Chapter Text
“Hurry, Ren! She’s going to find us!”
“I-I know! B-But my feet hurt! And I’m tired! AND you’re pulling my arm too much!”
“Ughhhh if we get caught, it’s all YOUR fault!”
“Heeeeey! Don’t say that!” Out of breath, Ren looked around the hallway and eyed a nearby closet underneath a staircase. “C’mon, Kaz! Over there!”
Hesitantly, Kaz pulled Ren to the closet, paying close attention to not make any noise when the door was opened. Noticing the shadow of the figure entering the hallway, Kaz pushed Ren inside and slammed the door shut.
“She’s going to know we’re here!”
“If I closed the door like how slow you run, she would’ve found us!”
“Hey!”
“If only you weren’t slow-”
“Kaz! You’re being a meanie again!”
“Not if it’s true, you slowpoke!”
“Meanie!”
“Slowpoke!”
“Meanie!”
“Slowpoke!”
“Meanie!’
“Slow-”
The echoes of creaking footsteps across the wooden floor put the bickering of the two on pause. They did their best to suppress their heavy breathing from all of the running they did until the footsteps got closer and closer to the door, the shadow of the figure eventually blocking out the only source of light into the dark closet. Instinctively, Kaz and Ren covered each other’s mouths, nodding to each other to not make any sudden noise or movement in this dire situation.
That was until Kaz heard the doorknob be held from the other side of the door. Assuming that Ren was oblivious to what was going on, Kaz reached for the doorknob to try and prevent the door from opening, only to stop when Ren grabbed it first and pulled back.
Without any words, Ren’s red eyes stared into Kaz’s gray eyes, determined to not get caught. Returning the stare with an adamant one, Kaz grabbed the doorknob tight and pulled back alongside Ren. Luckily for them, the figure didn’t bother opening the door, continuing the path down the hallway. With the coast now clear, they both removed their hands away from the doorknob and their respective mouths and sighed at their fortune.
“That was close-”
As if on cue, the door flung wide open, shining the light from the hallway into the closet. Slightly blinded from the light to have a proper reaction, Kaz and Ren looked up and stared in awe at the figure blocking the doorway. Or more precisely, a woman wearing a red on black flannel pajama bottom, a red knit pajama top whose collar and wrist cuffs matched the pattern of the black flannel bottom, a white headband with pink stitching along its edges that kept her hair in place minus her bangs and two locks of hair that flowed on each side of her face, and a pair of black-framed glasses. To top it all off, the woman had a wicked smile across her face, scaring Kaz and Ren even more when one of the lenses of her glasses was shrouded in light and the other one showing an eager red eye.
“I FOUND YOU!”
“RUUUUUUUN!”
Wasting no time, Kaz and Ren ran into the woman, squirming between the small gaps between her and the door frame. Freed from the confines of the closet, Kaz and Ren gave each other one final nod before deciding to run down the hallway in separate directions. As they took their first step, they were jerked to an abrupt halt when a hand grabbed onto the back of their respective shirts, eventually raising them both up in the air.
“Tsk, tsk! Shouldn’t have made too much noise when you slammed the door, Kazumi!”
“I-It’s all Ren’s fault, Mama! I wouldn’t have been caught if Ren wasn’t a slow-”
“Mamaaaa! Kaz is being a meanie again!”
“Kaz…”
The mother shifted the grip she had on Kazumi and Ren, holding them both close to her waist and wrapping an arm around their own waists while keeping them suspended in the air. It didn’t take long for Kazumi to feel a daunting gaze.
“Y-Yes, M-Mama…”
“We’ve been over this…” Mama raised Kazumi and nuzzled her face with his, causing him to laugh from being tickled. “The older brother shouldn’t be making fun of his younger sister like that…”
“… I know…”
“Do you remember why?”
Kaz gave a somber stare to Ren, who responded with a pout.
“… Because we’re twins… And twins aren’t supposed to do that…”
“That’s right!” Mama nuzzled her face against Kazumi’s face again, lowering him back down but keeping him in the air when he finished laughing. “And what do twins say to each other after they fight to forgive?”
“Mama!”
“What’s wrong?”
“D-Do I have to say that !?” Kazumi felt heat grow onto his cheeks, not wanting to do whatever that entailed.
“Well… You don’t have too… But I wonder what Papa would say… Hmm…”
“M-MAMA!”
The teasing giggles from Ren caught Kaz’s attention, annoyed at the amount of joy she had from his suffering. Wanting to see if he would be spared from this kind of humiliation, he looked up to his mother for help. Unfortunately for him, he was met with what appeared to be a warm smile that masked other emotions…
“H-Hey, R-Ren…” Kaz faced his sister in defeat.
“Yes, Kazumi-niichan~?”
“Mama!”
“Don’t keep Ren waiting, Kazumi-niichan~!”
With an intense blush from what his mother is forcing him to do, Kaz hid his face in his hands and let out an aggravated groan.
“I… Ren…”
“Mamaaaaa! I couldn’t hear Kaaaaaz!”
“REN!”
“Oh, really? I guess Kazumi doesn’t want a good night kiss then…”
“MAMAAAA!”
“I know! Let’s make a promise!” To release any tension between the twins, the mother spun in place, getting a cheer from Ren but nothing from Kazumi. “If Ren hears you this time, then I’ll give you a good night kiss every night!”
“Urrgh.”
“What about me, Mama? What do I get?”
“Silly Ren!” She lifted Ren to her face and gave her a nuzzle, happy to hear her giggle. “You’ll get a good night kiss every night too! As long as you tell Kazumi what he’s about to tell you!”
“I promise!” Ren hummed in anticipation, already wanting to fulfill the promise from her mom as she stared at Kaz with a smug grin. “I’m waaaaaiiiting Kazumi-niichan~!”
“… You’re mean…” He mumbled to himself so no one could hear him, taking a deep breath to make sure Ren heard him this time. “I LOVE YOU, REN!”
“Hehe! Yes!” Ren placed both of her hands around her mouth. “I LOVE YOU TOO, KAZUMI-NIICHAN~!”
“Aww! I love both of you sooooo much!” Mama brought both twins to her face and gave them each a kiss followed by a nuzzle. “Buuuut I did catch you! You know what that means!”
“Do we haaaave to?” Kazumi dangled his arms and legs as a means for his mother to release him. “I don’t feel sleeeeepy!”
“Mamaaa!” Ren tugged at her mother’s pajama top to get her attention. “Can’t we wait until Papa comes home?”
“Well, Papa said he’d be back in time to give you both a good night kiss… And he’s also with a friend right now…”
“You mean Shinji’s dad?”
“You forgot Alice-chan, Kaz!”
“Alice-chan is still a baby, Ren… Like you!”
“Kaaaaaz!”
“Kazumi…”
“Umm, I-I didn’t mean it! I-It was a joke! R-Right, Ren?”
“… You meanie…”
“… We’ll talk about this later… But first, you two need to change into your pajamas so you can go to bed and get ready for school tomorrow.”
With a gloomy Kazumi in one hand and an excited Ren in the other, their mother carried them to their bedroom and helped in changing them to their pajamas. Once changed into their sleepwear (Kazumi wearing a blue plaid top and bottom that accented his scruffy red hair while Ren had on a white on purple plaid top and bottom that had frills at the end of her sleeves, matching perfectly with her tresses of black hair), their mother tucked them into their respective beds and was prepared to give them their promised good night kisses.
“Mama…”
“Yes, Ren?” She ran a hand through her daughter’s hair and gave her a pat.
“Can you tell us a bedtime story?”
“Yes!” Kazumi launched a fist into the air from hearing his sister’s suggestion. “You or Papa haven’t read us a story in FOREVER!”
“Hmm, I’ll have to see what we have…”
Their mother stood up and looked around the bedroom for a small bookshelf. Having found it right next to the entrance of the room, she plucked two children's books and sat on the edge of Kazumi’s bed. The smiles she received from the twins upon returning with books in hand made melted her heart.
“Okay! I found two books you both will love!” She displayed both books in each hand. “Papa’s favorite book, The Great Thief , or Mama’s favorite book, Dressed in Ashes . We only have time for one book today, but I can read the other… one… next… time…”
She couldn’t help herself from trailing off after watching life get sucked out of her kids when they heard the choices, hanging her head low right after.
“Oh… I didn’t know you didn’t like these books…”
“N-No, Mama… We love those books…”
Instantly, she raised her head from hearing Kazumi’s confession.
“It’s just… well-”
“You and Papa ALWAYS read those two books AND all of the other ones there whenever you have the chance…” Based on Ren’s reluctance at that revelation, she knew that was something they’ve been wanting to say for a while.
“S-Sorry… I guess these two books meant a lot to me and Papa when we were both of your ages…” Nervous laughter left her as she rubbed a hand along the back of her head.
“We’re sorry, Mama…”
“We’re not good kids, are we…”
“Oh don’t say that!” Not wanting to hear them degrade themselves any longer, Mama stood up and gave the top of Kazumi’s and Ren’s head a kiss. “It just means Mama and Papa love you both so much, they want you to enjoy what they liked when they were kids! I guess we may have done that too much though, huh?”
All she got were silent nods.
“I know!” Mama clapped her hands and moved back to the edge of Kazumi’s bed to take a seat. “I have the best bedtime story ever! And isn’t something you’ve heard before!”
““Really!?”” The twins looked at each other from saying the same thing, laughing at the small awkwardness they created.
“Yup! But I can only tell the story and continue it under one condition!”
““What is it!?”” Once again, the twins laughed at their synchronous answer.
“You both have to do well in school!”
“Got it, Mama!”
“… Fine…”
This time, only Ren laughed, which was mainly targeted at Kazumi. Despite only starting school, she already knew how much he hated attending it.
“Then it’s a deal!” Mama tilted her head and clapped her hands with a smile. “Are you both ready?”
“Mhmm!”
“… Yeah…”
“Okay! Let’s begin!”
Once upon a time, a Princess lived in a faraway Kingdom. This certain Kingdom was very different from the ones you know. You see, in that certain Kingdom, the royalty was very different. So instead of the Princess living inside a castle, she lived with her fellow townsfolk.
“That’s so cool!”
“It sounds like a really nice Kingdom!”
Even though the Princess was of royalty, she still went to school! And that’s because education is very good for you!
“… I don’t like this Kingdom anymore…”
The drastic change in Kazumi’s mood put the story on hold since the storyteller needed some time to laugh alongside Ren.
School just started recently for the Princess, and she was being sent to a very special school because of her hard work in chasing her dream.
“What was the princess’s dream, Mama?”
“W-Well, t-that’s a secret…”
“Awe…”
To get to this special school, there was a HUGE magical carriage that could pick up many people at once. The Princess used this to get to school, as the school gave out special passes to their students that allowed them to ride the magical carriage whenever they’d like. Though, the carriage would feel pretty small inside since it would be full of students and townsfolk at the start and end of school, so it was important to get there early and claim a seat. If that didn’t happen, then you were left with no other choice but to stand on your two feet.
During one of the carriage rides on the first few days of school, the Princess was able to claim a seat to herself. However, she noticed an old woman standing holding her heavy luggage. Because it’s important to respect your elders, the Princess offered the old woman her seat. As soon as the Princess stood up and the old woman responded, a businessman took the Princess’s seat for the old woman as his own!
“Noooooo!”
“That man is rude for taking a seat that wasn’t his!”
The Princess tried to talk to the businessman to let him know the seat was for the old woman. He even looked at the Princess in the eye as she was speaking to him.
“Want to know what the businessman did?”
““What?””
“He fell asleep!”
““WHAT!””
“He’s a meanie!”
“Why would he do that!”
Mama giggled from the unexpected responses from the two.
There wasn’t anything the Princess could do since the businessman went to sleep, finding herself in an awkward position for not helping out the old woman. That was until she heard a boy, a student a grade higher than her in fact, speaking to her. She was surprised to find him asking if he should “wake up” the businessman.
“Did the Princess say ‘yes’?”
“Nope! She didn’t!”
“What! By why!?”
“Kaz! You’re ruining the story!”
“You started, Ren! You talked right when Mama started the story!”
“Nuh uh!”
“Yeah huh!”
“Nuh uh!”
“Yeah huh!”
“Nuh-”
“Don’t you two want to know what happened next?”
And just like that, the bickering ended.
Not wanting to make this situation larger than it should be, the Princess respectfully declined the generous boy’s help, telling him that she could understand the reasoning behind the businessman’s actions. After an apology to the old woman for not being able to help her, which was accepted with reassurance that there’s nothing to worry about, the Princess offered to hold onto her luggage until she reached her stop. Though the old woman didn’t want the Princess to carry her heavy bags, the Princess convinced her by saying she does plenty of training, so it will feel like nothing to her.
“Training? Training for what?”
“T-That’s a secret, Ren…”
“You’re a meanie, Mamaaaa… It’s not good to have secrets…”
“Ren’s right!”
“But the story will be ruined if I shared the secret now…”
““… Fiiiiiine…””
It didn’t take long for the Princess to arrive at her stop, saying farewell to the old woman as she exited the carriage. Off in the distance, she found the generous boy walking away. Realizing she didn’t get the chance to thank him properly, the Princess ran to the boy and called to him. When he turned around, she gave him a courteous bow and a thank you for the kindness he showed. Though he was confused, the Princess reminded him of the help he offered when he spoke up for the older woman and explained that she wanted to thank him for that, especially since he’s an upperclassman because it would be rude of her if she didn’t.
“So the Princess thanked the boy because he was her senpai?”
“Yes! That’s correct!”
“But what if the boy wasn’t her senpai and was the same year as her?”
“How did the Princess know the boy was her senpai?”
“Did they even go to the same school?”
“Oh… That’s what I forgot… ” The mother sheepishly stared at the twins with a forgiving smile. “Well, when you two get older, you’ll have to wear a school uniform, and you’ll be able to tell what grade someone is in based on their school pins. But that won’t be until you’re 12. How many years is that from now?”
“Umm, if we won’t start wearing uniforms until we’re 12, and we’re, uh-”
“7 years!”
“Good job, Ren!”
“Yes!”
“That’s not fair! I was about to say 7!”
“But you didn’t! Now YOU’RE the slowpoke-”
“Ren…” Mama crossed her arms and watched her daughter’s attitude drop. “That wasn’t very nice…”
“… I-I’m sorry, M-Mama…”
“… And what are you supposed to tell Kazumi so he knows you’re sorry and could forgive you?”
It broke her heart to witness Ren begin to tear up.
“… I l-love you, K-Kazumi… A-A-And I’m sorry!” Ren hastily hid underneath her blanket, trying to drown out her sobs as the tears trickled down her face.
“It’s okay, Ren…” Kazumi crawled out of his bed and sat next to her sister, giving her a warm, tight hug. “I love you too... And I’m sorry for calling you a slowpoke when we were hiding from Mama…”
“I’m s-sorry for c-c-calling you a m-m-meanie…”
“R-Ren… You’re going to m-make me c-cry too…”
Before the tears could take shape in his eyes, Kazumi found himself and Ren in a tight embrace from their mother, who took an extra step in removing Ren’s bedsheet so she could let her cry on her shoulder.
“There, there. It’s okay.” Their mother ran a hand through Ren’s hair and a warm ruffle to Kazumi’s. “Do you want to know why?”
“W-Why, M-Mama…”
“Because you both love each other! You both said it twice tonight too, which means you both love each other even more!”
“B-But how does that m-make it okay… I w-was still mean to K-Kaz…”
“And I was m-mean to R-Ren too…”
“Do you remember why Papa said to say ‘I love you’ after you two get into a fight?” Upon receiving silent no’s, she gave them each a kiss. “When Papa first held you both, he said you should always tell each other you love them if you ever get into a fight.”
“W-Why did P-Papa say that-”
Ren stopped talking when her mother booped her nose. Kazumi laughed at his sister’s scrunched up face, soon finding his own nose getting booped.
“Papa said that because love makes everything feel better! Whenever things would get tough for Mama, Papa always made sure to tell me how much he loves me, even if it was for something really small. There would be times where I would make a face like this,” their mother made a quick pout, earning giggles from Kazumi and Ren, “because sometimes, he just wouldn’t stop.”
“Papa really loves you, Mama!”
“He really does. Sometimes, just thinking of Papa makes me smile and fall in love with him again because he means the world to me.” Mama hugged the twins tighter, showing them her own love while also trying to hide the blush that encompassed her face. “And now, you two are part of that world! Which means you two AND Papa mean the world to me!”
““Aww Mama! I love you!””
“I love you too, Kazumi and Ren! I love you both so very, very much!” With her face no longer red, she nuzzled her children’s faces. “Oh! We haven’t even finished the story yet!”
After receiving confirmation that she was right, Mama wiped Ren’s face from all of the tears that formed and re-tucked Kazumi into his bed after she gave them both another tight hug.
“Now, where was I again?”
“Umm, uniforms?”
“That’s right!
The Princess and the boy wore similar school uniforms, she knew they went to the same school. As for him being an upperclassmen, she looked at the pins on the collar of his uniform. Since she was a first year and he was a second year, she wanted to show him her appreciation. After thanking him, she gave him another bow and pardoned herself so she could get to school on time. But get this! What she didn’t know was she thanked a Prince!
“Really? I remember that story very differently.”
The addition of a new voice forced Mama to turn away from the twins, staring at a figure with unkempt hair leaning on the entrance to the bedroom.
“PAPA!” Ren uncovered herself from her blanket and ran on top of her bed, using it as an extra boost to jump off of it and into her father’s arms, who slightly panicked when he caught her. “I missed you sooooo much!”
“D-Didn’t I say I’d be back home in time for your good night kisses?” After kissing her forehead, he adjusted his grip to cradle her in his arms.
“You did… But I still missed you…”
“It’s okay Ren, I missed you too.” Their father walked over to Ren’s bed and tucked her in. “Don’t think I forgot about you, Kaaaazumi!” Turning around, he ruffled Kazumi’s hair. “How come you didn’t jump into my arms like Ren?”
“Well, Mama’s sitting on my bed…”
Finding Kazumi’s statement to be true, Papa sat across from her on Ren’s bed.
“So… Did you miss me too?”
“Hmm, I don’t know…” Mama playfully looked up and placed a finger on the bottom of her chin. “Did I miss you?”
“I’ll take that as a no.”
“W-Wha-”
“That’s too bad too, because I missed you a lot.” He smirked at the sight of her face slightly becoming rosy and placed a hand over his eyes in faux disappointment. “And by a lot, I mean A LOT a lot.”
“B-But I was j-j-joking-”
“I was going to give you a piggyback ride too, just to show how much I missed you since I know how much you LOVE those…”
“H-Hey! I really m-missed-”
“Maybe next time…”
Once he heard her gasp, he removed his hand and stared at her with his smirk growing.
“Y-You… You… MEANIE! Hmph!” Having said what was needed, Mama pouted and turned her head to face the entrance of the bedroom, not caring how Kazumi laughed at her as her hands formed into fists and shot out to her sides.
“Papaaaaa!” Ren sat up on her bed and pulled at her dad’s black blazer. “You made Mama mad…”
“Mama isn’t mad. Here, watch this.”
Papa stood up from Ren’s bed and moved in front of his wife. Chuckling at the coat of pink across the side of her face he could see, he got down on one knee and held onto both of her hands with his. She tensed her shoulders from the contact and closed her eyes as he expected, circling his thumbs on the back of both of her hands. Seeing that she was now relaxed after a few circles, he gave her three hand squeezes to signal her for what was soon to follow. Understanding his intent, she turned her head and looked down to face him, opening her eyes to be welcomed with a genuine smile.
“… You dummy…” She interlocked her hands with his and lifted him up from the floor, pulling him in for a kiss. “I missed you.”
“I missed you too.” He straightened himself and let go of her hands to envelop her in a tight hug, letting her head rest on his chest. “I’m home.”
“Welcome back!” She returned the gesture with a tight squeeze of her own, burying her face into his chest.
“By the way, you forgot to mention a few things from the story if it’s what I think it is.”
“Did I now?” Mama raised her head and met her husband’s grin with one of her own. “Why don’t you tell them then?”
“Don’t mind if I do!” Pecking his wife one more time, he released her from their shared embrace and sat back on Ren’s bed. “So you know how Mama called the boy a Prince at the end?”
““Mhmm!””
“She was wrong!”
““WHAT!””
He watched his wife roll her eyes from his claim as he laughed at the twin’s reaction.
“Yup! But Mama wasn’t 100% wrong. You see, the boy actually came from another land. There, he was a Prince.”
“Wait, Papa. If the boy was a Prince in his homeland but not in the Kingdom Mama told us the Princess is from, then what was he?”
“That’s actually the part I was going to say next.” He clapped his hands together and leaned forward towards the twins, who responded by also leaning forward. “The reason why the boy wasn’t a Prince in that Kingdom… was because he’s actually a Thief!”
“A Thief!? That sounds waaay cooler than a Prince!”
“… This boy sounds like a bad guy…”
“It’s okay, Ren. He was actually a good Thief, right?” Papa sent a wink over to his wife, who rolled her eyes once again. “Did Mama tell you how the Princess and Thief met?”
“She did! Umm, Mama said the Thief spoke up for an old woman and tried to help the Princess while inside the magical carriage. Then she said the Princess thanked the Thief and went to school, but the Princess didn’t know he was a Thief.”
“Ahh, I see…” A smug grin found its way on his face as he stared at his wife, who tilted her head as she didn’t know what he was thinking. “So Mama didn’t explain why the Thief helped out the Princess, did she?”
“… No? I don’t think so… But she called the Thief generous!”
“That’s part of the reason.”
“Part of it? What do you mean, Papa?”
“Yeah Papa, I’m lost.”
“There was another reason for why the Thief wanted to help the Princess.”
“W-What are you trying to do…” The mother found her face beginning to flare up from her husband’s cryptic words.
“Did Mama ever tell you what the Princess looked like?”
“Oh no.”
“Umm, I don’t think so…”
“Was she super pretty, Papa?”
“She-”
“S-She was, Ren!” Mama blatantly shouted, interrupting Papa. “S-She was s-s-super p-pretty!”
“Mamaaa! I wanted to know what Papa was going to say!”
“T-That’s-”
“Are you okay, Mama? Your face is-”
“I-I’m fine, Kazumi! I j-just remembered I h-have to, uhh…” She quickly got up from Kazumi’s bed and sped walked to the door. “G-Get Papa’s pajamas ready-Eep!”
While her plan to save herself was flawless, she forgot to include her husband into the mix. Just as she stepped outside of the twin’s bedroom, she felt her arm get grabbed from behind. Unable to react in time to try and wiggle her arm free, she was pulled into a VERY secure hug from her husband, who was smart enough to trap her arms so she wouldn’t be able to push herself away or cover her ears.
“I-I-um-you-”
“Almost had it, Ren! The Princess wasn’t just SUPER pretty; she was ABSOLUTELY pretty! Mama forgot to mention the Thief was INSTANTLY attracted to her prettiness and beauty when he first saw her waiting for the carriage.”
“I-uh-”
“What did the Princess look like, Papa? And what’s wrong with Mama?”
“I-It’s noth-”
“I’m glad you asked, Kazumi! Mama probably isn’t going to like how I describe the Princess…” He kissed her forehead and hugged her tighter as an apology for cutting her off, receiving a forceful squirm that made him hug her even tighter. “She probably isn’t going to like how the Thief was enchanted by the Princess’s flowing red hair that was tied in a ponytail by a charming red ribbon-”
“Just like the red ribbon Mama uses to tie my hair, Papa?”
“Mhmm! Just like the one Mama uses to tie your hair, Ren! There was also something about her movement too. In the Thief’s eyes, the way she moved was VERY graceful. It was as if time slowed down for him whenever she did something.”
“UM-”
“Wow! The Thief must’ve loved the Princess if this was the first time they met!”
“He did! He actually wanted to talk to her, but he had to keep his distance from everyone in this new Kingdom at first. So you could imagine how happy he was when he offered his help to her and the old woman.”
“T-THAT’S NOT-”
“Have I mentioned her eyes?”
“Y-YOU DID-”
“Mamaaaa! You’re lying! Papa said nothing about her eyes!”
“T-That’s because I-”
“Were they special too, Papa?”
“They were the most precious things the Thief saw that morning to school. Actually, they were the most precious things the Thief saw since his arrival in the new Kingdom.”
““Awwwww.””
“Want to know a secret?”
“S-Secrets aren’t good to keep-”
“It’s only a story, Mama…”
“Secrets are okay in stories!”
“B-But-”
“Don’t worry, it’s a secret for just the four of us!” The father presented another kiss to his wife’s forehead, whose attempts at using more force to try and escape fell flat as her face fell into deeper shades of red. “What the Princess didn’t know was the Thief would stare into her red eyes, mystified by how they beautifully matched her hair and ribbon. Luckily for him, the Princess never noticed-”
“Hey! Mama has red eyes and red hair, I have red eyes, and Kaz has red hair. Does that mean all of us are beautiful?”
“Not me! I don’t wanna be beautiful!”
“Kaaaaaaz!”
“Oh yeah! I almost forgot! There was one more thing the Thief admired about the Princess!”
“What was it, Papa?”
“Yeah! What was it?”
“P-P-Papa’s lying! There w-wasn’t anything else-”
Smiling at sight of the adorable redness on his wife’s face, he leaned his head down next to her ear so she would be the first person to hear him:
“She looked cute~.”
“SENPAI!”
Noticing what she blurted out, the mother shamefully turned her head to look at the twins, unable to move her whole body since her husband still prevented her from moving. She was immediately welcomed with giggles from Kazumi and Ren, who both pointed out what she yelled and how the blush on her face looked very similar to the color of her hair. She then turned her head back to her husband, who loosened his grip on her with a warm smile. The mother wasted no time in pushing him away, using both of her hands to cover her face as she ran out of the bedroom, only to return to give Kazumi and Ren their goodnight kisses before disappearing into the hallway again.
“Is Mama going to be alright?”
“She almost forgot our good night kisses because of you, Papa…”
“Mama’s alright.” The father walked to Ren and ruffled her hair. “She just didn’t expect me to call the Princess cute, that’s all.”
“Okay… But why did she run away after calling you ‘senpai’?”
“And why was the Thief no longer a Prince?”
“I’ll have to tell you both some other time since past your bedtime now-”
“Can it be the next story time, Papa?”
“Hmm, when do you want the next story time to be?”
While Ren fiddled her thumbs to think of when next time could be, Kazumi stated an answer. “Next Sunday!”
“Next Sunday? Hmm…”
“Mama also said if we do well in school, she’ll continue the story!”
“Y-Yeah… She did…”
“How about this: we let every other Sunday be ‘Storytime Sunday’! That way, while you both work hard in school for one week with Mama’s and Papa’s help, we’ll reward you both with a story!
“I like it! What about you, Kaz?”
All he did was groan.
“Tell you what!” Papa ruffled Kazumi’s hair. “If you do REALLY well in school, Mama and Papa might continue the story every Sunday night instead! And if you keep up the great work, we’ll also get you the new Neo Featherman R figurines that came out! Maybe I’ll even add that Masked Hopper transformation belt you’ve been looking at…”
Kazumi stared at his father in amazement. “Really Papa?”
“Mhmm! Your Papa is a man of his word!”
“Woooo! You’re the best, Papa! I love you!”
“I love you too, Kazumi.” He leaned over and kissed Kazumi’s head.
“C-Can I also get those too if I do well in school…”
“Of course you can, Ren!” The father stood up and leaned over to Ren to give her an accommodating kiss. "You might even get that baton from Precious Cure too..."
“Yay! Thank you, Papa! I love you!”
“I love you too, Ren.”
Having given his kids their good night kisses, the father walked to the entrance of the room and placed his hands on top of the light switch.
“Goodnight, Kazumi! Goodnight, Ren!”
““Goodnight, Papa!””
“Tell Mama I said goodnight!”
“Me too!”
“Don't worry, I think she already knows.”
With a flick of his wrist, he shut off the lights in the bedroom and gently closed the door, happy to see them begin to doze off. As soon as the door was closed, he felt a pair of arms wrap around his waist, utterly immobilizing him.
“… You meanie…”
“I didn’t go overboard, right?”
No words were said. Rather, his waist was just held onto tighter, feeling the head of the culprit press onto his back.
“I’m sorry-”
“… No you’re not…”
“Wha-Oof!” He didn’t expect her to hug his waist even tighter, starting to ache in a little pain.
“… That’s what you get for calling me that…”
“B-But you like it when I call you cute-Oof!”
“If you say it again, maaaybe you won’t be a meanie…”
Placing his hand on top of hers, he turned around so they would be facing each other. His wife used this chance to bury her face into his chest, stopping when she felt her chin get lifted.
“You’re so cute-”
Instead of an even tighter squeeze, he was surprised to find his wife standing on the tip of her toes, planting her lips directly onto his. Giving her credit for stealing a kiss, he crouched down a little and wrapped his arms around her waist, lifting her up in the air and spinning around the hallway as they continued their loving moment. Though, she gasped briefly from when she was in the air, as she was accidentally tickled when her husband squeezed her waist. Knowing that they were at the entrance of their bedroom, which was a room away from the twin’s, they released each other from the kiss.
“You know that doesn’t count, right?” The father lowered his wife back onto the ground, his hands now resting on her waist.
“I-I know…”
The mother meekly responded to her husband, wrapping her hands around his neck as she closed her eyes and tensed herself for what was about to happen. A few seconds passed, and nothing happened. Wondering what was going on, the mother slowly opened her eyes to see what her husband was doing.
The moment she made eye contact with him, her anxious gaze being welcomed with his infamous smirk, her waist was poked three times, each poke being more robust than the previous one. It didn’t take long for her to cry out in boisterous laughter, tears eventually forming around her eyes from the pain of laughing too much. Aware that she’ll only get louder, her husband peacefully silenced her with another kiss, unintentionally causing her face to flare up when she let out a muffled gasp from the abrupt action.
“U-Uh-w-what was t-that f-f-for-”
“You were laughing really loud.”
“T-That’s because you tickled me! And you tickled me more than last time! Hmph!”
“I think you forgot who made that rule in the first place.”
“N-No… I didn’t forget…” The mother placed her head on her husband’s chest. “It’s just… Even though I got better at controlling it compared to the start of the year, it slips whenever you do something like that to me… And you made me say it in front of the kids too!”
As soon as his wife removed her head from his chest, he expected to be met with a pout. And he was absolutely right.
“Well, we could always f-forget about that rule on s-some days because I, umm, k-kinda miss h-hearing you call me t-t-that sometimes…”
The mother’s pout softened as she heard her husband’s confession, oblivious of the blush that lit up her face since she was too busy watching her husband’s blush become more intense. Knowing how vulnerable his mind is right now, she placed a hand on his face and kissed his cheek. As soon as he looked at her in shock, she placed her other hand on his other cheek and gave him three picks, letting the last one linger to mess with him.
“I have an idea!”
“W-What’s up-” He didn’t expect his wife to keep her hands on his face, playing with his cheeks by squishing them. “Umm…”
“Let’s make a new rule! If you purposefully make me call you that, then I should get something in return!”
“Oh? Like what?”
“You knooooow…” The mother clasped her hands behind her back and sent her husband a warm smile, a hint of pink coating her cheeks.
She was answered with a snicker.
“N-N-N-N-NOT THAT!”
"Oh? So you DON'T want to cuddle? Well that's a first..."
"H-HUH!?"
"Why? Did you have other ideas?"
"W-W-W-WHAT!?"
Hearing her stammer was too much for her husband to handle. He cradled his stomach, howling at his wife for falling for his immature joke as her already rosy face lit up to an intense red.
“UGHHHH YOU KNOW THAT’S NOT WHAT I MEANT!”
“Y-Yeah! I, heheh, I know!” Able to breathe again, he turned around and bent his knees slightly, leaning forward with his arms spread behind him. “I’m waiting~.”
Still pouting at his crude joke, the mother took her time walking to her husband. Wanting to give him a hard time for mocking her, she fell forward and did her best at becoming dead weight, almost making him fall over when she landed on his back.
“That’s what you get for laughing at me… You meanie…” She wrapped her arms around his neck.
“Be honest, it was too good NOT to pass up.”
“Ugh.”
“Ready?”
He didn’t need a verbal response, as he knew her answer based off of the nuzzle he received to the side of his face. Taking that as his signal, he stood up and secured his arms around the back of her legs. Receiving a kiss on the cheek, he walked into their bedroom and dropped her off on their bed. Noticing that his set of pajamas were there, surprised to find his outdated black long-sleeved sweater and his olive sleep pants, he kissed his wife for her kindness and walked into the bathroom connected to their room.
Now in his sleepwear, he exited the bathroom to find his wife studying a glass case above the flatscreen television across their bed. Inside the glass case was a framed photo, one that had a man with black hair in a white suit carrying a woman with red hair that was tied into a bun from a white veil in a elegant white dress, both looking at each other with smiles of unconditional love and happiness. Hanging on each side of the photo were two Olympic gold medals, one from the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, the other from the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, both won in women’s individual all-around rhythmic gymnastics. Underneath the photo was a silver medal, also won in women's individual all-around rhythmic gymnastics from the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
“You still sure you want those here? I think they would look better with all of your other trophies and awards in the other room-”
“Nope! I like them right here!”
“Because you get to look at them before you go to sleep?”
“You dummy!” The mother playfully patted the spot next to her in their bed, motioning her husband to crawl right next to her after turning off the lights as they gazed into each other’s eyes. “I like them here because they remind me of the journey I went with the person I love in the entire world. And I guess you can say because I also love the photo… It’s just too good NOT to look at!”
“If you want, we can take another one like that in a few months. It’ll be our seven year anniversary, you know~.”
“We could… But I hope you know it’s not going to replace this one! Wait, I know! Let’s recreate that photo with Kazumi and Ren! We can use that for our holiday pictures this year!”
“Have I ever told you how smart you are?”
The mother giggled from that comment. “Says the one that’s a certified counselor.”
“You know that’s a different kind of smart, right?”
“Mhmm, suuuure it is.” The mother grabbed onto one of her husband’s arms and rolled around with her back now facing him, scooting closer to him as she let his arm wrap around her waist. “Oh! I forgot to tell you what we did before you got home!”
“I feel like I should be concerned..”
“C’mon, don’t be like that!” She played with her husband’s fingers for saying that. “We played hide-and-seek! Kazumi and Ren were so sweet! They were holding each other’s hands as they ran away from me, and it was so funny to see the face they made when I found them in the closet!”
“Heeey that’s not fair! You’re making it sound like I missed out on a lot of fun!
“That’s because you did!” She sneakily looked over her shoulder and pecked her husband. “Maaaybe we’ll let you play with us next time. But be warned! I’m the best at playing as the seeker!”
“We’ll see about that!” He gave her waist a few gentle pokes, getting giggles as his intended response. “And Morgana?”
“He kinda just fell asleep…” His wife pointed her head to a corner, where a black cat was found snoring on his custom tower. “I asked if he could play with the twins while I got dinner ready. I didn’t expect him to play tag with them and play his hardest.”
“It looks like he wants to also make memories with them too, since he’s technically an uncle to them.”
The mother laughed at the thought of Morgana being their uncle as she yawned. “Maybe so… I can’t believe the kids just started kindergarten last week… It feels like they’re growing up too fast…”
“I know that feeling… We just have to grow up just as quick so they don’t come close to us!”
“… You say some of the silliest stuff, you know that?”
“Only because you love the silly stuff I say.”
After a few giggles, the married couple gave each other a good night kiss, with the husband pulling his wife closer to him.
“Good night, Sumire. I love you.”
“I love you too, Akira. Good night.”
4/11/2032 - Kurusu Residence