Chapter 1: Training
"Alrighty, we're here!" With a duffle bag slung over his shoulder, N climbed out of the taxi, holding his new bundle of life in his arms. Turning to the taxi driver, N shifted to one arm and dug into his pocket. "No, No!" The taxi driver held out a hand, shaking his head. "I cannot!" N blinked his eyes, tilted his head far to let IF poke his cheek.
"Uh… why not?" Grinning, the taxi driver gave N a thumbs up.
"I let passengers with kids ride free!" N glanced at IF, who pulled away her hand. The child looked at him with a blank stare. "Also, the Guild's already paid up for ya!"
"O-Oh, thanks then…" The taxi driver's smile shined as he grabbed the car door.
"No worries! Take good care of yaself!" Closing the door, the taxi drove off towards town, kicking up a cloud of dirt. Coughing, N smothered IF with his jacket to protect her from the dirt. Suddenly, the young man flinched, nearly dropping the child.
"Ow-!" N stared his shoulder to see IF's mouth wrapped around it, exactly where the pain was. "Uh…-Guh!" N squeezed an eye shut as IF continued her assault on his jacket. Sighing, N patted the girl on the back. "Well, at least you're no-" N narrowed his eyes. "No wait, she drooling." Ignoring the growing wet spot on his shoulder, N stepped over the dirt lot to the apartment building he live in, glancing at the toddler every other step.
The apartment complex that N lived in was a simple building, with two floors. There were three doors on each floor, while the there was a door in the back of the building that led to an extra compartment, which was currently used as ashed. The building itself was coated in a warm brown color, while the doors were painted a dark forest green. Stepping up the slightly worn metal staircase, N walked over to the middle door. The door had small plaque on the door with the letter N on it.
The young man used his free arm to dig into his pocket, pausing when he only felt his wallet. N glanced over to the other side of his body, where IF had let go of his shoulder and was lying comfortably on his chest. Gently reaching over to the other pocket with his free hand, N pursed his lips and exhaled through his nose.
"My keys are over there…" Glancing at IF again, N slowly shifted IF to his other arm, the cold air beating down on his drool-soaked shoulder. As soon as N finished moving IF, the toddler opened her large eyes. "Oh… hey, Iffy." With a large yawn, the child tightened her grip on N's jacket and pressed her head against his chest again. "Phew… I was worried that she'd start crying for some reason…" Pulling out his keys, N unlocked the door and carried his child inside.
Taking a deep breath, N sighed as he dropped the duffle bag to the side. Kicking off his shoes, N walked out of the entrance hall to stare into his darkened apartment.
"Oh right, lights." Feeling around for the light switch, N flipped it upon finding it. When the lights turned on, N walked past the bathroom and toilet doors to see the rest of his apartment. N's apartment only had two main rooms. In the room he had walked into, there was a couch that faced away from the entrance while there was a small coffee table and an arm chair across from it. To the right of the entrance hall was the kitchen, where a dining table and two round stools were shoved to a corner of the wall. In the kitchen was a decent-sized fridge and a counter table combined with a stove and a sink. Under the counter were some cupboards where N kept his kitchenware and utensils. Across the entrance hall a small table with a purple laptop. To the left of the coffee table set up was a sliding door, which N walked to.
Stepping over some dirty clothes that he left on the floor, N made a mental note to clean the place tomorrow. Pushing the door aside, N looked into the second main room, his bedroom. The room was basically empty because he kept his futon in a closet inside his room, which was to the left of the door he entered. Across the room was a windowed door that led to a small balcony.
Opening the closet, N used his free arm to pull out the futon and messily set it up in the middle of his bedroom, careful to not wake up IF. Piling up his extra blankets and pillows in the center of the futon, N gently placed IF in the middle of futon. The baby girl was still asleep, her arms spread like a horsebird flying in the wind.
A small grin touched N's face as he stroked the child's hair before leaving the room and pulling out his phone. As he dialed Ganache's number, N picked up the duffle bag and put the receiver to his ear.
"Hello?"
"Heeeey, Ganchy-"
"Ganache."
"Ganchy." N's grin grew as he heard his boss sigh. "So, I'm just calling to say that I'm home and little Iffy's asleep in my room."
"Iffy?" N nodded his head, despite knowing that Ganache couldn't see him.
"Yeah, if you're gonna have a kid, you gotta have a cutesy nickname for em'. Doncha know?" Ganache coughed into phone.
"I-I see." N shifted the duffle bag over his shoulder and slowly walked over the bedroom. "Is there anything else that you need?" N raised an eyebrow, tapping his finger against his phone.
"Hmm… actually, where am I gonna be for that desk job." N heard Ganache hum. "Cause, paperwork is kinda boring." Ganache sighed.
"Well, even though you will be getting a desk job, you will be taking papers home and working on them there." N blinked his eyes.
"W-Wouldn't those papers be super important?" Ganache chuckled.
"They are, but most of those papers will deal with civil duties that don't need to be prioritized." N furrowed his eyebrows.
"O-Okay, I guess that wor-" Suddenly, an ear-piercing cry coming from his room startled N. Ganache, himself, let out a small cry. "Did you just sh-" The cry continued, increasing in intensity.
"Is something the matter?" N turned to the door to his bedroom, then to the duffle bag.
"Uh… Iffy's-" The crying increased to the point that N had to put a hand over his other ear. "Kinda crying right now-" Now N could hear Ganache sucking in air. "Oh geez, I gotta go!" N could barely hear Ganache grunt, nor hear himself speak. "See ya!"
"Take care." N tossed his phone onto the couch and rushed into his room. IF was bawling her giant baby eyes out, swinging her legs and holding her arms to her chubby chest.
"Iffy, what's wrong?!" Slid to his knees as soon as he entered the room, crawling the rest of the way to the tiny child. "A-Are you hungry?" N tried to pick up the baby, dodging her hostile limbs. "Are ya sleepy?" Picking up IF, N cradled the girl and dropped onto his rear. "What's wrong?" N raised his head with deadpan eyes and stared at the wall. "Why did I ask a three month baby a question?" Suddenly, the cries stopped and N looked down to see IF cooing at him, reaching out with her tiny fingers. "Huh?" N leaned forward as furrowed his eyebrows, letting IF scratch at him with soft claws.
The doorbell rang and N turned to the door. At the same time, IF mumbled something and grabbed onto his hoodie.
"Coming!" N, deciding not to put down IF, stood up and headed towards the front door. The doorbell rung again once he was in the living room. "On my way, hold your dogoos!" Struggling to open the door knob with his elbow, N eventually opened it with his face. "Yes?"
When N opened the door, he was face to face with a woman slightly taller than him. She had long white hair and deep blue eyes. There was a slight crow's feet under her eyes, but her youthful aura hid them efficiently. She wore a light blue sweater with two purple flowers on them while she had a feathered bracelet on her wrist. She wore a long dark purple skirt that stopped just above her black walking shoes.
"N? I heard a child crying upstairs, is there something wro-" The woman paused her she saw IF pulling at N's shirt. Following her gaze, N chuckled awkwardly.
"H-Hey… Ms. Arfoire." The woman made a small laugh.
"N, haven't I told you to call me either Granny or Arfoire?" N scratched the back of his head, struggling to keep IF stable in his arm.
"We-Well, it's kinda hard to when you look so you-" Arfoire gently reached for IF, scooping her up and cradling her with ease.
"N, please. I'm already a grandmother. I'm over it." Shifting IF over her shoulder, Arfoire bounced the child around, slowly turning side to side. "Now that I know that you have this kid, I have one question." N smiled.
"What is it?"
"Why do you have a kid?" Scratching his cheek, N let out a sigh.
"...It's kinda… a long story." Shrugging her shoulders, Arfoire turned away from N's front door. Walking to the stairs, Arfoire glanced at the child before turning to N.
"Why don't you talk about it over some tea and snacks?" N nodded his head.
"Sure…" Putting on his shoes, N stepped out of his apartment.
"Ah, don't forget to lock your door." N glanced at his front door, ajar. A bead of sweat rolled down his face.
"Ah… thanks…"
0 o 0
"So, you saved this kid from bandits?" N nodded his head, watching Arfoire walk to the counter and to a nearby closet.. "And you decided to adopt her?" Another nod. Arfoire pulled a diaper out of the closet and quickly changed IF while still looking at N. N grabbed one of the chocolate chip cookies that Granny had laid out earlier as the elderly woman focused her attention on IF. "Hm, that isn't really long."
"Granny?" Arfoire responded with a hum as she finished buttoning IF's pajamas. The baby girl was changed into pair of light blue footie pajamas with a bunch of purple flowers covering her stomach and a matching bib around her neck. "You're really good at this." The proclaimed elderly woman raised an eyebrow as she lifted IF into the air.
"Fifty plus years can do that to you." Cooing at IF, Arfoire rubbed her nose against the child's, causing her to giggle. N stuffed the cookie into his mouth right before Arfoire placed IF on his lap. As N was chewing his treat, Arfoire's face hardened. "Now, from this point on, you're going to be a parent." Swallowing, N nodded, letting IF grab onto his finger with both of her hands.
"Yeah, I kinda signed the documents knowing that…" Taking a deep breath, Arfoire sat down in the armchair nearby.
"Yes, but…" Placing her hands on her lap, Arfoire turned to the photos sitting on a dresser across the room. "Raising a child is difficult." N nodded, staring at IF. "A child's life is a fragile thing, that is more fragile than any kind of disc or save file. You know that right?"
"I know… but I want to…" Seeing N's face, Arfoire closed her eyes before smirking. "But I have no idea how…" That smirk turned into a grin. Standing up, Arfoire patted N on the head.
"Here, I got something for you…" Arfoire returned to the closet, leaning further into the storage room. Shifting IF to a sitting position, N leaned forward to get a better look, causing IF to do the same. "N?" N blinked.
"Yeah?" Arfoire pulled out a folded up baby stroller, setting it on the floor.
"Is IF drooling?" Glancing down, N was surprised to see a stream of drool rolling down IF's chin.
"U-Uh, yeah!" Arfoire now set aside a plastic bin of clothes.
"You see the bib around her neck?" N nodded, realizing Arfoire couldn't see him.
"Ye-aaaah?" Arfoire nearly climbed into the closet, one leg hanging out.
"Wipe it away with that." Gently grasping the fabric, N stared at IF's dripping face.
"Sure…" N began wiping away the drool and IF raised her arms in response.
"Ah, here it is." Arfoire climbed out of the closet with a dark blue notebook filled multi-colored sticky notes and tabs. The elderly woman let the notebook flop on N's head, a smirk on her face. "Here, take this." Arfoire cautiously and skillfully takes IF in her arms while N reaches up to grab the notebook.
"What is it?" Arfoire began to cradle IF, swinging her back and forth. With little time, IF let out a huge yawn before crawling up into a ball and falling asleep. Flipping open the notebook, a bead of sweat rolled down N's face when he saw the title. "A Mother's Handmade Guide to Being An Actual Mother?" Arfoire chuckled.
"Yeah, my daughter loved to record everything." Arfoire tapped the page. "She spent years compiling this together." N's eyes widened, the bead of sweat growing.
"Years?!" Arfoire nodded, standing up when she heard IF mumble.
"Mhm, you should have seen her room when she gathered all the data she deemed 'necessary'." N closed the notebook, turning it side to side. The young man could not believe that there was year's worth of information in here. "Well, she cut it down to the bare minimum."
"Oh." N looked at the notebook. "O-Okay." The sound of the microwave opening caught the young man's ears.
"N come here." N walked into the kitchen to find Arfoire holding IF and standing next to the kitchen counter. Next to her was a baby bottle, a plastic gallon of drinking water, and a container that was slightly open.
"Yeah?" Arfoire bounced IF in her arms and gestured to the items on the counter.
"Time your first lesson in parenthood, also a favor." N tilted his head to the side. "Since you're not a woman, nor are you pregnant, I want you to learn how to make a baby formula." n blinked his eyes, then looked at the counter, then at Arfoire, then at IF. Upon looking at IF, the girl made a toothless smile.
N stared at the child and, without a second thought, grabbed the baby bottle.
"What do I do?" A grin appeared on the grandmother's face.
"Heh, alright it's simple…"
O o O
"Okay…" After N had prepared the baby formula, Arfoire walked over to him and took the bottle. "Is that right?" Arfoire tilted the bottle to the side.
"Could you give me your elbow?" Raising an elbow, N rolled his jacket sleeve and offered his elbow. Without hesitation, Arfoire let a drop of the formula fall onto his elbow, causing N to pull back.
"Arg-Hot!" Swinging his arm up and down, N hastily rubbed the droplet away. "Ahhh- Why?!" Clenching his teeth, N spun around with a pained expression on his face while Arfoire and IF stared at him, amused and confused respectively. "Why did you do that, Granny!" A slight scoff came from the grandmother's mouth as she placed the bottle on the counter and pulled out another one from the cup boards.
"Your feet and your elbows are just as sensitive as a baby's entire body." Arfoire began to pour water into the other baby bottle and prepare another batch of the baby formula with her free arm. "If your arm can't handle it, what makes you think this kid's mouth and stomach can?" N turned to look at IF, who shoved her fingers into her mouth. N turned to the floor, squeezing his elbow.
"...Sorry." Arfoire popped the baby bottle into the microwave and walked over to N, thrusting IF into his arms.
"It's alright, N. You just started to become a parent." Patting N on the back, Arfoire grabbed the rest of the baby formula powder and twisted the lid shut. "For starters, you're going to need some essentials to take care of this little one…" Arfoire placed the container on the counter and patted it. "I'll give you this since I'm guessing that you haven't bought anything yet." N scratched his cheek, glancing away while IF imitated him.
"N-No, I was going to some stuff tomorrow." N tried to crack a smile. Arfoire shook her head and clicked her tongue multiple times.
"If you don't get anything now, you'll keep postponing it until it's too late." Arfoire walked over to the closet and opened it. "Do you have anything for the baby?"
"Well, I have a duffle bag full of stuff." Arfoire pulled out the plastic bin again.
"Full of what?" The microwave dinged and Arfoire immediately walked over to it.
"Clothes… I think." Arfoire popped open the microwave and grabbed the formula. After dropping a droplet onto her elbow, Arfoire gestured to N.
"Here, I'll feed her, just look for now." Nodding, N handed IF over to Arfoire, watching cradle her in one arm guide the rubble nipple over to the child's mouth. IF instinctively latched onto the bottle, grabbing it with her stubby hands, and sucked on it without a second thought. N stood there in awe as IF sat in Arfoire's arms, content and looking around with her large emerald eyes.
"N?" N shook his head and blinked his eyes.
"Y-Yeah?"
"Could you grab that duffle bag and let me take a look through that?" Nodding, N smiled at IF, causing IF to attempt to giggle, only for Arfoire to convince her otherwise with whispers and coos.
"I'll be right back." N jogged out of Arfoire's apartment and back into his. Upon opening the door, N rushed into his apartment. "Gua-" Getting his foot caught in one the jackets lying on the floor, N fell face first into the couch. "...Ouch." Getting to his feet, N looked around his apartment, pursing his lips.
"If you don't get anything now, you'll keep postponing it until it's too late." N nodded his head.
"Right." Tossing the jacket to a corner of the room, N grabbed the duffle bag before rushing to the front door and giving the room one quick scan. Locking his door, N climbed over and jumped off the railing. Upon landing on the ground, N kicked forwards to roll on the ground. Stopping on his butt, N let out a sigh of relief. "Phew! It's a good thing I didn't landed on my feet." N rubbed his ankles. "Don't want it to end like last time…" Popping to his feet, N turned to Afoire's front door. Dusting off his pants, N walked back into the room. "Here."
"Over here!" N looked into the apartment to see Arfoire sitting on the couch, the plastic bin sitting on top of the coffee table. N plopped the duffle bag down and opened it. He looked up to see that IF was no longer suckling off the baby bottle, instead she was sleeping soundly in Arfoire's arms.
"This is what I got." Nodding, Arfoire reached over and gently handed IF over. Pulling the bag open, Arfoire began dig through the duffle bag.
"Alright, just gimme a second." N sat down in the arm chair, sinking slightly into the armchair. IF was breathing softly and unconsciously nuzzled against N's arm. N bit his lip as he stroked the girl's hair, ignoring Arfoire's mumbling.
"Heya, Iffy…" N whispered, pulling the girl closer. "Didja have some good eats?" Hearing a snicker, N looked up to see Arfoire place the duffle bag on the plastic bin.
"You having fun?" N chuckled, his cheeks partially staining red. "Anyways, there wasn't really much in there for you to use." N blinked, eyebrows raising.
"R-Really?" Arfoire nodded.
"Two sets of clothes, a baby carrier, a couple of baby bottles-" Arfoire raised an eyebrow. "-with nothing to put in it, mind you- Some diapers, and a couple of toys, a rattle and a binky." Arfoire shook the bag. "That would last you at least three days." N nodded his head as Arfoire patted the plastic bin. "This should help you out for the rest of it. In here's some more clothes, like pajamas and stuff, a portable crib that you can put the kid in, two packs of diapers, and two containers of baby formula." Arfoire patted on the shoulder. "My daughter's notebook is in the duffle bag so look at it whenever you have the time." N smiled.
"Thanks, Granny." Arfoire grinned and nodded her head.
"Just ask whenever you need my help." N nodded his head enthusiastically. Suddenly, the young man's smile dropped.
"Right, actually…" Arfoire's grin grew.
"Yes?"
"Could you watch little Iffy for a bit? I gotta clean my room." Shaking her head, Arfoire placed the back of her hand close to her mouth and did her best to hold back a queen-like laugh.
"Of course, of course!" Arfoire took IF from N and winked at him. "Go and do what do you gotta do." N nodded his head once and whipped around, prepared to dash out of the room. "Wait, I have one more thing to tell you." N looked over his shoulder, jogging in place. "Always remember that no matter what, this little bundle of life is yours now. She's your daughter." Nodding, N gave her a mock salute and jogged out of the door.
"Ah!" N skidded at the front door, turning to face Afoire. "Granny?" Arfoire tilted her head to the side, slightly swinging IF back and forth.
"What is it?"
"What do I do about changing diapers?" Arfoire's smile froze, a bead of sweat rolling down her head.
"I'm not really good at teaching that part…" N stopped jogging.
"Ah…" Arfoire chuckled.
"Well, it'll come naturally. Don't worry." After a second of staring, N shrugged and headed upstairs, taking the duffle bag and the plastic bin before he left. Arfoire glanced at IF, who was sound asleep. The grandmother smiled and poked the girl's nose with her own. "You're in good hands, child."
IF made a quiet mumble, causing a bit of drool to roll out of her mouth. Beaming, Arfoire used IF's bib to wipe it away. Upstairs, she could faintly hearing N making up a storm in his effort to clean the apartment. Holding back another fit of laughter, Arfoire kicked the door closed and sat down on the arm chair, humming one her grandchildren's favorite lullabies to N's daughter.