Chapter Text
September 11th, 2001
It starts on a Tuesday morning.
It was 7:34 in the morning. It was bright and sunny just as the radio predicted it would be, but, despite it all, Fio was stuck in her bed with a high-tempered fever.
It sucked. It was September . It wasn't even a month to be sick. She had complained to her father, who had only laughed to her dismay, when he carried her out of her room to the couch, to which she also complained about.
"It will be better for your health," Tou-san appeared from the kitchen clad in an apron that was wrapped tightly over an oversized Ramones T-shirt that definitely doesn't belong to him.
Ash plops her onto the couch, sauntering over to his husband to kiss him good morning.
Eiji, however, dodges his attempts at affection and ducks swiftly back into the kitchen.
" Come onnn, no kiss good morning?" He pouts.
" Meh, kiss me later, you gotta work for it."
Ash grumbles, little shit before following Eiji into the kitchen to help him with breakfast.
As for Fio who is buried under three thick quilts as we speak is delving in and out of consciousness, being lulled by Dust in The Wind playing on the radio in the kitchen or being jolted awake by Tousan and Pops bickering about draining their finances with the heat blasting.
Fio was plenty warm in their cozy little home in Greenwich, too warm in fact, but it didn't bother her; it was comforting, with the smell of boiling miso over the stove.
" Like we have drainable finances." Ash scoffs, it's true, Pops will always make sure that his family is comfortable, whether they go broke or not.
She hears Tou-san set the table with Pop's breakfast bowls clinking together; she smells a certain dish that will be sure to make Pops complain more than he already has.
Her father groaned,(called it) " Don't tell me, it's Tuesday isn't it?"
"That's right," Tou-san chirped, "And what a beautiful day for Natto too!"
"Eugh, hard pass, I'll just go for the miso." He said reaching for the pot.
Tou-san slapped his hand away with a ladle, " Don't even think about it, that is for your sickley daughter, you greedy man."
"Oh yeah, like there isn't enough in that pot to feed the entirety of this floor," Ash grimaced, rubbing the back of his hand, "Asshole…"
"I know what you are, but what am I?"
[ " A cocksucker?]" Ash quips.
Eiji thanked internally for the language barrier. Fio was fluent, but some words were restricted, and what he was about to say was definitely not for an eight-and-three-quarters year old's ears.
He grinned, [ " Cocksucker? Well you know what they say,]" he ladles the soup in another bowl, [ " You are what you eat.] " He says, sticking his tongue out before making a beeline towards the living room.
Tou-san sat down beside the couch sliding the bowl of soup into her hands. It was warm to the touch. The kitchen was now quiet of her Father's antics except for the radio that was now playing American Pie but if definitely meant Tousan had won whatever banter the blond had initiated.
"Good morning Fio-chan," He touched her forehead with the back of his hand, " How are you feeling?"
She leant into his touch. His cool hands felt nice on her radiated skin, " Like shiii- take mushrooms ."
She smiled sheepishly at Tou-san's unamused expression, but her mistake wasn't all in vain as she heard a snort from the kitchen.
" Wow, Eiji, can you imagine that? shiitake mushrooms?"
" Oh, what I would give to be blessed with such a feeling." Tou-san grinned towards Pops, feeding Fio a spoonful of soup, " Would you like me to save you a bowl of natto for later?"
She didn't mind eating natto, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't really great either although, mixing it with tuna and egg made the taste of feet a little more bearable. Not to Pops though, he would complain just about every time it was in proximity of his senses, not Fio though, no sir, her palette was exquisite when it came to malodorous flavors, Tousan often praised her for it and her other father would just complain even more, despite being the strongest of their little family, he was kind of a pussy.
Fio swallowed grinning," No, thank you," She grinned more widely, and leaned in speaking at a low volume, [ " feed it to the old, weak, American creature that dwells in our home, he lacks discipline.] "
Eiji's head knocks onto the small girl's shoulder as he snorts and cackles as she leans into him giggling.
" What are you two giggling about?" the so said, old, weak, American appears leaning against the doorframe.
Fio, who decides that it's her turn of little shittery grins all smug at the blond.
" We're plotting our escape so that…" She looks to Eiji for assistance, failing miserably at her attempts at little shittery.
"So that I can finally elope with Madonna."
Ash snorts, " Madonna, really? Actually I'm not surprised, I should've known with the amount of CDs you own."
Eiji dances away, batting his eyes at the blond. " Yes oh how my heart yearns to be with the one I truly belong with '' He shrugs, " too bad I don't swing that way, Oh well! bitchy blond husband, and shiitake mushroom life will have to do." He mocked a gasp, hiding a shit-eating grin before winking at the small girl.
"bitchy, I'll show you bitchy!" He moved quickly, darting like a predator with prey. The Japanese male dodges at his attempts of the blond grabbing at him, as they run circles around the couch.
They both scramble into the kitchen as Eiji starts to sing, " Like a virgin~ touched for the very first time~"
Fio giggles at their foolishness and then there's a crash and a shout.
Her Father comes barreling out of the kitchen, almost slipping as he makes a beeline towards the hallway with the older Japanese in tow with a handful of natto beans.
"Take this, you vile American!"
"No!" Ash shrieks, "get that shit away from me, you bastard!"
The blond man stops just as he gets to the door and turns to Eiji then crashes into him the man then continues to put him in a tight hold and spins the older man around like a carousel.
"Put me down, I'm going to fall!" The older man squeals, grabbing at the coat on the wall to balance himself.
The younger responds by pulling him into a sweet kiss, setting the older man down gently.
Eiji wraps the coat around Ash's shoulder pulling away just an inch, " say goodbye to your daughter." He says lips brushing together.
She didn't wanna ruin the moment but too late because Ash with a wild grin has already made a beeline towards her.
"No! I'm sick, I'll spit on you I swear!" She screamed, attempting to scramble off the couch but attempts be damned as she didn't even get to move an inch before he tackled her into a bone crushing embrace.
"Don't think I'm letting you get away that easily," He said before blowing a raspberry on her cheek. she squeaked and giggled trying to push him away but to no avail.
Eiji gazed at them fondly at their playful bantering it's funny, all these years of fighting through hell and back and this is how they ended up
Fio stuck her tongue out to which revealed to have a fat glob of mucus on it the blond jumped off the couch in disgust.
he giggled, he wouldn't have it any other way.
They laughed together and Ash gave her a proper farewell with a kiss on the forehead, " I'll see you later little bird,"
Because this was his. They were his. his dusk and dawn.
"When will you be coming home?" The older man asks by his side.
"Late I have to finish this article by midnight," the blond responds, putting on his shoes, he gets up and gives his husband one last peck, " I'll drop by Daiyu's school today on my break for her work."
"Pick Tessie up while you're at it. Shorter will be thrilled, it's been a while, don't you think?" Eiji squeezed his hand and gave him that signature smile before he turned to go attend to their sick daughter.
Ash watched his husband walk back to the living room with a pained expression before he made his way out the door.
Eiji noticed that it was understandable really, things have been rough in their home lately. Their jobs had kept them from seeing each other until odd hours of the night, even Fio, who was having more angered outbursts than usual, sometimes even physical.
The man shook his head. Now wasn't the time to think about that, he had a sick child to attend to. Besides, he had already scheduled an appointment for a child therapist for next Wednesday, and Ash said he was finishing up the article he and Max were working on and he had the rest of the week off. Maybe they can do something with that.
He'd ask about it later, for now, he would do his fatherly duties and sing along to the radio.
" So bye-bye, Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to the levee
But the levee was dry
Them good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Singing, "This'll be the day that I die"
This will be the day that I die…"
🦁
🐰
🐱
🐱
🐲
Fio, bored, and still sporting a fever at 101.3, she turned on the TV hoping to find something good on VH1, which to her dismay, was just news which was… weird but, she continued on her search for some entertainment only for almost every channel to be some form of news.
Annoyed, but also concerned, she stopped her continuous clicking to see what the shit all the fuss was about.
Upon watching, apparently a plane has crashed into the North Tower which was alarming, but not concerning enough for her eight-and-three-quarter year old brain, and definitely not concerning enough for every channel to be so focused on a hole in a building. It wasn't that big of a deal to her, but it was enough for Tou-san to stick his head out from the kitchen.
"How awful! those poor people. How long has this been going on?" He queried, now leaning against the entryway
" I don't know, it was like that when I turned the TV on, it's on every channel!" She clicked through channels again as an example.
"Huh. Well, I guess it can't be helped, they'll probably fix it in a few months and people will forget about it." he turned back into the kitchen, " Maybe you'll see your father on TV, turn up the volume. I wanna hear if there are any updates."
See? If Tou-san wasn't worried about it then she had nothing to worry about. She turned up the volume and continued to watch.
It all went by so quickly from then on.
Not even ten minutes later another plane had crashed into the second tower. Now that was concerning, she was so caught up in it all she didn't even hear Eiji come up from behind her while looking at the TV with a serious expression.
"That couldn't of have been an acciden-"
"Shh."
Usually, she hated that, but now wasn't the time. They both stared and watched the TV for what seemed like forever until Tou-san spoke up.
"Stay there." He said and hurried towards the front door faltering and slipping a little on the hardwood.
He opened the door and ran out, not even bothering to close it. She waited and would not dare to move off the couch, or even a muscle. She was frozen, to the point where it might have even been cold and it wasn't because of the open door.
After five minutes he came back this time with a calmer facade and walked over towards the phone jamming the buttons on the side and waiting.
waiting…
waiting…
waiting…
…
nothing.
He swore, dialing again, this time glancing back at her to give her a reassuring smile. But this time, she wasn't so sure she wasn't really feeling reassured.
waiting…
waiting…
…
nothing. again.
He kept getting more frantic in his movements, jamming the buttons so hard one of them managed to get stuck. He waited again and still, nothing. Growing frustrated, he slammed the phone down so hard he even flinched.
The Japanese man turned to her, this time managing to give her another smile.
" Just a moment." He said, but she barely heard him.
And he was down the hallway before she could say anything, she chose to stay where she was. It only took him a minute to come back but this time in his hands were her portable CD player and headphones.
"Tou-san, wha-"
She didn't even get a chance to finish before the man plopped the headphones on her head, scooped her up, and sat her down on his lap.
She tried to take the headphones off to question him but he just slid them back on and held her. Any time she tried to move to look at the TV he just held her against him tighter.
They sat there for what felt like forever. Tou-san's grip on her tightening as the minutes passed, she didn't move, not for a while, only attempting so that she could press play on her CD player.
She closed her eyes, succumbing to her Father's rapid heartbeat and the music drowning her anxiety away.
Fuanna kimochi o nokoshita mama
Machi wa 'ding-dong' toozakatte yuku wa
Asu no asa mama kara denwa de
Shikatte morau wa, my darling!
Shikatte morau wa, my darling!
My little darling, my little darling,
My little da-
The front door flew open, slamming so hard against the wall she heard it through her headphones, Eiji shot up instantly still holding on to the small girl in a death grip.
"Ash?!" He called out, desperately.
"Eiji?" not Ash.
Shorter appeared from the hallway, he wasn't wearing his signature sunglasses, looking wild and utterly exhausted like he had run a marathon. In one arm, he was holding Tessie who had his arms wrapped around the man's shoulder, his face digging into it.
They spoke at such a rapid pace that she couldn't understand what they were saying. Her headphones muffled everything.
She took them off, "-hit Eiji, Ash will be fine, we both know he's been through a lot worse-"
"I know that Shorter! but this isn't gang warfare, this is terrorism! I need to know if he's okay."
Gang warfare?
"Eiji, pleas-" A crash came from the TV and they all turned.
Fio felt her Father's breath hitch and everything went silent except for announcements on the TV.
North Tower… Falling… Evacuation…
No one moved, no one dared, not even Tessie who was still clutching his father like a lifeline, but if you looked close enough you could see him shaking. Poor baby.
Eiji was the one to finally break the silence.
"Daiyu…" He said, calling her by her real name but not like how Pops always did.
She looked up at him, and he had the calmest expression, like nothing was happening he even smiled a little.
"I need you to do me a favor, Dai-chan," He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear," I need you to look after the house for me."
Her eyes widened at the man before her.
" It's a big responsibility, I know, but you're older now and I trust you, can you do that for me?"
His expression stayed the same, usually when Eiji was calm it meant things were okay, but she wasn't so sure about that anymore, she nodded silently anyway.
He looked relieved and he kissed her forehead, held it, " I love you, my lionheart."
And before she could say it back, she was being pushed into the arms of her godfather.
"Take care of them." She didn't know if he was talking to her or Shorter.
"Eiji, Eiji! get back- don't!" Shorter protested, and tried to follow him but then he realized that he had in fact two children in his care, he looked back out the doorway and Eiji was nowhere to be seen.
He then looked between her and Tessie, "goddammit!" He shouted, slamming the door recklessly with his foot.
And then they were on the couch, Shorter finally having the chance to catch his breath but still holding the both of them, TV turned off, and music still playing in her headphones.
She'd never seen him so helpless before, and Tessie wasn't any better either, being able to finally see his face he looked absolutely petrified.
All she could do then was pry his hand from Shorter's shirt and grasp his hand in hers.
And then she got an idea, she pushed away from Shorter's hold and scurried up the stairs, and into her room.
she didn't think it was much, but usually Pops did this for her whenever she felt in need of comfort she swapped the disc in her CD player for another one and went back into the living room.
She stood in front of Shorter who was still in the same spot on the couch.
"What?" He asked.
She gestures to the boy and makes grabby hands.
He blinks at her but compiles to her bidding.
The man then maneuvered the boy onto the floor. He whimpered at the loss of comfort, but she was quick to grab his hand and pull him down with her onto the floor.
He looked confused, was still shaking, and there was snot and tears running down his puffy face. She wanted to wipe that all away, so she put her headphones around his neck, and pulled him into an embrace.
It was a little awkward mostly because he was taller and older than her most would probably think the other way around but who gave a shit she certainly didn't this was her brother who gave a crap what they thought. She pressed play and sang along with the lyrics.
"Carry on, my wayward son,
There'll be peace when you are done,
Lay your weary head to rest,
Don't you cry no more,"
She sang almost the entirety of the song by the time Tessie had stopped shaking, she could feel her shoulder drenched, but shirt be damned it was on backwards anyway.
"Carry on, you will always remember,
Carry on, nothing equals the splendor,
Now your life's no longer empty,
Surely heaven waits for you,"
Shorter, just stared in awe at the scene in front of him, her ability to stay calm in these types of situations amazed the hell outta him.
She hummed through the rest of the song. The boy was now limp in her arms, until she suddenly felt something bubble up in her. she pushed him aside.
She threw up all over the floor.
🐰
🐱
🐱
🐲
Days went by and her fever only got worse at an alarming rate. Only on the second day did she get better when Eiji returned. Physically, he looked fine, but his expression was haunted and exhausted. His husband was not by his side when he returned.
She didn't have to ask.
Her Father was dead.
On the fourth day Eiji sat her at the table and confirmed it, she didn't cry when he told her the news, and she didn't cry when he held right after.
On the twenty-second day she celebrated her birthday alone in Japan. Well… not completely alone, she had Buddy now, but that was barely enough for her aching heart.
It's been a month now. In the early hours of the morning, she lay awake, listening to the sobs coming from the next room over.
It's been a habit lately, waking up at this hour, and almost every time she does Tou-san is too. He doesn't always cry. Sometimes he's downstairs in the kitchen the sound of clinking glasses echoing through paper thin walls, sometimes he was shuffling around the house seemingly doing nothing but most if not all the time he would cry, all she could was listen.
But not this time she wasn't gonna stand for this any longer he shouldn't have to suffer alone.
She shuffled out of her futon and slid into the tiny apartment hallway. Tou-san's bedroom door was open, light illuminating from it onto the floor. She peeked in and saw Tou-san sitting on his bed back against the door, his shoulders shook as he sobbed.
Fio pushed the door open so it would make a little noise enough for the man to whirl his head towards the girl, a single tear glistening on his cheek.
"Fio!" He wipes it away, "I'm sorry, did I wake you?"
She shook her head as she inched closer, clambering onto the bed and in his lap, she leaned onto his chest. on his heart. grounding.
" It'll be alright." He whispered, voice quivering.
He put a hand through her fine hair, it flowed through his fingertips, like a body coming through rye.
"You'll be alright." He whispered again, a reminder more to himself than anything.
" We'll be alright…"
She could only hope.