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Babysitting was not Godzilla’s forte. He had never quite interacted with any children for that matter— not until he had met Suko.
He’ll admit, Suko was a good kid. Kong had told him about his help when Kong was cornered, and Godzilla himself had seen the young ape shatter the Skar King’s crystalline blade.
Godzilla had been down to Hollow Earth to visit Kong regularly, both of them exchanging gifts from their respective realms and occasionally sleeping in the same nest. Suko— bless him, had begun to crawl between the two kings at night when he felt particularly lonely.
Which seemed to be every night nowadays.
Kong had no complaints about the little ape finding comfort, after all, who could blame him? The Skar King’s rule most likely left him terrified to be alone, and Suko had grown accustomed to having Kong around. Kong’s Monster was a new cuddle buddy, aloof and stoic as he might be.
The new arrangement had Godzilla a bit apprehensive at first, especially considering Kong typically left early in the mornings to hunt. Godzilla, being the lazy creature he was, slept in. With Suko awake when Kong left, Godzilla was woken by the sound of the child shuffling around.
Of course, it wasn’t unusual for such a young ape to want to play around. Godzilla wouldn’t typically find it bothersome— if his dorsal plates weren’t currently being used as a playground while he laid on his stomach. He could feel Suko climbing around on his back, chittering playfully.
The young ape was silenced as he watched the plates begin to glow a light pink, starting from the tail and slowly rising to the top of Godzilla’s head.
They began pulsating in a calming manner, keeping Suko still long enough for Godzilla to reach his head up and grab Suko by the scruff of his neck, pulling him off of his back and sitting him down in the nest beside the king.
Caring for a child was something Mothra would know how to do, not Godzilla. Alas, she wasn’t here to ask for guidance— something Godzilla would be embarrassed to ask about in the first place.
The King of the Monsters turned his focus back to Suko, who was still watching his little lightshow. If it kept the child calm, Godzilla couldn’t care any less.
He curled his tail closer, gently pushing Suko closer to his side to make sure he didn’t run off or get into any mischief while Godzilla continued to sleep.
The silence lasted barely a minute before Suko began talking.
He seemed to talk about anything and everything, mostly topics Godzilla couldn’t quite comprehend. Occasionally, he’d bring up a story or something about Kong he hadn’t heard before.
Godzilla didn’t really understand the language of the apes, but could pick up bits and pieces of what Suko said.
Despite their language barrier, he listened intently to what Kong’s Child had to say.
Talking so much seemed to tire Suko out. His chittering lessened until he laid his head on Godzilla’s snout, snoozing away peacefully.
Godzilla purred contentedly, moving his tail to rest gently on top of Suko's legs to keep the young ape still– finally getting the extra sleep that he had wanted.
The Hollow Earth was vastly different from the surface that Godzilla was used to. Down below was a bit hotter, which meant his skin dried out faster than usual. It wasn’t a danger to his health nor was it intolerable, but he liked feeling moisture on his skin.
He loved the waterfall near Kong’s cave, sometimes even laying there for hours– which concerned Kong at first. The ape had no clue how Godzilla could nap so carefree practically in the open.
Godzilla had argued that anything that approached one alpha was stupid– even more stupid to venture onto Kong’s territory in the first place.
Kong returned hours later– still before the ‘sun’ hit the middle of the ‘sky’-- with parts of a Drownviper in his hand. Usually, Godzilla was awake by this time, mostly because Suko wouldn’t stop chattering.
When he saw Suko practically trapped under Godzilla’s tail, he sighed. Maybe today Godzilla was tired of being awake earlier than usual.
Suko was the first to wake up upon hearing his father returning to the cave, squirming his way out from under the heavy tail. His movements ultimately woke Godzilla up, who seemed to soften up upon seeing the larger ape returning.
Kong was first greeted by Suko, who came to playfully run around him for a moment before finding a suitable spot to eat his meal after being handed his portion.
Godzilla had begun purring before Kong even came over to sit next to him, his tail dragging along the floor happily. Even if he saw the ape practically everyday, there was always something about seeing him after waking up that warmed the lizard up from the inside.
If Mothra were here, she’d probably be silently making fun of Godzilla via their link. She was probably laughing at him now.
The king was brought out of his thoughts by the feeling of Kong moving his hand to Godzilla’s chin, feeling the ape scratch his chin. Everything Kong did felt nice. It was unexplainable.
Never had the king felt like this, or even knew he was capable of feeling this– but what was it? Was this what friends felt like towards each other? Was this normal? Did Kong feel this way?
Godzilla thought too much.
Kong could tell Godzilla had zoned out after a few moments of not getting a physical reaction to the scratching, something that Godzilla’s dorsal plates usually lit up in response to.
Godzilla’s attention was regained when he felt Kong sit down, prompting the larger titan to shift closer to the ape. Kong growled in a non-threatening way when he felt teeth against his shoulder, earning himself a growl from the other king.
Both titans ceased their playful behavior to allow Kong to eat— with Godzilla occasionally stealing bites when he thought Kong wasn’t looking. He’d never been one to ask for anything, as he didn’t want to seem vulnerable.
Kong knew. Kong had been observing his friend’s behavior for a while now. Sometimes, even Suko was able to pick up on Godzilla’s unusual independence.
The concept was strange to both apes— as their species were social. Being dependent on one another had helped them thrive, even under the Skar King’s rule. Kong, on the other hand, was forced to rely on his own wits.
The same could be said for the surface king. Although Godzilla hadn’t been under tyranny, he had still isolated himself, never truly bonding with any other titans besides Mothra, of course.
Whether it was just how he was or his own way of defending himself against personal attachments, Kong wouldn’t know. He didn’t want to pry into Godzilla like that.
Godzilla had been warming up to the apes lately. Mostly Suko. Whenever he did visit the other apes with Kong, he seemed apprehensive and uncharacteristically shy. It was like he felt bad for imprisoning them with Skar King. The apes, on the other hand, were somewhat warm and inviting, often trying to get Godzilla involved in their activities despite their past.
It had taken a while for Godzilla to warm up to Kong in the first place. Even now, while his chin was being scratched affectionately, he still watched Kong carefully.
The purring started again as Kong shifted his hand to the top of Godzilla’s head, softly running his knuckles down the larger titan’s neck— removing his hand as to not touch the sensitive gills— and back up to trace the dorsal plates along the back of Godzilla’s neck.
Kong thoughts wandered back when he first tried to show affection to Godzilla like this, his hand was almost bitten off. Never having been touched in a way that wasn’t trying to harm him, Godzilla instinctively defended himself.
Now, it was almost as if he had been spoiled by the affection Kong gave him, usually starting his mornings laying on top of Kong to trap him for more cuddles.
Of course, Kong didn’t complain. Other than Suko, Godzilla gave him something to look forward to waking up with each morning.
Godzilla didn’t quite understand the sentimental things Kong talked about, but it was clear he had grown to ‘love’ Kong over time. Especially with how he would sometimes roll on his side— growling lowly until Kong would pet him.
Most times, Godzilla didn’t even realize he sought out affection from his rival. It had gradually become second nature.
The ape was brought out of his thoughts by a low rumble from Godzilla. He had slowed down too much when scratching the nape of his neck, eliciting what sounded like a chuckle out of Kong.
Suko ended up wandering back over to the two titans after eating, finding their playful behavior fun and wanting to join in. Godzilla was already tired from being awake a mere hour, and the thought of Suko running around again brought back the headaches.
Kong watched in slight amusement as Godzilla annoyedly bit onto the scruff of Suko’s neck for the second time that morning, plopping him into Kong’s lap unceremoniously. He circled around the two for a moment before laying back down, curling his tail around the apes before laying his head on Kong’s thigh.
Godzilla rumbled softly, bumping Suko with his snout first before reaching up to repeat the action against Kong’s cheek. They brushed against each other for a moment, sharing soft vocalizations and sounds only they could understand before Godzilla laid back down.
Even if it was the afternoon, Godzilla would find a way to nap. Kong didn’t seem to have any complaints— but Suko would prefer to go run around somewhere.
In the end, Kong compromised that Suko could go back to play with Shimo if she was up for it, earning him happy chitters.
The two titans were left alone in the cave once more, and Godzilla happily pushed Kong onto his back. The ape huffed as Godzilla began to make himself comfortable, practically laying his whole body over Kong’s just so he wouldn’t move.
Kong wouldn’t complain. He never would.