Chapter Text
Amuro sat up in bed, which caused Beltorchika to mumble in her sleep. He glanced at the clock on his nightstand. It one was one in the morning.
Char was outside their home. He had a Newtype kid with him, but Amuro couldn't discern any specifics about her from this distance. He carefully got out of bed and slipped on some clothes. He cracked the door just enough to slip out of their room. Beltorchika stayed asleep.
He closed the door and turned on lights as he moved through their living room to the front door. Char hadn't knocked. He didn't need to. Amuro opened the door.
He hadn't known who he had expected to be with Char, but it wasn't Mineva Zabi. Amuro would never forget Dozle, and she was definitely part Dozle.
Great. Now he had that guilt to deal with.
She was bundled up in a fluffy kids' jacket with a scarf and gloves on. Except for how still she stood, she resembled a normal kid more than a princess. She was holding Char's hand. What was she doing here? Shouldn't she be in Neo Zeon?
Char looked like shit. His usual pair of sunglasses had been replaced by a cheap, generic pair. His usually flurry hair was messy. He wasn't even wearing his red uniform. Instead, he was wearing a pair of brown khaki pants and a dark brown trench coat.
It had been two months since the Titans were taken down. Char was reported dead, but Amuro had never accepted that. He would know if Char died.
"This isn't AEUG business, is it?" Amuro gestured for the pair to come inside.
"Thank you," Mineva said as she passed Amuro. She took off her boots as soon as she was inside and sat them neatly by the door.
Amuro closed the door behind them.
"I don't know where else to go," Char said quietly.
Amuro sighed. He was tired, and as nice as it was to see Char, he would rather be in bed with Beltorchika than sorting out this mess. He couldn't read Char's expression with the sunglasses on, but he could tell the man was barely holding himself together. Mineva kept looking up at him expectantly.
"Let's start with the kid. Why do you have the princess?"
At worst, this was kidnapping and could mean war.
Mineva's eyes widened when Amuro identified her. There was a recognition that came with being around other Newtypes as she realized that Amuro was like her and Char.
"This is Audrey, my daughter."
Worst case scenario then.
"Is that true, kid?" Amuro asked.
She looked up at Char for guidance. He squeezed her hand. She bit her lip.
"Yes. This is my father."
"Dad," Char gently corrected. "Or daddy. Father is too mature."
She nodded.
"Daddy." She smiled to herself after she said it.
She liked Char, and Char would not manipulate a child. No need to worry for her safety then.
"I need the full explanation, Char."
"Quattro."
"Mmm, maybe. Tell me the full story first."
If Char wanted to go into hiding and Audrey needed it, he'd let him start going by Quattro.
"It's been a long day. Can we put her to bed first?" Char gestured at Audrey.
Amuro looked back at his living room. Now that they weren't actively fighting with the Titans on Earth, Amuro's Karaba duties had shifted from warfare to patrolling and training. He lived on base at Hickory. The apartment was designed for small families, so it had an extra bedroom. Right now, it housed Amuro's Haros and the required tools for working on them.
Inevitability, if they stayed here long enough, they would marry, and it would turn into a nursery. Amuro would miss the privacy of having his own space to tinker in.
"There's a futon in the spare bedroom. Give me a moment to get it ready. Do you guys want anything to eat or drink?"
Char waited for Audrey to respond. This caught her off guard.
"We got McDaniel's before we came her," she said.
"That's not what he asked." When Audrey didn't respond, Char prompted her again. "Are you hungry or thirsty? If you are, it's alright. No one will get mad at you."
It took her several seconds to decide how to respond.
"...Could I have some milk?" she asked.
"Of course you can."
Amuro left the room and returned a moment later with a glass of milk. Char and Audrey sat on the couch while Amuro put prepared the futon with their spare set of sheets and pillows. Audrey finished her glass of milk, and then went into the other room and laid down on the futon. She was gripping the sheets.
"I'll be here all night," Char reassured from the doorway. "We'll make plans in the morning."
"Do you want me to leave the light on?" Amuro asked.
Audrey shook her head.
"I'm alright."
Amuro turned off the light and closed the door. Char and Amuro went back to the kitchen and sat at the square table there. Char crumbled when he sat down. He rested his forehead on the table. Now that Audrey was, hopefully, asleep, he could finally be weak.
"Why does she call you dad?" was the first question Amuro asked.
"I'm a man. I'll get accused of kidnapping if I'm in public with a girl that I'm not related to."
"Point taken."
"I wanted her to call me uncle, but she asked if she could call me dad. She doesn't remember her parents."
That made Amuro's heart flutter in a weird way. He admired how gentle and soft the Red Comet could be.
It was Amuro's fault her father died, and while it was unfortunate this had left Audrey fatherless, he would make the same choices again.
"And why do you have her in the first place?"
Char looked up at him. There was a fire burning in his eyes.
"You've seen her she acts. She's six. Haman groomed her. I will not let her grow up be a puppet." He laid his head back down. "I spent a lot of time with her when I was at Axis."
Amuro sighed.
"Does she know I killed Dozle?" Amuro asked.
"No. I'll tell her when she's older."
"Are you planning to raise her?"
She was an orphan. Amuro trusted Char with her more than Haman.
"I don't know."
"Are you returning to the AEUG?"
There was another shift in Char, and this one unsettled Amuro. Waves of horrible, hopeless, utter despair were coming from Char. It made Amuro want to hug him against his chest how Beltorchika hugged him.
Char needed a woman to lean on.
"It won't work, Amuro. We don't have time."
Amuro didn't like this conversation.
"Change takes time."
"Time costs people's lives. Do you know how many people we lost fighting the Titans? I won't sit by and watch the people I care for die anymore."
Amuro bit on his thumb.
"What are you suggesting?"
"We'll force everyone to space, just like we've talked about. We have to destroy the Earth."
Only Char could so casually talk about genocide. Char was trying his absolute hardest to be a good person and leave the world better than he found it. Amuro understood this because the same system Char wanted to dismantle had swallowed him alive while he was in Cheyenne.
Amuro was thankful Char had come to him. He was the only person who could talk Char out of his insane plan. He also wanted to fight in Char's war.
"Who are you to make that decision? You're not God."
Char scoffed. "Because I'm the only who can. I'm Casval Deikun. Spacenoids will listen to me."
"So you'll kill Sayla? She's still on Earth."
The anger faded from Char.
"...I don't know. I just know that it will take hundreds of years for us all to become Newtypes. I won't wait that long."
There was no in-between with Char. He was pure.
"Let's destroy just the Federation," Amuro suggested.
"The Federation's too large. We can't win without playing dirty."
"I've been a member of the Federation army since I was 15. It's filled with idiots. The colonies have all the resources and Newtypes. It won't be clean, but we can do it without destroying the Earth."
There was a glimpse of hope in Char's eyes. Amuro's heart fluttered again. This was what Lalah would want.
"Okay. I believe you."
Amuro put his hand on Char's shoulder. He was warm, and his shoulder was solid.
"Get some sleep. We'll talk about it more tomorrow morning."
"We can't involve Audrey. She's a kid."
"I agree, but she should travel with you. War is better for a kid than being alone."
It was better for Katz, Kikka, and Letz to stay in the White Base than to grow up in a orphanage. Amuro had felt her attachment to Char when she called him dad, and no one knew what it meant to be Zeon royalty more than Char. Staying with him, even if meant she had to witness warfare, would be better than asking her to grow up alone.
"I want to talk about it with her before we make any decisions."
"Get some sleep. We can talk about this more tomorrow."
He was just starting to develop a routine with Beltorchika, but he welcomed the change. This felt more natural than trying to be the man Beltorchika deserved.
"Where should I sleep?" Char asked.
"The couch in the living room is all we have left."
"That's fine. I could fall asleep on the floor."
Amuro chuckled. He knew exactly what Char was talking about.
He got Char a blanket and a pillow, and after making sure all the doors were locked, he returned to his bedroom. Beltorchika stirred when he sat down on the bed. She inched closer to him and put her arm around Amuro. Amuro wondered when he would get used to this intimacy.
"Everything okay?" Beltorchika mumbled.
"Char and Princess Mineva came by. He wanted me to help him destroy the Earth, but we settled for overthrowing the government instead. We'll talk about it more tomorrow," Amuro answered casually.
Beltorchika sat up. She grabbed a pillow to cover her breasts, which she lowered after making sure the door to their bedroom was closed.
"What?!" Beltorchika asked.
Amuro stared up at her.
"What part did I lose you at?"
"All of it! Amuro, we have to talk before you make big decisions like this. You should have woken me up."
"I didn't want to bother you. It wouldn't have mattered."
Beltorchika groaned in frustration. She laid back in bed.
"Start over. Tell me everything in detail."
Amuro did.
In the morning, while Beltorchika showered, Amuro ventured into the kitchen to make breakfast. This was his way for apologizing to her for what happened the day before.
Char wasn't on the couch. He felt like he was still in house, so Amuro carefully opened the door to the spare bedroom just a bit. Char was laying on the floor with Audrey snuggled up against him. The sight filled Amuro with a yearning that he didn't understand.
Char's eyes fluttered open. He made eye contact with Amuro and moving slowly so he didn't wake the sleeping kid, he put his index finger over his mouth. Amuro nodded and closed the door.