that." I frowned. "I don't give a shit that they're all born from literal Rage Incarnate, they shouldn't be cursed to suffer the same fate as their mother." I frowned.
"Well, Hope is at least doing well."
"Yes…and so far that's one out of ten…" I frowned. "And I have no idea what to do about it…"
"Not much you can do... In the end, how they come out is just… up to chance…" Three sighed, rubbing my shoulder. "We just have to hope that as they age and… become their own persons, they make good choices."
"Hopefully…" I sighed.
"Bitch it's not that serious!" Saw yelled as I was running through the Portal Hub. I was pulling him by his leg, upside down and making it towards a new portal. The second it went up, I felt brothers power burst from it like a burst pipe.
"Then clearly you have no fucking idea how serious this is!" I snapped.
"I don't because you bust my front door open, grab me by the leg and then just bolt out of there carrying me like bag luggage!" Saw snapped back.
"Because it's Adventure Time!" I laughed. "But seriously, I need some emotional support here, you aren't ever busy, and Delilah is going to jump scare someone when we get through the portal."
"I was having lunch with my boyfriends! So I was a little busy now right side me up before I start to get nauseous and tell me the fuck is going on!"
"Okay, so one of the portals opened up and I felt brother's power just explode out from it! I'm going to see my brother again, and you're going to bitch smack David." I said.
"Then why didn't you start with that!?" Saw shouted.
"Sorry, I was just so excited."
"Can you put me down so I can at least walk on my own? This upside down view of everything is getting a bit dizzying." Saw said.
I put him down and once he refocused we bolted, finding the portal. Aqua Terra? Weird.
We- Holy shit!
The other side of the portal here was… just a legit city!
"And they say there aren't safe places on Armageddon." Saw said as we looked around.
Fuck. Brothers' magic is everywhere here. He's clearly been living here a while. Might be harder to track him than I hoped.
"Yeah, this is really surprising." I said honestly. "And his magic is everywhere, so I have no idea where to find him."
"Maybe someone here knows- FUCK ME!" Saw yelped, jumping into my arms.
"Hello again Saw." A female voice spoke and I felt… every predatory instinct in my body scream at me to run as my magic felt… off and violated. Looking down was a short, Mouse Nokori woman with black eyes and blue hair, dressed in a pink dress and hairbow.
"Spoopy mouse kid!" Saw yelped.
"I'm all grown up now. Heh. Looks like you did end up in this reality as well." She said with a chuckle, then looked at me. "... Who's the walking fetish?"
"I'm not a walking fetish." I huffed. "My names Hero, and…two things, one, who are you very scary Void Mouse lady…and two, do you know where my brother is? Very special Galaxy Phoenix that was fuzed with possibly the world's angriest idiot?" I asked, remembering David as a rather…confusing man who can think rather well but tends to act like he didn't have a brain at all.
She looked me up and down. "You're related to his… Phoenix?"
"It's a whole thing…" Saw huffed as he got out of my arms. "We aren't here to cause trouble, Hero here would have an aneurysm if I tried."
"Considering the last time I saw you, you set three city blocks on fire, blew up an oil tanker into the Leto Police Department, killed at least fourteen cops, ten army soldiers and three Agency Agents… I'm not very inclined to tell you…"
"Heh… yeah… I forgot about that…" Saw said with some worry.
"Okay…so yes, I was Nokori fuzed with a relative to David's Phoenix, two Saw has completely mellowed out with two husband's and twenty children, and if you don't want to tell him can you please tell me? I can sense his magic everywhere and I have no idea where to begin…"
She crossed her arms. "I'd need insurance."
"What kind of insurance do you want?" I asked.
"That kind that keeps him on a leash." She said, motioning to Saw.
"Fair… okay, what do you want?" Saw asked.
"..." The mouse lady smirked. "You are going to help my husband with some experiments."
"You got married? Damn…. Well, alright… where is the uh…"
"That would be me." I jumped, seeing a pair of Skeletal hands appear from behind Saw, putting themselves on his shoulders. A whole skeleton with a lab coat, black turtle neck and brown pants stood behind Saw, glowing whites in the eye sockets for eyes and cracks along those same eye sockets all looking down at Saw with a rather wise smirk. "Call me Gastor. I'm one of the main scientists of New Earth. You don't happen to be immortal do you?"
Saw was quiet, looking between Gastor and the mouse lady. "... Somehow this makes sense but also raises so many questions… and, yes actually I did get an Immortality Ability." Saw said.
"Perfect. We'll get started right away. I know a shortcut to the lab." Gastor said, then he and Saw were gone in an instant, not even a blink just… gone.
… I looked back to the mouse lady…
"Should…I be scared that Saw was just practically kidnapped by W.D. goddamn Gaster?" I asked nervously.
"Oh so you know my husband then? Hm, that's interesting at least. Don't worry, Wing Ding won't… well, the tests will be painful but they're needed to get results on tests we normally can't perform due to… ethical concerns." She said simply.
"Right…" I said carefully. "And yes, I do know about Undertale and Deltarune, even two hundred years after they were made they're still highly respected in the gaming community." I said readily. "But uh…what's your name again?"
"Squeaks." She answered.
"It's nice to meet you, Squeaks." I nodded.
"Right… still iffy on you but you also look like you can't hurt a fly so, you wanted to know where Romero is?"
"Yes, I would like to know where Romero is." I nodded. "I've been…waiting for a long time to see him again."
"He's at the beach today with his Partner Shift and girlfriend Holy." She said. "It's west of here, there's a portal to that specific beach is in the Hub you came from, just look for the Gold Sands Beach portal."
I nodded. "Thank you Squeaks…and uh…please don't hurt Saw too much, I promise he's been doing good and he genuinely has a family that he loves and cares for." I said carefully.
"... I'll keep that in mind, but he still has to pay for what he did in Leto… for Trish…" She said, then like Gastor, vanished into thin air.
… Okay so… I'm sure he'll be fine…
I quickly went back to the Portal Hub, finding the one for Gold Sands Beach and I exited to an amazing sandy beach. The sands had a golden yellow color to it, hence the name I guess.
Okay… now where is he?
"Hmm…I should probably sense other energies…" I thought to myself, as I flew into the air and tried to sense other magics as Squeaks said that he was with two others.
Okay so where would-
SMACK-BOOM!
…
…
…
"I swear, I thought it was you Romero!" I heard someone yell. A woman I think?
"You two look… similar." Another woman's voice spoke.
"That's still no excuse to throw a volleyball at them at mach-10!" I heard a man's voice yell.
"Please. If it had been you, you'd have laughed it off." The first woman replied.
"... You aren't wrong… but… who the hell is this?" The man's voice asked again.
Why is everything all… painful… and dizzy…
"Brother, I don't wanna be a Nokori no more…" I whined in pain.
"... Great, she's delirious." The second woman spoke.
"Save the fact this one's got way more built in armor." A distorted voice that sounded like many spoke at once, slightly high pitched and a bit gravelly.
"Ugh…fuck, okay…I'm…getting my bearings…" I groaned as I lightly got up. "First…fuck did I do?" I asked accusingly.
"Sorry, I thought you were Romero here so I threw the Volleyball at ya…" I blinked, letting my eyes readjust and saw a Nokori fused Star Doe with curly red head hair. "Heh, sorry again. Swore you were Romero."
"You good?" The distorted voice spoke. I turned, seeing a Mimic Nokori fusion, standing shortest of the ones I could see, even Squeaks, with a sideways mouth and three eyes on the other side of their face.
"I'm…fine." I groaned. "Not…the worst thing I've been hit by but still…" I sighed. "But…introductions are in order, my name is Hero, and to make some jumbled mess easier, one part of me is Izuku Midoriya, another part is a Sun Phoenix that is the Galaxy Phoenix's brother." I pointed to said Galaxy Phoenix Nokori.
"... Uh, what?" I turned and saw them. From when I saw them long ago back on that planet earth… only with their wings spread out and wide in the open and their feet bare and standing in the sand. Brother…
"It's…a long story." I sighed. "And…you look exactly like you did way back when…" I said, fearing that the sudden time difference…weakened or snuffed out Brother's spirit…
"... Do I know you?" Romero asked, scratching their head.
"Well they know you." The white furred Moth Nokori woman with black hair said.
"...Remember the bird that attacked you, squawking and crying as if you did something to drastically upset them?"
"... Wait, that was you?!"
"Yeah, that was-"
KICK!
AGH!
"Do you know how many suits I've been through?! I spent no small fortune on replacements!" Romero shouted after kicking me in the face.
"David!" The white moth lady said.
"She deserved it!"
"I deserved it!? First! Suit was tacky, and second! I didn't know how it happened at the time, I just thought you murdered my brother and was desperately wanting him back, you chucklefuck." I yelled, jumping to my feet to glare at them.
"Well it's not like I spoke squawks so pardon me for seeing a random phoenix burn my clothes off like some anime trope!" Romero yelled back. "And tacky?! At least I don't look like some nerds fantasy RPG avatar!"
"At least I'm not some bullshit OP OC." I frowned.
"At least I can claim to be the original you cosplay looking genderbent porn tag!"
"You got me there, your stupidity is one of a kind."
"At least my wanted posters don't end up crumpled and sticky!"
I felt like barfing.
"Okay, first, that's fucking disgusting and I hate how both times I was either too black out drunk to care or was literally kidnapped while naked to commit Chaos Guild murder." I frowned.
"... Bitch I was making that up the hell you mean I was right?!"
"They admitted it! The winner is Romero!" The star doe said, appearing next to them and raising their arm to the sky. "And… Hero, right?" She asked me.
"Yes, my name is Hero, the name is for reasons cause it's a whole thing…" I sighed. "But…either my brother is hiding inside Romero or…Time finally caught up…"
"What, you mean the old bird?" Romero asked. "He's still here. He just prefers to observe. He's only talked to me like, twice in my whole nine thousand years of life."
"Yes…" I said carefully, as I just sighed at that. "So…who are you all? I know about David Romero here but…who are you three?"
"Name's Meg." The Star Doe said.
"Holy." The moth woman said.
"Shift." The mimic said.
"It's nice to meet you three." I nodded. "So, sorry about the mild…shouting contest…"
"It's alright. Meg doesn't have a brain cell to her name so, apologies again for her assaulting you with a high speed volleyball." Holy said.
"Braincells are for nerds." Meg said with a smirk.
"Really glad you were more focused on your career back in Leto otherwise you'd have been the fourth member of the Village Idiots…" Holy huffed.
"Better days." Romero chuckled.
"Which I find strange that Meg is the one saying it cause she looks like a Theatre nerd all day." I said. "And if you're wondering how I know this, her physique is a dead giveaway to a dancer, just having a tough time guessing which kind…Ballerina or Broadway?" I asked Meg.
"Yes." Meg said.
"She's done it all. From hip hop to traditional cultural dances." Romero said.
"So… you came all the way here looking for Romero to try and talk to his Phoenix?" Holy asked.
"Yes, I came all this way to talk to my brother." I nodded. "And…before you ask why I'm saying 'my'...again, it's a whole thing, needed another soul searching existential crisis…just a lot of nonsense." I shook my head.
"Could care less, don't want an explanation, and again, the old bird doesn't talk much… like, at all." Romero sighed. "Spoke to me twice, once was before I fought a lunatic and taught me how to burn a soul to ashes, the other time was after a rather lengthy and repetitive suicide attempts."
"Still weird that bird's consciousness is in you somewhere." Holy said.
"Eh, I got used to it. I actually forget at times."
"So…grand total of this was a waste of time…" I said, as after waiting for fucking forever to finally meet my brother again…all he's going to do is hide…"Fantastic…" I shook my head. "Four thousand fucking years…"
"Well, you got a consolation prize here." Shift said, pointing a thumb at Romero. "If your Phoenix and his were kin, then that makes you two family."
"If she wants." Romero said. "Cause so far this meeting hasn't been that good."
"Yeah…not really a good start to a meeting being assaulted and effectively called a whore…" I admitted. "One hell of a consolation prize huh?"
"Yeah, ain't I just a piece of work?" Romero laughed.
"He needs so much therapy." Holy laughed.
"No! My special spicy sparkle!"
Pfft!
"Okay…okay that got me." I laughed.
"I get by without brain cells. Used to have one, but I lent it to Meg and she lost it." Romero said.
"I said I'm sorry!" Meg said.
"My one brain cell in this life and you lost it!" Romero replied, the two then laughing at the bit they both were rather committed to.
"Looks like you all have fun." I said softly. "And you must be their handler." I looked to Holy.
"That's one word for it. These days I'm his girlfriend." She chuckled.
"And I'm Romero's partner." Shift said, showing me a gold ring on their ring finger.
Huh… well that's a dynamic.
"I have become a basic anime protagonist…" Romero sighed.
I looked him over real quick. "...Yeah, basic."
"Oh hush, you know you love us." Holy said, giving Romero an elbow and a laugh.
"Yes, yes I do… still never telling Silver this if she's here." Romero said.
"Agreed." The three others all said in unison.
"Well…at least I found something nice." I thought to myself as I looked at the four again and how…happy they were.