Chapter Text
The sun was starting to rise over Crossroads. A familiar inphernal was softly snoring in their bed. It was peaceful- only for a moment. It was quickly cut off after a blaring alarm rang in his ears.
An alarm was quickly turned off as the bed creaked. The inphernal turned over to grab the phone. Six AM, on the dot
… It’s too early for this. For being considered one of the oldest inphernals in the Inpherno, he’d thought that he would’ve gained the privilege to sleep in. Not that he really needed to.
Well, as much as he would’ve loved to joke about that… he was happy where he was, truly. This was his life. And in his current state, he wouldn’t change a thing about it. With Rocket and himself, they made a life for each other. Zuka was done fighting. His entire life was fighting. For once, he’d be able to live a life of peace he’d always seen in those books- those movies.
For Rocket? Zuka, himself, wasn’t even sure what was going on with him. He had reached the age where many inphernals tend to… how would he put this. Become more moody. More so than when they’re younger. And believe him, when he took Rocket in, he was quite the rebellious spirit. It was starting to get better but recently, it was on a whole other level.
On the bright side, Rocket was starting to grow taller as well. That was something he could look forward to.
But, that was off topic, it was monday, and as much as he trusted Rocket, someone had to wake him up for school. Zuka had tried to get Rocket to wake up earlier on his own, but to his avail, he’d got scolded by the school for letting the rocketeer come to school late… more times than allowed.
His arm pushed him off the bed, bones cracking a bit too much for his liking, a groan came out of him. This “supposed” old age was a pain. The inphernal walked over to his closet to change into his outfit for the day. Clothes scuffled around as he changed into his usual military pants. He also grabbed his go-to jacket. Not before taking a moment to smell it, of course. When was the last time he washed it? He should ask Rocket to do the laundry sometime soon.
The jacket gave off… not that bad of a stench, so it was worthy enough to wear for the day. He put his left arm in one sleeve and his stump on the other. Obviously, he couldn’t walk around with the sleeve flailing around so he tied the right side.
There was still something off about himself though. His eyes scanned his room until he found his hat and bandana laid around his nightstand after he threw them there last night. His glove was scattered on the ground as well.
The hat would be easy enough to put on. Just right on top of his horns, a classic look, if he said so himself. His hand quickly shoved the glove onto itself after a bit of struggle with it. The bandana though… that’d be harder. With only one hand, it takes him a while to tie it around his neck. If it were any other day, he’d have Rocket help put it on him. Surprisingly, Rocket never found it peculiar that Zuka liked wearing it. But, he should be able to deal with it himself.
It’d be hard to tie it in a knot without looking, he needed to see, after all. And to do that- he’d need a mirror. He guessed he should take a moment to freshen up in the bathroom.
As he went in, his hand flicked the light switch on as a bright light hit him in the face.
I will never get used to that.
He stared at himself in the mirror. A sigh came out of the inphernal as he saw more of his horn turn grey. Zuka was starting to get old… it was a reality he had to face eventually. At the very least the tips still held his iconic blue. The horns already started to stop growing as well. The inphernal really wasn’t afraid of that, but it still was a jarring experience to watch himself start to grow old. Not a lot of inphernals even reached his age, let alone become old enough to show signs of aging. Zuka was one of the lucky ones. Or unlucky.
His arm raised up as he wrapped the bandana around him. Now, the last part of this was to tie the knot in the back of his neck- somehow…. This was so much easier when he had both arms.
After a longer than expected time, he managed to tie the knot of the bandana. Skilled hands had many purposes, of course.
“That’s better,” he said to himself. For a moment, the thought of taking a shower popped up.
Nah, I smell fine.
Now then, he just needed to follow his usual, morning schedule. It wasn’t like he had all the time in the world to dilly dally anyways.
From the top! Wake Rocket up, make breakfast, double check Rocket actually woke up, make sure that Rocket is presentable, double check Rocket didn’t pack explosives, make sure he eats breakfast, and send him to school. Seemed simple enough, right?
Zuka made his way down the hall as he approached Rocket’s door. The rocketeer had asked if he could decorate it and Zuka could really care less about what he did. However, when Zuka said yes to it, he hadn’t expected Rocket to put a big “no Blackrock” sign on it. The grey inphernal was caught a bit off guard about how sudden it was. Like father like son, he guessed. It was a bit weird how Rocket shifted his behavior to replicate Zuka’s younger self. At least a bit of it.
Zuka’s hand rose to knock on the door. “Kid! Wake up, it’s time for school.” He heard a groan on the other side.
“Five more minutes, dad.”
“Those five minutes turned into sixty last time!” And that was completely Zuka’s fault for not realizing Rocket was still sleeping until Rocket should’ve been out of the door. The inphernal had an earful when the school called him later that day.
“Fine….”
“And! Wear a jacket this time!” Another groan came from the door. Zuka took a quick breath in.
“This kid better no sleep in,” he said to himself as he started to make his way to the kitchen. Hopefully he didn’t need to drag Rocket out kicking and screaming.
Zuka had a hand off type of parenting. The rocketeer could do anything he wanted so long as it was legal.
The kid’s good, he’s not gonna do anything illegal.
Zuka could never ask Rocket for anything anyways. Except school- that was a must, despite Rocket’s protests.
Getting Rocket up was easier than expected. Now, Zuka needed to make breakfast for both himself and Rocket. As he walked over to the kitchen, he could feel a striking presence sink into his back. That was… strange. His eyes glanced at a shadow. He could’ve sworn it looked darker than usual.
Even after all these years, he still couldn’t get over his experience as a soldier could he? They were safe. No one was ever going to hurt them, even if they tried.
Zuka came into the kitchen as he was pondering what to make. Well, considering his arm, the options were quite limited within the time limit. It had already been about twenty minutes so that meant Rocket had to be ready and out the door in forty.
The fridge door opened as he looked inside…. His hand reached out to pick up eggs. It seemed fitting for the day. Quick steps were heard as the inphernal walked back and forth, opening cabinets, grabbing a frying pan, plates, the essentials. Then came the part where he had to crack the egg.
When Zuka lost his arm he was unusually “okay” with it. But, despite his attitude, there were many inconveniences. In this case, it appeared once again. How does a inphernal, untrained in the kitchen, crack an egg with one hand without crushing the egg to the inphinity.
I am not going to mess this up.
With a diligent slam, he cracked the egg and opened it, all with one hand.
Never doubt me.
He repeated it for the rest of the eggs. Enough for Rocket and himself. While the eggs were cooking, he needed to start making his coffee.
As he grabbed his mug from the cabinet, he heard a ring come from the doorbell. Zuka sighed as he walked over to the front door, not before turning the stove to low heat. Let them slowly cook while he dealt with business. When he opened the door, he was greeted with a familiar lively rainbow.
“Mister Zuka!”
“Rainbeau. I thought I said you didn’t need to call me that. Zuka’s just fine.”
“Really? It’s such a fitting name for you! What about… Miss Zuka?” That was the same title… it wasn’t really any better. Zuka preferred to be referred to like any other mortal in the Inpherno. Not some grand inphernal who deserved more respect than usual.
“Still just Zuka.”
“Aw, okay….” he looked dejected before his excited mannerisms came back. “Anyways! I have a package for you!”
The inphernal did? He didn’t remember ordering anything. “I ordered something?”
“Well, ha- I think your son ordered something. I believe it’s labeled under,” Rainbeau looked over the package and pointed at a name, “Rocket. Yeah!- that’s the name.”
“He did now?” Zuka asked as the delivery inphernal quickly nodded. “Well, thank you.”
“Of course!”
He grabbed the package and placed it by the entrance before facing Rainbeau again. “Speaking of, it’s quite early. A morning shift?”
“Hmm? Nah! I’m just finishin up my night shift. I got caught up chasing some black cat around the rooftops” he quickly grabbed the green part of his scarf. “They were wayyyy too fast though, even for my magic carpet! It was still pretty fun, haha.”
Zuka gave the smallest hint of a smile. “Sure seemed so.”
“Yeah! It was. I kept seeing them around, but they always ran all over the place. Do you think the cat has their own caretaker?”
Zuka shrugged, “Maybe, maybe not. Well, always make sure to keep safe.”
Rainbeau let out a fake pout. “Yeah, yeah, you already gave me this speech before. I’m fully capable. And anyways! Who would wanna hurt the local Crossroad delivery inphernal?”
“Well, thieves for one. Robbers, bandits…” Don’t look at Zuka like that. Rainbeau asked for an answer, Zuka was gonna answer that question, even if it was hypothetical.
“Ugh- You’re always such a joykill, Zuka!”
“It comes with age, kid.”
“Hey!” The delivery inphernal smiled back at Zuka. Now that he thought about it, Rainbeau was quite young for their work. “Well, thank you for worrying about me but I got it all handled!”
“I’d hope so. You have any other deliveries?”
“Nah- well actually. I do have one more, it’s in this place in like- the lowest layer of Crossroad. It’s kinda weird, they even used a nickname.”
“Really now?”
“Yup! But it’s my duty to deliver each and every package. Anyways, I’m gonna head out now and do this last minute delivery so I’ll see ya Zuka!”
“Yeah, have fun kid.” The delivery inphernal did a wide wave before summoning their gear and heading off, not before leaving behind a massive rainbow that quickly faded. A part of Zuka liked that gear. It was harmless, full of energy, and it looked nice. Lucky them.
… “Oh shit,” did Zuka really just forget about the eggs? He shut the door and locked it before quickly dashing across the living room to the kitchen. The eggs better not be burnt, they better not.
His eyes looked at the frying pan…. It’s still edible. Just a bit overcooked. If Rocket asked, he'd just say it was a new recipe. Turning off the heat, he grabbed plates for the both of them before he realized that a certain inphernal was still missing.
. “ROCKET!” His voice echoed through the home as he walked over to the stairs. “What are you doing!?”
A voice yelled back at him. “My gosh! Dad! Gimme a second.”
“You’ve been changing for fifteen minutes! You’re going to be late again!”
“I was making sure my horns looked cool!” This kid was going to be the end of him. Hadn’t he said multiple times that Rocket’s horns were fine the way they were. He didn’t have to copy Zuka to look “cool”. After a couple of seconds he heard a door open as Rocket stepped down the stairs.
“Dad. I got it all under control, you know that right?” Zuka looked at him and back at the clock.
“It’s 7:30.”
“Yeah! So that means I still have thirty minutes to eat. You don’t have to worry dad,” he extended a hand to gesture his grace.
Zuka just sighed before walking back to the kitchen. “I made eggs. You’re old enough to get it yourself.”
“Oh cool thanks,” as Rocket went over to prepare his own plate, Zuka still needed to make coffee for himself. While he prepared the mug, he thought it’d be a good time for the two of them to talk. Bonding time as he would’ve liked to describe it.
“So… Kid, how’s school.”
Rocket sat down at the counter table. “Why do you care?” The rocketeer said it in a more dismissive tone than anything else.
“I actually don’t.”
“Wow- dad- very funny.”
“That’s what I aim for.” The packet of instant coffee was poured into the mug. “Seriously, no one’s bothering you, right?”
“Dad. I’m fine. I don’t need to be protected every other minute of the day.” As much as Rocket was strong, Zuka always worried that his past might catch up to him. A soldier never fights without making enemies. All that could be hoped for was that they never target Rocket. If that happened- … deities bless that he doesn’t get their hands on them. The burden should fall on Zuka. Always himself.
Zuka just nodded in response. Good. That was good. Zuka was worried for a moment that… nevermind, off topic. Rocket and what was his name- Sword?- were starting to hang out a lot these days. “How’s Sword?”
“He’s- uh- well interesting I guess?” From what Zuka could analyze, Sword was a good enough influence on Rocket. Well- at the very least Rocket was starting to warm up to Sword.
“Interesting how?”
“I dunno- it’s just- he just thinks the world is better than it really is.”
Zuka let out a chuckle. “Well, I’m standing right here.”
“Ugh, dad you know what I mean.”
“I’m sure you do.” The coffee should be ready now. He took a big sip of it. Black and bitter. Just how he liked it. Somehow, even some random Crossroad coffee was better than that liquid of death they served back in Blackrock. “You realize someone like Sword doesn’t come often,” or at all in all his years alive.
“I mean- I guess- but isn’t it bad to live life like that? I couldn’t imagine seeing the good in anyone.”
Zuka looked over at Rocket. The day that they met. Wasn’t Zuka’s entire reason for guiding Rocket was because he saw the good in that inphernal? “Kid, I literally did the same thing when you were younger.”
Rocket cringed at himself. “Whaaaat. I was such a pure angel though.”
“Shall I list out the insults you called me?”
“Well screw you too.”
There’s the Rocket he learned to love. Zuka gave a small smile. “So any cool classes?”
“Dad- oh my gosh- why are you asking all this?”
“Can’t I take interest in whatever you get up to at school?”
Rocket let out a small laugh. “Seriously? You want to know about algebra or Crossroad history? I thought you had some of the highest marks in your class?”
“That’s a dumb question,” he held the mug up to his face, “obviously.” He took another sip as he leaned against the counter. The coffee was filling enough, Rocket could have the rest of what he made. “So what did you order?”
“Hm?” Rocket said as his mouth was full. That was bad manners but it wasn’t like Zuka was any better.
“Kid, a package came. I sure as hell didn’t order it.”
“Ohhh, that. It’s a surprise.”
“Suprise…. For who?”
“Sword, who else?”
That’s surprising, had they gotten that close recently? “You’re giving gifts to each other now?”
“What? That sounds… weird- no- he bought me something so I’d thought I would return the favor.”
“That’s kind, kid.”
“I’m fifteen! You ever gonna stop calling me that?”
“Afraid not, kid. Finish eating, you’ll be late.” Had it actually bothered Rocket, Zuka would’ve stopped. But, after careful observation, and by observation he meant looking at how Rocket always smiled after hearing it, he just kept with the nickname.
“Waittt- do I get to work with you today?”
“Today?” Until Rocket finished school, Zuka never made it an obligation for Rocket to work in his store. The rocketeer just started to gain interest in inventing gears, so Zuka let ‘em. “Sure, if you want.”
“Great. I wanna save up for that new console.” Zuka knew teenagers “needed” spending money to do whatever it is inphernals do these days. Rocket was no different. Beyond giving him money for holidays or for special occasions, he’d be out of luck unless he wanted to work for it. Hence letting Rocket work at the store. It was good experience for him as well.
“You should be more-”
“Be more responsible with your money- blah, blah- you’ve said that many times before,” Zuka stared at Rocket. “Don’t judge me. It’s not like you’re any better.”
Zuka stared at his coffee. “Oh? How so?”
“Well you always buy that expensive coffee for some reason.”
“Yeah? Who keeps me awake at night because they keep playing video games when I tell them to sleep.” Zuka slowly smiled at thought.
The rocketeer quickly looked away to avoid giving away any emotions. “Uh- definitely not me…” Rocket got up to put the plate in the sink.
Before Rocket could walk away, Zuka quickly put down his mug and looked back at the blue inphernal. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“Uh- school?”
“Without doing the dishes?”
“What?! Why.” Rocket glanced over at the sink.
“Cause I don’t want to, that’s why.” Zuka’s method of parenting Rocket was to treat him as equals. And as equal, he meant this. “And I believe you have about fifteen minutes before you have to go, so get to it kid.”
“Ugh- whatever,” Rocket went over to the sink and started to grab a sponge. “I could be-” he took a moment to think, “I could be coming up with cool fighting moves but no- I have to be washing dishes.”
“And leave me to wash the dishes with one hand?”
“Dad… I have one hand too.” Rocket waved his prosthetic hand around before continuing. Zuka could’ve gotten a prosthetic but, no way was he letting anyone put anything on him. “You know, you really should think about getting one, it makes life much more convenient.”
“Fat chance.”
“You’re definitely not gonna use Medkit’s… what if- what if I made one?”
“Well-” Rocket beat him there. Zuka trusted Rocket with his life so he genuinely didn’t really have an answer for that. Beyond that, he still had other reasons not to but if it was from Rocket then… “-well can you?”
Rocket smiled as he looked to the side. “Ehhhh- Nope.”
“Theres my answer.” Though at this rate, Zuka wouldn’t be surprised if Rocket learned how to make prosthetics just by working at the store and from that Medkit inphernal.
“Oh- just you wait- I’ll figure it out one day,” a chuckle came out of the blue inphernal, “And one day, I’ll be a better engineer than you.”
“That’s why you should stay in school then.”
Rocket gave Zuka a quick side eye. “Keep saying that and I’ll drop out,”
“I’m sure you will, kid.” His eyes wandered towards the clock. Five minutes before Rocket had to leave. Perfect. “Anyways, enough chatting, you need to move.”
“Fine. Fine….” Rocket finished up the dishes before going back upstairs to grab his backpack.
While waiting for Rocket, Zuka could swear he saw movement in the shadows. Zuka grimaced at that. He knew all along, he just hoped that they’d stay there until Rocket left the house. Zuka opened his mouth to say something before he was cut off by Rocket.
“Okay, I got everything so I’ll see you,” Zuka turned to Rocket who was walking down the stairs.
“You don’t have any explosives in there, right?”
Rocket rolled his eyes. “Of course not, I got in trouble the last time.” No kidding.
“Sure. Have fun, kid.”
“It’s school. That’s debateable but yeah sure, bye dad.”
“Stay safe, Rocket.” Zuka watched as Rocket opened the door and left. Zuka followed behind and leaned on the doorway, watching his kid walk off the train station.
As soon as Rocket was out of sight, Zuka sighed. Now that Rocket was gone, he could finally establish the elephant in the room. “It’s been three years… I thought I made it clear I never wanted to see your face again.”
Zuka could hear a chuckle surrounding the room before a figure formed right in front of him at the front door. “Still attentive for an old inphernal, we see.”
The inphernal squinted at the deity standing in front of him. “What do you want, Darkheart.”
“Can’t we visit our favorite mortal once in a while?”
Typical Darkheart.
Today was going to be longer than he anticipated, wasn’t it.