Chapter Text
After the defeat of the Lady Bone Demon, things had been quiet. Everything had gone back to normal and the people of the city continued their lives as if nothing had happened. No one saw the battle take place, none of them knew just how close the world came to being lost and it was better that way. The lull in threats was a pleasant change of pace in comparison to what had previously been non stop action and fighting. To say the peace had been more than welcomed was an understatement. An air of mundane normalcy had washed over everything and it was nothing short of bliss.
With the return of social order came the return of MK’s delivery job. He would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy it. Slipping on his headphones and driving through the streets of the city with steaming hot noodles on the back of his bike was refreshing. The world saving adventures were fun, despite run-ins with some of Monkie King’s old ‘friends’, but sometimes the Friday night dinner rush or an all night movie marathon was the only challenge he wanted to overcome.
The new additions to his mismatched little family were another thing he was grateful for now that it was all over. Red Son still refused to use his preferred name, instead he continued to refer to MK simply by ‘Noodle Boy’, but he didn’t mind. If he was completely honest it would be weird for the demon to call him anything else at this point. Red Son would visit the noodle shop more often and even if he played it up like it was nothing more than a social call on ‘the more tolerable of the dorky mortals’, MK couldn’t help but smile when he saw a new regular. The fire demon would sometimes peer over the counter to watch what Pigsy was doing, taking mental notes to improve his own cuisine skills; his parents seemed to enjoy it when he cooked them all dinner. If the chef ever caught him looking, Red Son would simply inform him that whatever he was doing ‘could be done a million times more efficiently with an automated machine’. This more often than not led to Pigsy going on a long indeed explanation on how doing it by hand improved the flavour and how he would never dishonour the sacred art of cooking. On one such occasion, MK could have sworn he saw Chang’e, whose cooking show was playing on the small television in the corner, wink.
What MK didn’t expect from all this was Macaque, more specifically his slight shift in attitude towards the group. He and Wukong would still bicker about every last thing they could but there was no malice behind the insults they threw at each other. In light of MK’s enthusiasm to learn new skills and become stronger, Wukong even agreed to let MK train with Macaque sometimes. He was reluctant at first, reminding the boy of the events that happened the last time he took up the title of the Macaque’s student but MK had assured him things were different now. Silently, he prayed he was right. While the shadow warrior had helped in their final battle against the Lady Bone Demon, he was still mischievous and unpredictable. The Monkie Kid had been training with Macaque on several incident free occasions now and that streak was yet to be broken, so the trust remained in tack as well. MK had swallowed down the sinking deja vu he had gotten when he walked through the dojo doors again; it was quickly forgotten when he noticed the little drawing he had given the monkey. It had been framed and placed on a small display shelf along with a sheathed sword and a small wooden cat. The boy didn’t mention it, but he did have a suspicion where the cat trinket had come from.
The little girl who was unfortunate enough to have been the host to the Bone Demon’s spirit was also often at the noodle shop when MK would come back from a delivery. He would give her a wave in passing as he loaded more orders into the back of his motorbike. She hugged him one time, the first real time he met her outside of battle, he hadn’t seen her coming or noticed her until she wrapped her arms around the back of his waist. The delivery boy almost dropped the tall stack of takeout boxes he carried but with a comical amount of swaying, he managed to steady them. The little girl hadn’t even noticed, her head remained buried in the back of MK’s work shirt. When she let go he had spun around to face her. He was clearly expecting Mei because MK was caught off guard when he didn’t see anyone at his. The little girl smiled up at him and he finally smiled back down at her (ignoring the way his stomach lurched when he looked at her face. It wasn't fair to think of her as the Bone Demon but it would take some getting used to). It didn’t take too long though, within a week they were practically siblings.
This world may be imperfect, he thought to himself, but mine couldn’t be any better.
One humid and sunny evening, the Monkie King and his successor having just finished their training, the pair sat on the edge of the cliff at Flower Fruit Mountain that overlooked the city. A pleasant breeze passed over the two of them, MK took a deep and content breath as it did. Sun Wukong looked over to his student, his tail swaying slightly behind him. The boy was resting back on his hands, legs dangling over the edge and kicking them a little. He had a look of complete peace on his face.
“Whatcha thinkin’ about, bud?” Monkie King asked him.
MK was slightly taken aback at the question, almost as if he had forgotten Wukong was even there. The boy looked over to him and blinked a few times. He sighed, the soft smile returning to his face. “Not much.” the kid replied, looking back over the city. “I’m just glad you’re here, I guess.”
It was Wukong’s turn to be surprised. The words settled in his mind and weighed heavy on his conscience. He knew this wasn’t MK’s intention but it made him realise something. It made him realise just how absent he had been during the times his successor needed him the most. He had made a promise to the boy after they defeated the Lady Bone Demon that he would be better and so far he hasn’t really had many opportunities to put that promise to the test. Even so, the boy seemed happy. The Monkie KIng smiled, pulling the kid into a side on hug.
“I’m glad you’re here too, bud.” He replied finally. “There’s no one else I’d rather have holding that staff than you, kid.” Wukong continued, burying his hand into the kid’s hair and messing it up.
MK laughed, shaking it a little as he took out the telltale red hairband. He retied the piece of fabric and his usual hair style seemed to spring back into place. They sat in quite contentment for a while, watching the sun sink behind the mountains in the distance. MK let himself fall onto his back, legs still dangling over the side of the cliff and arms stretched out to either side. He sighed, closing his eyes as he let the last of the evening warmth wash over him. His mentor couldn't help but let out a soft laugh, they really were so very similar. Wukong watched as a distant flock of birds crossed his field of view. He shifted his gaze down to MK, who still lay on his back, then back to the birds. He did this a few times as the idea formed in his head along with a grin on his face. Not every opportunity to learn something had to be a life or death situation.
“Hey, bud?” Wukong’s voice came but when MK peeked open an eye to look where he had been sitting, he wasn’t there. The young hero frowned, propping himself back up on his elbows and finally fully sitting up. He swivelled his head from side to side, trying to find The Monkie King but he was nowhere in sight.
“Where did you g- Woah!” MK’s question devolved into screams as he felt himself being hoisted into the air by the shoulders of his jacket.
The boy snapped his head upwards to size up the unknown assailant. He quickly realised it was the Monkie King who had shifted himself into a bird and relaxed for a moment. His relief was very short lived, however, as he remembered he was now hundreds of feet above the ground. As Monkie king continued to fly higher, MK scrambled to get a better hold on the bird that carried him. Wukong was completely unphased by his student’s squirming, MK weighed little more than a grain of rice to him. The boy had awkwardly wrapped his arms and legs around the claws of the bird and was tensing every muscle in his body to keep hanging on. Once he was sure, or at least mostly sure, he wouldn’t go plummeting to the ground below, the boy looked up to the bird once again.
“So, uh- where are we going?” his voice cracked a little as he spoke.
Wukong laughed. “Just hang on, I wanna show you something.”
MK looked down, sceptical about the situation, then back up at Monkie King. “Okay, just please do not drop me.” he added before readjusting his grip.
Wukong took off. He shot upwards with impressive speed considering he was also carrying the kid in his claws. The sunset had turned the rapidly approaching ceiling of clouds a rich palette of reds, yellows, pinks and orange. The pair burst through the cloud cover, MK had to shake some stratus off his face but kept his eyes shut tight. Then there was nothing. No rushing of air past his ears and through his hair, no sense of impending doom, no feeling of his jacket being tugged. Nothing. For a pleasant moment he felt completely weightless.
The boy opened his eyes and let out the breath he had been holding. He found himself laughing, it was all he really could do. Had he not been to the Heavenly Realm before, he would have imagined that this was what it looked like. A sea of sunset coloured clouds in every direction. Part of him wondered briefly if he could sit on them like the Monkie King does. If he spun around, MK could see the darker purples and blues of the night sky creeping over the valley. No camera could ever do this view justice, it wouldn’t be able to capture the sense of awe and amazement he felt in that moment. He was sure nothing ever would.
The feeling settled in his stomach, an oddly pleasant unease like all his organs had shifted. It felt strangely like the feeling of falling, and then it dawned on him. MK was certain his heart just dropped straight out of his body as the realisation that the upwards momentum of the Monkie King’s flight had worn off and that he was, in fact, now starting to fall.
“I told you not to drop me!” The boy yelled to the sky, Wukong seemingly nowhere in sight.
He attempted, rather comically, to swim through the air; seemingly completely forgetting, in the heat of the moment, that he could also transform into a bird. MK screamed as he began to drop, letting out a quiet ‘ompf’ sound when he collided with something soft. Monkie King, on a small cloud of his own, had caught him. He was laughing and in turn, the frown on MK’s face curled into a smile of his own. The laughter died down, MK leaning over the front of the nimbus to get a better view of their descent.
“Pretty great, huh?” Sun Wukong’s voice came from behind him, subtly wrapping his tail around the boy’s midsection and pulling him a few inches away from the edge.
MK turned to look at him, grinning ear to ear. “It was amazing! Well all except the part where you dropped me.” he put emphasis on the word ‘dropped’, shifting to sit with his legs crossed and facing Wukong.
The Great Sage laughed, patting MK on the head with his tail. “Awe, c’mon. I’d never actually drop you, bud. I’ve got your back.”
MK dropped his shoulders, the grin softening into a knowing smile. They sat quietly for a while, both enjoying the way the wind whipped around their hair and blew through their clothes.
“Can we do this again, sometime?” MK broke the silence. “Except maybe with a little warning, next time?” he let out a nervous little laugh.
Monkie King returned the laugh and shook his head, fondly. “Sure, bud. You bet.”
With that, the peaceful silence returned. The sun had fully set and the lights of the city became like a beacon. MK had never seen it like this before. Sure he had gone out at night plenty of times, be that to make a delivery or to party with Mei at the arcade, but he had never seen the whole thing lit up like this. He tried to spot Pigsy’s Noodle Shop from where he was, leaning out over the edge of the cloud again. Monkie King kept his tail braced, ready to catch the kid in case he lost his grip or the cloud gave way under him. Everything was just a jumble of lights and colours, though, so it was more or less impossible. With all the times Wukong had spent watching his soon to be successor, he knew exactly where the shop was and slowly manoeuvred the cloud down there.
MK was rubbing his eyes by the time they got back. Pigsy had already closed up for the night, the neon sign was dark and the metal sheet was down over the front entrance. Wukong brought the cloud in and MK slipped off with a yawn.
“Thanks, Monkie King.” The kid smiled, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Any time, kid.” he replied.
MK headed up the fire escape to his little apartment above the noodle shop. He turned, looking back to Monkie King and waved.
“See you tomorrow, bud.” he gave the kid a small wave in return.
MK slouched up the remainder of the stairs to his room, Monkie King watching him until he disappeared inside before heading back to Flower Fruit Mountain. Chucking his jacket on the bed, MK debated just laying down and going to bed in his regular clothes but decided it was probably better to shower now so he wasn’t late to work, again. He washed his hair free from the debris of the day’s training, the amount of small twigs and pebbles that got stuck in there throughout the day was honestly astounding. He had never been more thankful to whoever invented drain catchers.
Once he was fully cleansed of the day’s activities, he dried off and put on some pyjamas. There was one last thing he wanted to get done before it slipped his mind, scrambling around his room looking for his sketchbook. Once he found it, under a large pile of ‘Monkie King: The Animated Series’ DVD box sets, he took a few minutes to scribble down the view from above the clouds. It wasn’t perfect, but he was satisfied with it. Nodding to himself, MK finally switched off his lamp and landed face first onto his pillow.