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“Get away from me!” the NEXT, a middle-aged woman, screamed.
Kotetsu, hands raised in an attempt to show he meant no harm, tried to make a calming gesture. “Lady, ma’am, we’re not here to hurt you. We’re here to help.” He’d taken an right turn into the alleys, while Barnaby had swung left, and he could hear approaching footsteps. “Hey, hey, it’s all right. We know you haven’t done anything wrong. That power’s probably really surprising to you, yeah? Didn’t expect it to show up when you’re our age, right?”
The dark-haired woman continued to back away, eyes wide with fear, almost crying, “I don’t, I— I try to stop it but it keeps happening! Why won’t it stop?”
She’d backed into a dead end, the road cutting off between the back entrances of two shops, and Kotetsu tried to scoot just a bit closer, but as she backed away in response, she thumped against the wall behind her and startled, then gestured frantically at Kotetsu with a panicked shout.
A wall of invisible force slammed into him, and distantly he heard her yell, “Get away!” as he went flying, tumbling dizzily head over heels until he slammed hard into something with a crunch of metal and glass.
Head spinning, Kotetsu pushed himself upright only to jerk to a stop, mouth agape, as he stared around him. The alleys, the building, the car he’d no doubt crashed into, all of it was gone—and he was in a classroom, looking at himself, and Tomoe? They were high school aged, and she was in glasses, and the way the younger him was smirking at her, he’d no doubt just called her by that nickname she’d disliked so much—well, there’d been two, Ms.Class Rep and Ms. Glasses, and she’d gotten so annoyed at both. What the hell…? Wait, was this the first time he’d told her about wanting to be a Hero?
A blink, and suddenly he was at the factory where he’d fought Antonio, where he’d saved Tomoe from the fire, that time she’d decided his Hero name should Tiger—and where he’d first called her by her first name, even if she’d socked him hard in the stomach for doing so.
More scenes came them, like he was hopping from place to place, faster and faster. Their first date, when they’d moved in together, when they’d moved to Sternbild, their wedding day. When he was hired by Top MaG, the first time he officially acted as a Hero and appeared on Hero TV. Kotetsu covered his eyes, truly dizzy. It was like a slide show gone wild, like countless film reels were unspooling before his yes.
A weird hiccup noise, and everything paused. It was a sunny day by the hospital, and he saw himself helping Tomoe from the wheel chair the nurses had brought her down to the entrance in, nestling her carefully into the passenger seat of the car. Wait, wasn’t this—? Then he could see into the backseat of the vehicle, where an infant seat had been strapped in securely.
“Kaede,” he murmured, tears springing to his eyes. She was so tiny. Could he hold her, just for a little bit?
But then like a snap, it was all gone, and he was flying through visions again: Kaede’s first word, the day she started to walk, the time he finally became King of Heroes, event after event, memory after memory—
And then suddenly he was falling—right into Barnaby Brooks Jr.’s arms. Or, the version of himself Kotetsu was watching did.
More and more followed—Kotetsu’s first day with the new company, that first day they were assigned to be partners; Barnaby saving Kaede, abruptly switching to when he saved Barnaby by jumping in front of Lunatic’s fire bolt; healing himself after the fight with Jake Martinez and racing to help Barnaby, arriving just in time to catch his partner as he nearly crumpled; the very first time Barnaby called him Kotetsu.
Then came the absolute agony of fighting with Barnaby, and he felt all over again the utter desolation when nothing he did brought back Barnaby’s memories of him, but also the overwhelming joy when calling him Bunny made his partner finally remember.
Kotetsu watched himself at the moment he’d realized how he felt about his partner, watched his own face as he was nearly overwhelmed by the intensity of his feelings, struggling by the immensity of it all. Then watched himself mentally box it up and stash it away after finding out about Maverick kidnapping Kaede and the other Heroes. He remembered thinking back then that he could wait to break down about it later—only to accept that there would be no later when he sacrificed himself to help Barnaby defeat the robot Wild Tiger, doing whatever was necessary to save the city, his daughter, his friends, the man he loved, even if it meant…. And then he saw himself inexplicably surviving, and finally saving his little girl.
He saw then the first day of his retirement, saw himself walking away from Barnaby, remembering how he swore to give his partner the chance to focus on himself for once, to finally live a life that was free, that was his.
And then he saw his first day back as a Hero, watched himself fall into Barnaby’s arms again, watched them become partners again. At last.
Time suddenly rocketed forward, as if Kotetsu was launched from a sling shot, he shouted in alarm but he couldn’t hear a thing, and these weren’t memories anymore.
Scenes flashed before his eyes: his first date with Barnaby (?!), when he first said I love you to the other man (!!), when Barnaby first said I love you back (!!!), moving in together, then an image of each of them in matching grey tuxes at their wedding.
“What? What?” He was yelling without a voice, he was heaving for breath, so, so very dizzy, stomach swooping with shock and amazement (and awe and wonder and what could be…!)
He was ass on the pavement in some dusty back alley, laid out flat in his hero suit in the midst of metal debris and safety glass. And someone one was shaking him, calling his name. “Wild Tiger! Kotetsu! Kotetsu, wake up!”
Kotetsu blinked, then shot to a sitting position with a deep gasp, nearly slamming into Barnaby as he did so.
“Is she okay?” he demanded, wobbling as he tried to get to his feet. Barnaby grasped his hand and pulled him to a standing position, steadying him, his eyes scanning every detail of Kotetsu’s face with laser focus.
“Are you okay? Kotetsu…?”
Kotetsu patted Barnaby reassuringly with his free hand, scanning the people milling around in search of the NEXT. “I’m fine, I’m fine.” Then he spotted the woman a short distance away, flanked by Sky High and Blue Rose, and being eyed warily by a nearby cluster of police. “Hey! Don’t apprehend her! She wasn’t being aggressive, she hasn’t learned to control her powers yet and I scared her. It’s my fault!”
The woman, who still looked almost like she was cowering, straightened and stared at him, then her face crumpled and her eyes filled. “I’m so sorry.” Her voice wavered. “I’m so, so sorry. I don’t mean for this to happen. I can’t make it stop.”
“Your powers, they’re time related, right?”
Swallowing, she nodded jerkily, lip wobbling. “I. Yes. Sort of. I can make people see memories. Or, they for an instant go back in time? But it comes out like, like a blast? I don’t mean to hurt anyone. But I can’t hold it back, it just happens.”
“You’ll be all right,” Sky High comforted the woman. “We’ll help you, and you’ll be okay!”
“Excuse me folks, pardon me, can I get through,” Ben’s voice came from behind the officers, and they parted to let him through. “Ma’am, I’m Ben Jackson, with Apollon Media. And no, I’m not trying to pressure you into a job, I just oversee these guys.” He gestured with his thumb towards Kotetsu and Barnaby. “But I am here to help you. If you’d like to come back to our offices, we can discuss assisting you in finding resources to help you as a new NEXT. The Hero Academy generally is for younger people, but they do have instruction for adult NEXTs, even older adults, and we can put you in contact with them.”
The woman looked around her, glanced over at Kotetsu who gave her a thumbs up. “He’s right,” Kotetsu called out. “A little training, and that blast will be just a breeze. And you could help so many people with that power.”
“Help people? Do you really think so?”
“Yeah, like folks with Alzheimers or senility, elderly people? You could help them see all their treasured memories, even the things they’ve forgotten.” Kotetsu saw the woman straighten, could almost see the curiosity and confidence coming back to her.
Barnaby added, “Or you could help those with amnesia or other brain traumas regain their memories.” His partner was still grasping Kotetsu’s hand, so he gave it a bolstering squeeze. Of course, this would be something Barnaby would find personally affecting. It had been a handful of years since Maverick, but Kotetsu knew the younger man still struggled at times with what had been done to him. Powers like these could have helped him so much back then, when truth and reality battled behind Barnaby’s eyes—and in his nightmares—against Maverick’s brainwashing and lies.
“Yes. I. I would like that, very much.” The woman nodded to Kotetsu and Barnaby, then turned to Ben. “My name is Anvi Mangal. Please, I want to be able to help others, not hurt them.”
Gradually the crowd disbursed. Ben escorted Ms. Mangal to his vehicle, and Sky High and Blue Rose departed with a salute and a wave.
Barnaby turned his attention once again to Kotetsu. He carefully removed Kotetsu’s helmet, pressing gentle fingers to the sides and back of Kotetsu’s head. “You’re certain you’re all right,” he asked.
“Yeah, yeah, I just was stunned.” Kotetsu rapped a knuckle against his temple lightly. “Got my bell rung, is all. Mostly it was just being inundated with a few decades worth of memories,” he shrugged.
“What did you see?”
“A lot of Tomoe, Kaede. Some of the high points and achievements of my life.” Kotetsu paused. “And you, Bunny. A lot of you.” Hesitating a moment, he reached out and clasped Barnaby’s hands, holding them. “Bunny, I…I didn’t just see the past.” He met Barnaby’s gaze, steady, let himself marvel again at how beautiful and green his eyes were, how long his eyelashes were. He felt like he was at the top of a skyscraper, about to step off in a leap of faith.
It was time to trust that Barnaby would be there to catch him once more. “I saw the future, I think. I saw us. Together. Together, together.”
Barnaby’s eyes went wide, his lips parting on a silent gasp.
Taking a deep breath, Kotetsu wet his lips, and continued. “I’ve never said anything. I’ve always cared about you, so much. But, to tell you, how much, I…. You had so much on your shoulders, with what happened to your parents, trying to piece your life back together, after, after everything. Trying to heal from it. Always having to support me, with my powers disappearing, and my retirement. Even after coming back and getting to be your partner again, I just…I wanted to tell you. But, I. Everything felt so delicate, right?”
“And you didn’t want to ruin things,” Barnaby murmured. “We were partners again, and friends again. After so long, we were back together, and you didn’t want to risk it falling apart.” His eyes were shimmering, and he looked like he was on the edge of smiling or crying—but the smiling was winning.
God, Kotetsu had hoped…seeing all the not-yet-memories in his glimpse of the future, it’d struck Kotetsu that maybe, maybe all this time, Barnaby was hiding the same feelings Kotetsu was. And now, to hear these words from him, about Kotetsu, but at the same time obviously about himself. How could Kotetsu be this lucky? How could he be this lucky a second time? He released Barnaby’s hands only so he could take off his partner’s helmet as well, letting it slip to the ground. He ran still-gloved fingers along the sides of Barnaby’s face, trailed a gentle thumb beneath his eyes to catch the stray tear that finally dropped, wiping it away.
“Bunny. Barnaby. I’ve…I’ve loved you a really long time. I always thought I just had Tomoe in my heart, then one day you were there too, like you’d always been there.” He swallowed, feeling the moisture on his own face. “If the future I saw here was real…god, I want it. I want that with you, Bunny.”
Then Barnaby, skittish Barnaby who’d always shrugged off Kotetsu’s hugs, who always complained or fussed if they went on too long, embraced Kotetsu with a loud clatter of their hero suits, squeezing him so tightly Kotetsu thought he could feel his ribs creak even in the armor. He was laughing wetly, but sounded so relieved. “Me too, it’s the same for me too. Old man, it’s been driving me crazy, I’ve wanted to say something for so long.”
Finally he pulled back, just far enough Kotetsu could see his face again. And it stole Kotetsu’s breath away, the sheer joy in Barnaby’s wide, wide smile. He’d never seen Barnaby more beautiful than at this moment. “How long’s it been for you?”
Barnaby chuckled softly, wiping under his eyes. “It first hit me that time, after Jake Martinez. When you said you trusted me to believe you.” And there was that beautiful smile again. “It was like a good luck mode punch to the chest. I don’t think I ever quite recovered.”
“I don’t know that I can point at a specific day, or event,” Kotetsu mused. He shrugged one shoulder. “It was like you snuck in on quiet little rabbit feet and just waited for me to finally notice.” He grinned. “My li’l Bunny.” Barnaby huffed, but he still held Kotetsu, and Kotetsu realized then, now that he knew, Barnaby was never going to let him go. And Kotetsu trusted in that, one hundred percent.
“So what now,” he asked, affection a warm, glowing thing beneath his sternum, and he tapped lightly at the chestplate of Barnaby’s hero suit. “Do we…should we go out? Dinner and…?”
“Definitely. Yes, let’s do that.” Barnaby’s hands hand slid down to rest at Kotetsu’s waist, and Kotetsu found he really liked them there. “Maybe something quiet and small. How about that barbecue and Korean barbecue restaurant Ben recommended?”
Kotetsu nodded as he recalled Ben mentioning his cousin and her husband’s new business. He’d always wanted to try— TIngles flashed over his scalp, and Kotetsu did a jaw-dropped doubletake, staring at Barnaby in shock. Wait, that was, that was the exact place! Their first date! Barnaby looked momentarily confused, then stared at Kotetsu in wonder.
“Really? You saw…?”
Now Kotetsu was beaming and he didn’t think he’d ever stop smiling again. With a whoop, he grabbed Barnaby into another hug, so giddy he couldn’t help but spin them both around until they both dissolved into laughter. Staggering to a halt and helpless with giggling, Kotetsu had to wipe his eyes for an entirely different reason this time.
“Y’know what’s the best part? Today’s the date we were first partnered together.”
Barnaby’s face brightened, “it is!” His smile grew impossibly fond as he looked at Kotetsu. “You remembered.”
“Of course, always.” God, he loved Barnaby so fantastically much, how had he ever kept it tucked away and secret in himself so long? “I can’t wait to have a ton of anniversaries with you.” He sounded like such a sappy fool…and he loved it. “Wait, I thought of another one!”
As Barnaby looked at him curiously, he took Barnaby’s face in his hands, then leaned in and brushed their lips together, once, twice, and by the third, Barnaby met him in the middle for a lingering, thorough kiss. When they finally parted, Kotetsu announced with a wink, “First kiss!” And he learned then that a blushing, delighted Barnaby was his absolute number one favorite thing.
Kotetsu didn’t know what the future really held, but when it came to love, he couldn’t wait to experience every moment of it, now that it would be a future with Barnaby.