The Domesticated Macaque - Roseywolf5 (2024)

Chapter 1: The Temporary Arrangement

Chapter Text

Ever since the defeat of the Lady Bone Demon, the city of Megapolis has found some relative peace. Most of the typical Monkie Kid enemies have been keeping to themselves and enjoying their lives, unconcerned with revenge or mayhem, for the time being at least. Maybe they’ve all had enough of the constant anger and resentment consuming their entire lives or maybe that’s just me.

It’s been several weeks, and the kid has been delivering noodles to my dojo at least twice a week with a new drawing attached each time. Sometimes there’d be a second drawing attached with a slightly worse, but just as sweet drawing signed with the name Bai He. She doesn’t need to keep signing it, and I told her as much when she first started visiting me at the theater, but she insists it’s important for whatever reason. It doesn’t matter, she’s a good kid and enjoys my shows so I didn’t question it again. Her visits are usually pleasant but are accompanied by a boat load of questions like.

Why do you disguise yourself for your shows?

It’s just easier than having people mistake me for the Monkey King and stops people from asking any follow ups about it.

I heard your full name is the Six-Eared Macaque. Do you really have six ears?

Yeah, but I don’t really like them.

Why do you work at a theater? I don't want to be rude or anything! I really like hearing your stories, but do you even have to work as an immortal being? Don't you have like, I don't know, riches or some kind of mansion in the middle of nowhere?

Psh no, and not all immortals live like royalty and the ones that do usually are in name at least. I mean have you seen Jin and Yin? Those two are a real mess, but uh to answer the rest of your question, no I don't have to do this job. I do like it though. It's kind of like a hobby to me I guess.

It’s usually pretty harmless stuff, but some questions could get more…complicated.

So did you and the Monkey King used to be a couple?

I’m not gonna answer that.

Do you ever think you’ll ever hang out with everyone again? Without all the fighting.

I don’t have an answer for that, not yet at least.

Then there were times like now where she’d ask me something painful. She already looked down and drained. They didn’t even look at me when they asked as if they were scared of seeing how I’d react.

Why aren’t you afraid of me?

Huh?

Why aren’t you afraid of me? After everything that I did while I was-

Woah, you didn’t do anything. You were possessed for months and had to bear witness to a lot of horrible things, but you’re not responsible for any of it. You’re a good kid, there’s no way I’d be afraid of you. She hiccupped and before I could react, she hugged me, burying her face in my chest as she wept. I awkwardly held her back, patting her head. This…was not what I was expecting from today. Poor kid. There, there? It’s alright, it’s okay. Her hold on me tightened for a moment before she went slack.

I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I-I didn’t mean to cry like that. It’s just, things have been a lot now that I’m me again. Sometimes I still feel so dissociated. It doesn’t help that there’s still people who are actually scared of me. Even I’m scared of me. She curls in on herself, taking her arms away from me to wrap them around herself. I had no idea how to unpack any of that. What exactly am I supposed to do about this?

Listen kid, are you sure I’m the best person to tell about this? I’m sure MK and the others would be better at this. Bai He groans, frustrated.

They’re all great, but their care is, um, overwhelming, I guess. I hurt them all so much, and they’re all so supportive. It just makes me feel so guilty. I know I hurt you too, but I don’t know, talking to you feels different somehow. You’re more um, what's the word? Her face scrunches up and she puts a hand to her chin as she searches her brain for the word. Somber? Subdued? Is that the word? She shrugs, moving on from the thought. You just seem a lot calmer compared to them. She turns fully toward me, lifting her hands almost defensively. Don’t get me wrong, I love their energy, it’s just- She lets her hands slowly fall into her lap. She sighs before mumbling out the rest. Sometimes I need something quieter. I can’t help the short chuckle that slips out at that. Don’t laugh! She’s flustered, embarrassed. I laugh louder and stand.

Don’t worry I’m not laughing at you kid. I just think it’s funny. I offer Bai He my hand. Though she’s pouting, she takes it and I help her up. She doesn’t let go. Come on, the people using this room next are gonna be here soon. I know this place nearby that’s pretty quiet where we can talk, and you can tell me what you’re actually hiding from them. Her hand tenses around mine. Without looking at me she asks.

How did you?

I’m the Six-Eared Macaque, Bai He, I’m a great listener. Despite herself she scoffs, looks up at me with a weak smile and squeezes my hand once.

Mr. Macaque, you’re silly.

I’m hilarious. This time she laughs more fully.

Okay I’m ready, let's go.

The Midnight Roast was a quiet dessert shop that was open from noon to three in the morning. They serve the most delectable desserts and pastries, near overpowering drinks, and the most soothing of atmospheres. Plus, the guy who owns the place is a demon who doesn’t ask questions, so I didn’t have to disguise myself. The building itself was small, but cozy, despite how cold it could get inside. There were only 4 tables by the full-length windows and 4 stools at the counter for people to sit at. They had a chalkboard menu above the counter that had cute drawings of some of their best or recommended items. The drawings usually only change when the seasons do, from what I’ve noticed since coming here. Something that never changes is the sweet aroma of freshly made chocolate and caramel.

As soon as I took Bai He inside I could hear her stomach growl as she salivated. I glance down at her. Her eyes were practically shining, darting from one option to the next in the display cases. I smirk at it.

Hungry? Her head snaps up to look at me.

Very. How much can I have? I hum in fake consideration. I tilt my head up, close my eyes, and rub my chin to really sell it. When I think she’s had enough I smile at her, getting down closer to her level.

As much as you think you’ll need for this conversation. Just don’t make yourself sick. She audibly gasped before hugging my side tightly.

Thank you! Without another word she practically runs up to the counter to consider all her options. She orders a number of sweet breads, a tray of fruit tarts, two servings of rice pudding, two green teas, and a chocolate five spice cake to share. The demon baker looks at me, then to the excited Bai He and shrugs with a soft smile, laughing out the side of his mouth. I’m glad he’s amused about all this.

Do you still want your usual on top of that?

Yeah but give me two of them please. He nods and gets to work making what hasn’t already been made while we take a seat at one of the booths far from the door.

Okay. Bai He takes a slow steadying breath. What do you already know? Her frown is deep, and her eyes are tired.

I know that you haven’t gone home in a while. I could get that from how dirty your clothes have gotten. I know you’ve been staying over at everyone’s houses, but they’re starting to get suspicious, aren’t they? I’ve heard them offer to walk you home, but you were always so quick to decline or change the subject. She progressively curls in on herself as I go on. She looks embarrassed and angry more than anything else at this point. I know I’m not here to tell you what to do, but I must admit I do care enough about you to worry. The owner calls my name and I get up to grab and pay for our order. Bai He watches as I set everything down in front of her. She fixates on the hot chocolate with marshmallows, whipped cream, chocolate shavings, with a cinnamon stick and small spoon in it. She takes a generous amount of it in the spoon and shoves that into her mouth before taking a too big gulp from it. As she fans her now lightly burned tongue, I add in. I’m also pretty sure you’ve only been eating noodles for that past month, and it shows. She gives me a look as sticks her tongue out further at me. I boop her nose with my finger, startling her.

Hey! She pouts for a few seconds before deflating a bit. She takes a more reasonable sip from her hot chocolate.Okay, you’re right, but do you know why? If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have asked her here.

Yes. Her eyes widened.

For how long?

The whole time. I try my best to remain as neutral as possible.

Why didn’t you say anything?She sounds defeated.

I just assumed you’d tell the kid and the others, but since you didn’t, I figured there was a reason for that. I take a sip of one of the green teas. Bai He picks at one of the tarts, sighing.

I think I’m, I don’t know, embarrassed? Maybe ashamed? I used to live in a foster home, but when I came back everyone was so, mean. Even my foster mother was terrified. She didn’t stop the other kids from shunning or bullying me. I couldn’t take it anymore so I just…left. She takes a bite of one of the mango tarts. Her face lifts for a second, surprised by how good it was. They haven’t looked for me. I don’t blame them. I still see her when I look at myself sometimes. I can only imagine how they feel. She eats the rest of her first tart, then reaches for the plum one.

So what’s your plan now? Keep living off your friends until they find out? I take a sip of my own hot chocolate. Bai He eats the tarts more aggressively.

I don’t know. I just need some time to think or at least process everything. I take a moment to look her over. She’s lost weight since we first met. Her skin is paler, eyes more sunken, hair more frayed. I know she hasn’t slept over at any of the other’s houses for a while since I haven’t heard them talk about it in a few days. She definitely hasn’t been eating or sleeping enough. She could use a break. I’m probably going to regret this.

I know another quiet place. Somewhere safe you could rest for as long as it takes you to figure things out. I could take you there if you want. After you finish eating of course. She eyes me, suspicious.

You’re not, you’re not going to tell the others are you? She puts another mango tart to her mouth, not actually taking a bite yet.

Psh, nah I’m not gonna try to ‘solve’ your problems for you. Not really my style. Her eyes sparkle with something akin to hope.

You promise? She presses the tarts harder into her face. That’s gonna snap if she keeps doing that.

I promise. She smiles around her tart.

Okay! Once she knows her secret is safe, she eagerly digs into the rest of the treats she ordered. I enjoy everything at my own leisure and make sure she doesn’t choke on anything in her haste. I’m definitely going to regret this.

I take Bai He a few blocks away to a three-story apartment complex. It’s small, but decent and it’s in a safe enough area. Not that I’d really need to worry about being jumped or anything like that. Usually I’d just take the stairs, but I got the sense that Bai He was already exhausted from today, so we took the elevator to the third floor. She was leaning heavily on me, barely able to hold my hand. Once we’re inside I drop my human disguise.

My apartment isn’t big, I didn't think I’d need it since I had no intent on having anyone over, but it’ll do for this. It was one bedroom, one bath, had a decent enough sized kitchen and the living room doubled as the dining room. The building had a laundry room downstairs for communal use. My favorite feature, and main reason I moved here, was the soundproof walls. Even though I can still hear through them, it makes everything muffled enough for me to get some sleep at night.

I lead the now semi-conscious Bai He to the couch, telling her I need to tidy up my room for her first. I pat her head after watching her flop onto the couch face first and slip into my room, closing the door behind me. It was the second biggest room in the apartment. I had a queen-sized bed, a desk, a dresser fit in snugly, a bedside dresser, and a closet with a sliding door. Everything was already made and pristine. The only thing that needed ‘tidying’ was the back wall littered with all of the drawings I’ve saved. I stared at it for a solid minute wondering what to do with them before deciding to pin one of my spare black sheets over that part of the wall. When I come out of the room Bai He is fully awake having a staring contest with two red masked black monkeys that were sitting on the kitchen counter.

Ah, I see you’ve met Pollux and Castor. Pollux, Castor, this is Bai He, say hi. Pollux hesitantly raises a hand to wave while Castor moves to hide behind them. Bai He waves back. I gestured for the little monkeys to come, and they quickly made their way to me. They climb up my body until they settle themselves in their usual spots. Pollux on my head and Castor on my right shoulder. Bai He giggles at the unusual sight. They’re not used to other company so they’re a little shy. I scratch Castor’s chin.

Nice to meet you both. Which one is which? I sit down beside her on the couch, careful not to jostle the monkeys.

This little guy is Castor, and this is Pollux. I point to them both respectively. Castor has pale blue eyes and Pollux has golden eyes if you ever need to tell them apart. She tilts her head at us.

So are they like you babies? I chuckle.

No, well maybe. I do take care of them and feed them. I haven’t thought too deeply about it. The two-start grooming my fur.

They’re very cute. Pollux coos at the compliment.

I do my best to keep them clean and fluffy. Speaking of, the bathroom is over there if you want to shower before you sleep. There’s a cabinet in there with other towels and the toiletries are in a basket by the side of the shower. I can grab an extra shirt or robe you can sleep in. They’ll probably fit you as well as a nightgown would since you’re so small.She huffs at my comment.

I’m not small, you’re just really big. She crosses her arms, furrows her brow, and succeeds in being the least intimidating creature I’ve ever seen. I hum in contemplation.

You know what you’re right, you’re not small.

Thank you.

You’re tiny. I ruffle her hair again to emphasize my point. She swats at my arm.

Hey! The three of us laugh at her pouty face.

Teeny. Tiny. Baby. Bai He. I pat her head after every word.

Hmph, I’m going to the bathroom! She storms off and slams the bathroom door. I reflexively cover my ears from the noise. That’s smarts.

In the meantime I head back into my room to find something she could wear. I sift through my dresser for about 5 minutes before setting on a soft black long sleeve t-shirt. I neatly fold it up while heading out of the room. I heard the shower turn on while I was searching, but it’s for the best that I knock instead of assuming she’s in there.

Bai He, do you want me to leave the clothes inside or outside? There’s a pause. I knock again. Bai He? There’s a small sound that could go completely unnoticed from anyone else, but never from me. No sound, however small, could escape my notice, not from this range at least. Her hiccups and weeping could be heard clearly through the shower. I hang the shirt on the door handle and go back to my room. I’ll only knock again if she’s still in there after an hour.

There were still a number of other things I had to move so she hopefully wouldn’t find them. Prime example, almost everything in my bedside dresser’s bottom drawer had to go. I already had everything in a black box, so I just decided to portal it away to the storage room at my dojo. It’s not like anyone else goes there so it should be fine. My shadow lantern was a conundrum. Would she recognize it as one of the relics used for the mech? Even if she does, what does that matter? I doubt she can reach it while it’s hanging from the ceiling. Even if she could, I don't think she knows how to use it. I could put it in a cupboard somewhere, but she’d probably find it eventually. Maybe hiding it in plain sight like this is for the best? I haven’t heard her do anything suspicious since the Lady Bone Demon was defeated so it’ll probably be fine.

I walk back out of the room to set up the pullout couch. I had gotten it for Pollux and Castor to sleep in, but they almost always end up climbing in my bed with me after the first week of living here. Even so, in that short time they learned enough to help me with the set up. Pollux took off cushions with me, while Castor got a spare blanket from my closet. When I pull out the mattress part Castor and Pollux work on spreading the blanket across it while I grab some spare pillows for us. I hear the water shut off right as we finish. There’s wet footsteps, ruffling, rummaging and more importantly no crying.

Mr. Macaque? She calls out as Pollux and Castor climb back onto me.

Yes?

Do you have any bandages? Concern flashes through me for half a second before recalling the bandage she always wears over her cheek.

They’re under the sink in a first aid kit. Be careful the clips are dangerously tight and springy. Oh, and there’s a shirt on the doorknob. Even though my back was to the door I still closed my eyes when I heard her approach it. She opens and closes it quickly, then opens it again for a few seconds before closing it again. Weird, but whatever.

Thank you. I only hum in response. She rummages around under the sink for decidedly too long. By the time I think to ask if she needs help, I hear her exclaim a quiet ‘aha’ and I snort at how cute it is. While she’s finishing up, I get some pajamas together to take a shower after her. Usually, I would sleep in my underwear or nothing, but that doesn’t seem appropriate right now.

You have a lot of shampoo and conditioner under your sink. Is the first thing Bai He chooses to say when she steps out. I huff.

Of course, you think fur this luxurious just happens? I run a hand through my fur dramatically. She giggles so it’s worth it.

You really are silly Mr. Macaque. Her smile is soft, shaken only by the long yawn that seems to drain her of the rest of her energy.

Sleepy? She nods, rubbing her eyes. I stand and gesture for her to follow me, which confuses her.

Where are we going? She comes up to me anyway.

You’re sleeping in my room tonight.She looks at me surprised.

I’m not sleeping out here? I don’t want to impose more than I already have. She still follows me into the room.

Oh please, you looked exhausted back at the theater, you should see your face now.

Hey! I pick her up, causing her to squeak in surprise, and place her on the bed. I could see her eyes dilate when she felt how soft the blanket was. She brings a corner up to her face to marvel at it. I suppress a chuckle, but not my grin.

The bed is way more comfortable, and you could use a good night’s rest. You know one without having to worry about your little secret. I move to leave, but she grabs my robes.

Wait! Um, I- She let go and curled into herself.

What’s wrong?

Nothing it’s just… She fiddled with the collar of her shirt.

Yeah?

Would you tuck me in?

Wha-

Forget it, it was dumb I- I gently pat her head, effectively quieting her. I internalize a sigh.

Lay down. I purposely make myself sound exasperated to hide how mushy it made me really feel. Bai He quickly settles in under the covers. I pull the blanket up over her shoulders and tuck them in under her. She openly stares at me the whole time. When I’m done, she points to her forehead, hopeful.

Seriously? She gives me a determined nod. As I lean down to kiss her forehead, I feel Pollux and Castor climb off of me. When I lean back, I see they’ve both climbed under the covers next to Bai He. They stare at me expectantly. I groan, more genuine in this annoyance.

Look at what you’ve started. She sleepily giggles. I begrudgingly give the two small monkeys the same treatment. They coo under the attention and burrow themselves deeper into the covers. I hate what the sight does to my heart.

Goodnight Mr. Macaque.

Goodnight Bai He.I turn off the lights to the room and only then do I remember the night light in the corner. I could hear her confusion, but she thankfully doesn’t say anything about it. For now, at least. I close the door behind me and head straight for the shower.

I drop my glamour as soon as I enter the shower. The day's events flash through my brain. Even replaying them in my mind I can’t figure out how I got here. I’ve never had any guests in my house and now I’ve invited some kid to live here for an unknown amount of time and I’m the one sleeping on the couch. I can’t even drop my glamour in my own home now! Keeping it up in my sleep would be exhausting, but I’m not as light of a sleeper as I used to be so even if I chance it, I might not wake up at her movement. I should be able to get away with it tonight at least since she seems dead tired, so I’ll probably wake up before her. I’ll sleep with the blanket over my head as a buffer too. With that half-baked plan in mind, I actually start washing up. If anything goes wrong, it’s future Macaque’s problem.

Chapter 2: Morning Chatter

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The very next morning I decided I needed to take Bai He out shopping. Since she left her foster home without any forethought, she didn’t have any other clothes or other necessities, like a hairbrush or toothbrush. I woke early, thankful that I didn’t have to worry about her seeing me without my glamour and for the time to make a list of basic things she’d need. While I made my list, I cleaned up the couch bed, and did the laundry. Once there’s room to work, I start doing my morning Pilates. It’s still early enough that most people are still inside so the noises from the city are blocked out almost entirely. The quiet is peaceful, even more so now that the lady bone demon is gone, and I don’t hear her constant creepy whispering in my head. It used to drive me crazy even before she was released from her prison and started wreaking havoc. I didn’t even notice until a week after she was defeated that she was truly gone from me. Even now I’m still in disbelief that I’ve finally escaped her strangle hold after all these years. I’ve felt so light, relaxed even, since she’s been gone. Every little thing I used to do to bring me some small amount of joy in my life feels so much better than before. It's like a massive weight has been ripped out of me and replaced with fluffy clouds. An easy sigh escapes me just thinking about it and a small smile graces my face.

My ears twitch at the sound of stirring from my room. I quickly glamour away my ears, scars, and half white fur between moves just in case she springs out of the room. Though I don’t have to worry about that happening at any point as I hear a groan in a tone that’s far too familiar. The sound of the twins' laughter followed soon after. Not a morning person I guess.

I listen to her shift and roll around before the sound of a cut of shout, thud, grumbled ‘ow’, followed by more, louder, laughter rung out all within quick succession. I flipped out of my jackknife pose and stride over to the door, knocking twice.

Bai He, you alright in there? I don’t bother keeping the humor out of my voice. She groaned again, but I could tell she was fine from how easy it sounds for her to stand up.

I’m okay! She shouts and I’m grateful for the closed door muffling the sound, if only a little. I step aside as she sluggishly moves to open the door. When she exits, I take in her appearance and chuckle quietly to myself.

Having just woken up, her hair was all over the place, sticking up in odd places. Her eyes were still droopy, full of sleep, but the bags under them were lighter than they had been yesterday. The shirt I lent her was now wrinkled and I only now see just how too big it was on her. The sleeves completely cover the hand she wasn’t currently using to rub her eyes, but that wasn’t the cutest part. The cutest part was that Pollux and Castor had made a home for themselves on her left and right shoulders respectively. Both were grooming her hair, fixing it for her, but were also visibly weighing her down. Deciding to take mercy on her I crouch down, reaching out to them with both arms. The Pollux jumps to me first without hesitation, Castor jumps a few seconds after. I was going to stand again, Bai He moved to weakly cling to my chest in a loose hug. I realized how misleading my gestures were at that moment. I roll with it anyways, for now, and delicately scoop her up into my arms. She curls up, making herself comfortable against my chest. She looks like she’s ready to fall asleep again. Why is she so adorable?

Comfy? I snicker. Rather than nod she nuzzles her face into my shoulder. I roll my eyes and gently place her down on a stool in front of my kitchen counter. She whines and makes grabby hands at me, and I ruffle her hair again, making it even messier. So clingy. I make a quick trip to the bathroom to grab one of my spare combs and return to her groaning and rubbing her eyes.

No fair, Polly and Cas get carried around by you, why can’t I? She pouts, but I can tell she’s just joking. Mostly.

Polly and Cas practically carry themselves so they’re different. Sit up straight, would you? She huffs, moving to sit up a bit straighter, still somewhat hunched. I tug on her hair, not enough to actually hurt, but enough for her to move her head to look forward and get to work fixing her hair.

I can do that myself. She murmured.

Do you want to take over then? She leans back into my touch, humming.

No, this feels nice. Whenever my foster mother did any of our hair she would always pull and brush too hard. You’re a lot gentler. I hum back.

Eh I’ve just had a lot of practice with someone who was not afraid of letting me know when I was messing up. She hums again.

Was it Monkey King?

Pft, no way. He wishes his fur was this manageable. She continues to hum, thinking hard on the subject, sleep leaving her as the gears in her brain turn.

I remember a few other people from your stories. One of the other monkeys?

No, most monkey fur is thicker than this. You should see all the combs and brushes I’ve gone through. They break too easily. She giggles at the mental image. Pollux climbs down my arm to share the stool with Bai He so they can help me get any other knots she has out of her hair.

What about those colorful twins you talked about? The ones that escaped with the warrior and defeated their captors? I chuckle at how curious she’s gotten about this.

Close, I have done their hair before, but they’re not who I’m talking about. Their hair is too short and still pretty dense. Man, I haven't talked to them in a long while. I should call them.

The moon goddess that let the warrior seek refuge in their domain? Everything was so piercingly loud that day. I got there completely by accident too.

Nope, her hair is a lot bouncier than yours. She gave me a few tips for my fur actually. I start to braid her hair.

Hmmm. She rubs her chin, deep in thought. When another story enters her mind, she pops up quick, causing me to almost mess up her braid. The princess! It has to be her. You said the warrior served under her for a while, so they’d be protected from demons trying to steal them for their own. She really did me a solid back then. They all did honestly. It was really jarring coming back from the dead, let alone coming back as a demon. Their culture was so different from everything I’d known as a mostly isolated celestial monkey.

I stare blankly at the finished braid still in my hands as I remember my time with them. It was odd to think about now that my mind is clear of the Lady Bone Demon. She was always there to place doubt in the back of my head whenever I started to get too comfortable. Much of my time with them was short lived, only really seeing them again every couple of decades or so for small favors here and there, but even so. The time I spent with them was special to me. They were there for me when I was at my lowest. I had people who cared about me, and I walked away from them because I got scared of getting too close to someone again because she didn’t let me forget what happens when I do.

Mr. Macaque? Bai He startles me out of my thoughts, swiftly bringing me back to the present. She’s turned around in the stool with Pollux curled up in her arms. They both look up at me with concern in their eyes. Castor even nuzzles my cheek to make sure I’m okay. I find that my throat feels as though it’s closing up and I cough to rid myself of it.

Wow kid, you really were listening to my stories. Yeah, the princess and I used to be real close. I have to walk away and busy myself with something else. Breakfast seems like a good place to start. We used to gossip while I did her hair. I’d tell her about the rumors I’d hear around the village, and she'd tell me about this guy she had the biggest crush on. I rummage through my cupboards for bowls and pans. I could feel their eyes boring holes into the back of my head.She had the most beautiful hair, luxurious and easy to work with. I probably lived with her the longest out of all of them you know. Except for a certain other monkey of course. I start to calm down as I go through the fridge, the cold air feeling good on my face. When I met her she had this untouchable, proper, air about her, but it only took a few hours for me to overhear how much of a fiend she could really be. We became fast friends after that. I miss the times where we’d sit and talk for hours, but I backed off once she got serious about her relationship. Besides they needed their privacy, and I wasn’t about to get in the way of her happiness. We still talk sometimes, but I kind of doubt I’ll see her again anytime soon.

Why not? I was startled by her voice, having almost forgotten she was here, mostly talking to myself in my spiel. I stand, closing the fridge with my tail in the same motion, and place all the ingredients I gathered onto the counter. I decided to make up some excuses.

Oh well she’s a busy person being a princess and all. Plus, she’s probably not going to want to visit me, she doesn’t even like coming out here.

You could visit her. I’m sure they miss you. I wave her off.

I doubt that kid. I’m not the easiest person to deal with so people don’t exactly miss me. My tail droops and even under my glamour I can feel my ears do the same.

I’d miss you.

Huh?

I’d miss you, if you were gone. Besides, I think you’re nice to be around. She beams at me. I feel my tail sway lightly. You were really nice to me yesterday and you listen to my problems. You’re even giving me a place to stay even though I’m probably the last person you’d want to share your home with. She cuddles with Pollux. Oh for now at least, like you said. She tacks on sheepishly as an afterthought. I sigh and take out some utensils to start making pancake mix. I mostly do it so when I crouch down, I can hide my happy blush.

Bai He, the last person I’d want to share my house with, let alone my address, would be Monkey King.

Heh, yeah, he’s pretty scary too. I poke my head up over the counter for a moment before standing fully. I’m definitely not the one to unpack that.

First of all, you’re still the exact opposite of scary. Second of all, he’s only scary when he has to be, but he’s annoying all the time. He’d be a terrible roommate, the slob. I try to lighten the mood, still trying to cook at the same time. His place is a total mess, he steals food, doesn’t wash his fur enough, and you can never be sure if his food is made of hair or not! I subconsciously got louder as I went on causing Bai He to laugh harder and harder and I accidently startled Castor. I take a second to comfort him in my arms before I start cooking pancakes. I have to turn away from Bai He now since the stove is opposite the counter.

Mr. Macaque, you always make the Monkey King sound so goofy. Her body still rumbles with poorly contained laughter.

Good he’s a bumbling buffoon I can’t stand him, gah! Her laughter erupts again. Castor leaves my shoulder to grab the plates I forgot for the finished pancakes.

Are you sure you two weren’t a couple, because you can do better. I fumble with one of the pancakes, Castor barely catches it on the plate as I double over in laughter. I wheeze as I try to catch my breath. When I turned to look at her, she was grinning from ear to ear.

I haven’t laughed like that in a while. Kid, you are my favorite person right now.

So is that a yes? I give her a serving of pancakes and keep making more for myself and the twins.

Nice try, but I’m still not going to answer that. Syrup? I open a cabinet under the counter with my table and take out my hardly used maple syrup jug, place it on the counter all with my back still turned.

Yes please, and I’ll get the answer one day. I’m sure of it.

Unlikely, but I won’t stop you.

After that most of the morning went on in relative peace. There was only the sound of eating, cooking and cleaning until we left to go shopping. I disguised myself as human again to avoid any unwanted attention and wore casual and dull colored robes to further the odds of being recognized. I took her from store to store picking up clothes, groceries, and other necessities. While we’re out we exchanged phone numbers and I text her my address, so she’ll know how to get back on her own and tell her not to let anyone else know where I live. I don’t need the MK or any of the others knocking down my door anytime they wanted to bother me. Plus, their whole group is way too loud and destructive. It was hard enough finding a place far enough from their bubble of chaos that wouldn’t be leveled on a regular basis let alone one with soundproofing. Moving would be a massive pain.

There were a few close calls wandering around when I heard MK’s delivery cart drive by. Whenever I heard him coming I would subtly usher Bai He into another store or stand behind her at stands to block his view of her. She was generally too absorbed in having the freedom of choosing her own amenities, many of which were cat themed, to notice.

In the end we ended up with 2 full bags of clothes, 3 bags of groceries, a bag of utilities, and a large pink suitcase with a cat case on it for her to keep her things in. The only thing she was carrying was her empty suitcase, which she wheeled behind her. We finished up around noon and headed to an unpopulated alley so I could portal all of our things to my apartment. There I can sense her hesitating for something, like anytime she wanted to ask one of her many questions.

Something wrong? Bai He jumped slightly, then fidgeted by pushing her fingers together, shy.

Actually, I was wondering if you, maybe wanted to, go get lunch at Pigsy’s. I usually go there every day around now and they talk about you sometimes so if you were interested, we could go together. That way the focus wouldn’t be all on you so it might be, you know, easier on you? She had her head pointed away from me but kept glancing at me to see my reaction. It took everything inside me not to look as wildly uncomfortable with the idea as it made me feel.

Uh, I don’t think I’m ready for that just yet. Maybe another time. I can walk you there though. Oh, and if any of them offer to walk you home either let them walk you to the building or if they insist on walking you to the door, don’t let them know it’s my house, and don’t let them in. She deflated, pouting slightly.

Okay, but whenever you want to come by just let me know and I’ll be there to support you. She hyped herself back up, looking determined. I pat her head gently, so as to not mess up her hair.

Thanks Tiny. I smirk down at her.

Hey!Her pout is immediately back on her face. I laugh and start to leave the alley. She rushes to catch up with me, grabs my hand, and takes the lead. I don’t fight her as she drags me all the way there. I also don’t fight the way my smirk turns into a small smile as I listen to her tell me about the hijinks, I would be missing out on by not coming. I don’t tell her that it just reinforces my original decision. It makes her happy so that’s all I needed to know. It does make me think though. Maybe I’ll call up some rowdy friends of my own after all.

Chapter 3: Colorful Twins

Chapter Text

We were 2 weeks into our little arrangement, and we’ve managed to develop a bit of a routine. In the mornings, I’d have time for exercises, beauty regimen, cleaning, and cooking, to which she’d wake up with Pollux and Castor in tow. I’d do her hair in different styles while she ate. She’d still ask me a myriad of questions, that I suspect will only get more personal as time goes on. After that we’d either watch tv or go out window shopping until noon then walk her to Pigsy’s, where she’d stay for most of the afternoon then she’d come home. During that time, I’d go work at the theater or train in my dojo. Bai He would still come to the theater when I did work and on those days, we’d get dessert after and walk home together. On off days it was a toss-up who would get home first. If it was me, I’d start setting up for bed ahead of time. If it was Bai He I’d usually find her and the twins going through my cabinets. It only took one broken dish for me to just start bringing dinner when I came back. Then we’d all curl up on the couch and watch movies. We take turns choosing, usually between musicals, Disney movies, rom coms, or period dramas. Sometimes we’d sing the songs together and sometimes the twins and I would do the dances if the movie’s plot was too dull. Bai He would get enough of a kick out of it to keep paying attention for the rest of the film. When she started getting tired I’d carry her and the twins to my room where I’d tuck them in and kiss their little foreheads before getting ready for bed myself.

Thingshave been going relatively smoothly. Although, there have been some more closecalls with MK and co. Sometimes it was going to Pigsy’s, other times it wasthem asking if they could come in or meet her parents or even ask questionsabout them. One time he was delivering to our neighbor as I was about to leave.I only noticed he was there when my neighbor opened the door and he spoke. Bythen I was just about to open the door. It made me more paranoidafter that. Now before I leave I put my ears to the door and listen out foranybody who could be out there.

BaiHe has taken to constantly asking me to hang out with his group at least once aday, which makes me want to go less each time. However, it did drive me closerand closer to actually calling Jin and Yin. I’ve been contemplating it for solong that Bai He caught me staring holes in my phone.

Whatchalookin’ at? I was sitting on the ground after my morning workout, soshe was able to poke her head over my shoulder. I rolled away, then popped uponto my feet.

Wow,you’ve been getting better at sneaking around Tiny. I didn’t even hear youcoming. I have to say I’m impressed. She grins up at me in a waythat’s far too similar to myself. I’m a bad influence.

Ohno no no, you’re not changing the subject with flattery, Mr. Macaque.She points an accusatory finger at me. Her grin widens into her normal, bubbly,smile. But thank you though, I’ve been practicing. Now who were youtalking to? She goes back to grinning again. This kid sure ispersistent.

You’rewelcome, Bai He. By the way have I ever told you that you’re so clever andtalented. She waves me off, but she still blushes and smilesbroadly.

Stopit! Tell me your secrets! She starts of shouting but lowers her voiceto a whisper when she sees me flinch slightly. She’s been getting good at thattoo.

Sonosy this morning. Then again you’re pretty nosy every day so I shouldn’t besurprised. I move on to start breakfast, Bai He follows me closebehind.

Hmph,so mean. I can tell she’s pouting again without having to look ather. I push her forehead with my tail, making her briefly lose her balance. Iwrap my tail around her waist and lift her up to bring her in front ofme.

Meanhuh? Is this the thanks I get? I cross my arms, smirking. She crossesher own arms and furrows her brow in retaliation.

Themeanest. She turns up her chin to look away from me.

Ohso that’s how it’s gonna be is it. I’ll show youmean. Come here! I wrap her in my arms and nuzzle into her. Hergiggles and laughter fill the room.

Stop,stop your fur tickles!

Nocan do Bai He. I’m the meanest of the mean. I’ve got you trapped right where Iwant you and I’m not letting you go. Mwahahaha.

Ehehenoo I’ve been captured by the dastardlySix-Eared Macaque. Bahaha if only there were some brave little warriors whocould save me. She dramatically puts the back of her hand over herforehead. As if on cue I hear Pollux and Castor come out of my room and scamperover to us. They climb up my legs to my head to nuzzle and press kisses to myface. They coo and chirp and I give my own chirps in response.

What’sthis? Betrayed by my own kids? Blasphemy! The little traitors.

Yesmy warriors will be victorious, save me from this treacherous fiendhehehe! We play around like that for a few more minutes before I tossthem all onto the couch. They were still a bundle of giggles after that. Iswear this kid is making me go all soft because my heart hasn’t melted likethis so frequently in over a millennia. That has to be a bad sign, andyet…

You’restill a nosy little kid, but okay. If you must now, I was thinking aboutreconnecting with a couple of old friends of mine. Bai He gasps, eyessparkling with her hands clasped together in front of her mouth.

Really?That’s great! I was worried that you didn’t have enoughfriends.

Rude!I shout, incredulous. She keeps going.

Whenare you two gonna hang out? Can I meet them? Are they nice? It’s not himis it? The venom she puts in ‘him’ throws me off for a second. She’sbeen getting more explicit about her disdain for Wukong the longer she stayswith me. I can’t tell if it’s because she’s gotten comfortable around me orknows that I won’t judge her for it. I know she doesn’t talk about him likethis around the MK at least. It’s not like I blame her. I saw their fight andif Wukong remembered everything that happened while he was possessed, I’m sureshe does too. She’s got plenty of reasons to not like him or be afraid of him.I’m starting to worry just how blatant she could get.

Noit’s not him, why do you always assume it’s him right away?

Becausehe’s so- She blows a raspberry in lieu of actually describing him. Ismile, rolling my eyes.

GeeBai He, I’m starting to think you hate the Monkey King more than Ido. She sighed, paused, then groaned.

Idon't hate him, I think. He’s just reallyoverrated and I’m getting sick of hearing people gush over him. It gives mesuch a headache. She massaged her temples. The action concerns thetwo monkeys, probably because of whenever they’ve seen me do the same after amild nightmare, causing them to nuzzle her neck and hold her close. She wrapsher arms around them, lightly scratching the backs of their heads making themcoo. That tickles too guys. She mumbled through quietgiggles.

Yeah,I don’t get the hype either. He’s just an idiot that caused trouble andstumbled into powers because of it. I roll my eyes again. Bai Hestares at me, humming, suspicious. Bai He, I know what you’re going tosay. You’ve asked me every day and my answer is still the same.

Why,I have no idea what you’re talking about Mr. Macaque. She turned upher chin, smiling.

You’rerelentless, truly.That had no right to come out as fond as itdid.

So,if it’s not him, then who are you seeing? She detangles herself fromthe monkeys and heads back into my room, leaving the door open just a crack. Icould hear her going through her suitcase for clothes for the day.

Ifyou must know, it’s Jin andYin.

Really?Why? She didn’t need to sound so shocked by it.

Becauseout of all of my old uh, let's say companions, that I’d have to explain theleast too. They’re low stakes and easy breezy for a first step. PlusI still need to yell at them for essentially electrocuting me in the giantlantern.

Iguess that makes sense. I just didn’t think you’d want to hang out with themmore than MK and everyone. They seem like they’d get up to even moretrouble. She comes out of the room holding two different coloredheadbands. Red or Purple? I look her up and down. She wasalready wearing a long, fluffy, lavender colored summer dress with long whitesocks with her usual shoes and slightly too big sweater.

Purple,obviously and trust me it’s not the same. Being around MK feels awkward and Ihaven’t tried to kill Jin and Yin. Not seriously at least. Iwon't feel pressured to give an apology I’m not prepared for. My taillimply curls round my leg as I murmured my main reasoning. The twins leavetheir spot on the couch to climb up onto me and ease my nerves with a bit ofgrooming.

Ican help you. She says all of this while trying to climb onto herstool, almost falling off, but she caught herself on the counter.

Whatdo you mean? My ears twitch up under my glamour, curious.

Wecan even practice if you want. When you’re ready of course. I couldhear her swing her legs back and forth from her heels hitting the chair. It’s alittle distracting as I mull it over. It’d be embarrassing to practice anapology of all things. It’ll be just like when you rehearse your playswith me. I don’t know about just like.Though there is some appeal. Maybe I could write it out and treat it like ascript. Gah that sounds worse somehow.

Hmm,I’ll think about it. Maybe.

Good.So about breakfast. Finally, something easy.

Right,how do we feel about eggs on toast?

Yes!Can I have extra cheese on mine?

Ofcourse! With that we crack on with our day.

Thatnight, with Bai He and the twins nosily looking over my shoulder, I finallyworked up the nerve to text Jin and Yin if they wanted to talk or hang outsometime. It took them three whole days to text me back in the most erratic,near illegible way only they know how. When I saw it, I couldn’t stop the waymy tail swayed back and forth. I was just glad I was by myself at thetime.

Wemade plans to hang out at their place in a few days, under the expressagreement that I would bring an abundance of food. It gave me enough time toshop for groceries and mentally prepare myself for seeing them again. That, andto suddenly check out their house ahead of time in the shadows. Seeing thatthey currently live in a somewhat rundown castle made me start seriouslyreconsidering Bai He’s mansion in the middle of nowhere question. Anotherdetail I almost immediately noticed that they neglected to mention was thattheir home was in fact not theirs, but to the scorpion demon they werestaying with. That and their two other…roommates? A tudi and a purple horneddemon. I guess that’s why they want to bring so much food.

Speakingof, I took all the cooking as an opportunity to teach Bai He some of the morebasic dishes like the vegetable sandwiches, and various small cakes we made.For the more involved dishes she, alongside Pollux and Castor, were more likemy little assistants. It went pretty well for the most part but leaving them tostir the melted cheese for the mac and cheese was a big mistake. I missedpicking up cayenne pepper for the cheese and stepped out for a second only tocome back to all of them somehow having bits of semi melted cheese in theirhair and fur, respectively. Not wanting to know or for it to get any worse Iput a pause on cooking to help them fix their mess. It was easy enough to washout of Bai He’s hair, but the boys were another story. Whenever I bathed them,I always ended up completely drenched and the slight tugging they felt when Iworked the cheese covered hair only made them splash around more. I had to takea shower of my own and I was forced to leave Bai He once again in charge of theboys, this time telling her to stay out of the kitchen entirely until I gotout.

WhenI got out, I found them all curled up together on the couch against the armrest. Their heads snap up toward me, all of them looking like sad, woundedanimals. I sigh to suppress a laugh and walk over to them. I kneel down on thefloor in front of them to be eye level with them.

Youdon’t have to look so upset, I’m not mad. I fixed a stray hair thatwas refusing to stay down on her head.

You’renot? I pat Pollux and Castor’s heads. Castor latches onto my hand sothey can climb up my arm.

No,but I’m not making anything with cheese for at least a week. Now, get up, Istill need your help if I want to get this done on time. She perksup, reinvigorated.

Iwon’t let you down.

Iknow.

Afterthat, things went off with a hitch and we ended up with two large, insulatedbags of food. I left small portions from all the meals for tomorrow and Bai Hetakes one of the small cakes with her as a gift for MK. She’d be sleeping overat his place tonight since I wasn’t sure how long I’d be at Jin and Yin’s forwith the boys and I didn’t want her to be alone all night. She wished me goodluck while giving me a hug goodbye. I opened a portal for her nearby Pigsy’sNoodles so she wouldn’t have to walk the whole way by herself. She tried toassure me she would have been fine otherwise, but I still didn’t want to riskit. Especially not when I was right here. I even waited until I heard her getthere safe before portaling away myself.

Itwas easy enough to find them when I got there. I just had to follow the soundof things breaking. When I come across them, they’re under a pile of fallenfurniture. I emerge half way from the shadows in front of their dazedfaces.

Youtwo must be terrible house guests. Their eyes sharpen withrecognition at the sound of my voice. They pop up from the rubble to stand backto back with their arms crossed.

Wellif it isn't the Six-Eared Macaque!

Lookwho came crawling back! I affectionately rolled my eyes at theirdisplay. I sink back into the shadows only to pop out fully with a few morefeet between up. I match their poses by crossing my arms.

Wellif it’s Jin and Yin the silver and gold demons. I smirk as theirfaces morph into the polar opposites of each other.

Hatold you he’d side with me. Yin pushes into Jin to rub it in.

Wah,that’s only cuz he didn’t wanna hurt your feelings cause we both know I’m hisfavorite.

Asif! They flip around to face each other, hands locked in a powerstruggle that wasn’t real.

Actually,you’ve both been replaced. They stop pushing against each other, butstay locked in the position as they refocus on me with offended looks.

Likeyou could replace us! Jin defends.

Yeah,we’re your best mates forever. Yin argues. My smirk widens.

Youwere, but I’ve met a pair of twins that are far better than you two. They’reneat, quiet, don’t cause any property damage. I pointedly look aroundthem at the mess they climb out of that they both look away from. Ithink you could learn a thing or two from them. Their offense onlyincreases. I put down my bags of food to free up my arms. I even broughtthem along with me today so they could see how bad of an example their unclesare. Their faces morph into a look of confusion before slowly turninginto a look of affection as Pollux and Castor climb out of my cloak, to taketheir usual places on my head and shoulder.

Awww,they're so cute. They make quick work of the space I made between usto get a closer look at the boys.

Whydidn’t we know you were pregnant? I cough and sputter at Jin’scomment.

IWAS NOT- they’re adopted you idiots. They look at mesuspiciously.

Yousure? They look just like you!

Yes,I’m sure. Just because their fur is black doesn’t mean anything. Besides, doesmy skin look solid red to you? They lean that extra bit too close tomy face. I resist the urge to lean back.

Alittle bit.

Wehaven’t seen you without your makeup ina while so we can’t be sure can we? They peer more at my ears than myface. The accusation from Jin makes my eye twitch.

Doyou really think I’d drop my glamours for this?Maybe if it was just you two here, but I’m well aware of all your housemates,which you still need to introduce me to. I lift my food bags, handingthem over to Jin and Yin before brushing past them. I hear them try to open thebacks as soon as my back’s turned. I whirl around to scold them. Hey!That’s for everyone, no first dibs! They both whine, but begrudginglylisten, closing the bags back up.

Theytake me to their dining area where the scorpion demon, fully glamoured, but I’mnot going to say anything, their assistant, and the local Tudi were waiting.Their assistant, Lin, was clearing out cobwebs while the Demoness, a queenapparently, was setting places at the table as the Tudi chatted on and on andon. Introductions go by in a blur as theduo push me from person to person, making me shake their hands as we went.Pollux and Castor clung to me tighter, frightened by the noises and jerkymotions. I think they ended on the Tudi so I would be trapped listening to himtell all kinds of stories about this and that as Jin and Yin actually helpedset out the food I brought. I take a seat as they spoke so I could better calmPollux and Castor by grooming them in my lap. As soon as they started to purr,the other set of twins were kneeling on the ground on either side of my chairwith their hands and chins resting on my knees. It makes Castor curl closertoward my stomach and Pollux to move further, protectively slotting himselfbetween his brother and them, glaring. I have to stop him from trying toscratch their faces when they fawned over them. Although I was tempted to letthem so they’d learn to respect personal space. Instead of scolding them, Iteach them how to approach them without making them feel afraid. It takes someeffort for the kids to relax enough to even attempt the twins from getting anycloser than they already are, but by the time the table is properly set, Castorhas allowed Yin to pet them, and Pollux grabbed one of the long bits of Jin’shair to try braiding it poorly. They took their seats on either side of mewhile The Queen, Lin, and Tudi sat on the other side of the table. The Tudi satdirectly across from me with a booster seat.

Thanksagain for having me in your home, your Majesty, and for taking in these jokers.They’d probably be out on the street without you.

Hey!

Asa token of my thanks I bought a bottle of wine for you, for both of youactually. The Queen, and Lin were both surprised by the presents ofany gifts for this exchange.

Youdon’t need to thank us for anything, especially when it comes to those two. I’mhired help. Lin still takes her bottle with a smile and a pointedlook at Jin and Yin that makes them shrink. Her Majesty takes her bottledifferently. She takes it quietly, eyes twinkling. She sniffs and rubs thecorners of her eyes.

Geez,that bad of a gift huh? Guess I’ll have to bring something else nexttime. I try to lighten the mood. She shakes her head.

No,it’s not that, it’s just, I’ve never had a friend give me a gift before. It’snice. Her eyes crinkle from her broad smile. It reminds me of Bai Hewhen I compliment her drawings or how her grooming skills have improved. She’dalways be overjoyed and double down on what she was doing. It was cute, somaybe that’s why when the Queen comes around the table to hug me, I let her.That doesn’t stop me from tensing or from my fur standing up or from taking toolong to awkwardly hug her back. When the hug stretches on for too long and Ihear her quietly weeping I look to anyone forhelp. Lin makes eye contact with me, nodding. She rises from her seat to comearound the table as well to put a hand on the Queen’s shoulder.

YourMajesty. She turns her head to face Lin, not letting go of me.This isn’t the only gift your new friend brought. They made us allthis food and I’d be a real shame if we let it go cold. The Queennods, slowly pulling away from me to reach out for Lin, still crying. Jin andYin close on me immediately after.

Youalright? Yin whispers.

You’restill super tense. Jin continues. I shush both of them. I didn’t wantto upset her Majesty any more than she already was by making her think she mademe uncomfortable. Which she did, but she doesn’t need to know that.

I’mfine. I stiffly sit back down. I could feel them exchange a look witheach other before I hear their chairs screech closer so they could not socasually lean on me. It’s a little annoying, but I can feel myself relax, ifonly a little, from it. Castor and Pollux move to groom head to calm me further.Thankfully, her Majesty is too distracted by Lin to notice. We both needed amoment to regain our composure, but that doesn’t stop Jin or Yin from eatingthe food that’s been presented to them. They try to be subtle about it, whichstarts out like anything else they do, totally fine in the beginning when theyput food onto their plates, but as soon as they eat anything the sound of theirchewing was extremely distracting. It wasn’t enough for me to be annoyed. Itwas, however, enough to annoy Lin, who gives them the dirtiest look and I haveto suppress a laugh at how they both freeze in place. They slowly put back anyfood they had in their hands and sink back down to lean on me. Yin had his headon my shoulder and Jin sat sideways to lean the back of his head against myarm. I nuzzle my cheek against Yin’s head.

Yourcooking’s still really good. Jin whispers.

Thanks,you’re still total gluttons. He pushes into me, snickering. I pushedback, giggling. He keeps shoving, I keep retaliating, Yin joins in, all of usquietly giggling and snickering. Even Pollux and Castor join in. I could feelthe beginnings of a purr coming on, but thankfully before any sound could comeout of me Lin clears her throat, effectively stopping all the affection andgrabbing our attention. The Queen stands, wiping the corner of her eyes withher thumb.

Thankyou. I’m sorry about the delay, but I just wanted to say thank you for thismeal and for your company. I can’t wait to try everything. She sitsback down with a soft smile on her now slightly flushed face.

Socan we eat now? Jin asks and I roll my fondly eyes.

Yes,of course. Her Majesty answers and twin demons immediately startshoving food onto their plates. It caused Lin to let out an exasperated sigh,but I knew from the smile she tries to hide that there’s no real heat behindit. I make a plate more for Pollux and Castor than for myself then sit back tojust enjoy the atmosphere.

Jinand Yin bring me up to speed about the various adventures they’ve had since thelast time we spoke, and I tell my own stories in turn. Lin vents about all theheadaches the duo has given her since her employment, which I can sympathizewith, they’re a handful. Her Majesty recounts how the three even came to livehere. After the Lady Bone Demon’s defeat and the incident with lantern the wereat a loss of what to do. They wandered aimlessly until they were ‘invited’ tothe Queen’s castle where they were fed and doted on almost obsessively. Sinceher Majesty never asked them to leave, Lin told them it was best to stay,seeing as they had no money and nowhere to go. Thankfully, the Queen’sloneliness outweighed the twins' insatiable aptitude for destruction. Her Majestyclaims that Lin has been kind enough to clean up after their messes and makesthem help fix up the castle when they’re not goofing off. It hasn’t been goingsuper well on that front, but bit by bit things are getting better. She tellsme the place was a mess before they showed up, but then some monkey and his pigfriend made it even worse by breaking a whole wall down to save their mortalfriend. It’s at this point where the Tudi joins in, telling us how gratefulthey were for introducing him to the Queen. Apparently it gets lonely living inthe ground. The story wasn’t too surprising since I got bits and pieces of whenhe lost his memory. It happened once before and because of how horrible that experiencewas, I purposefully kept him just out of my hearings range. I’d only strain tolisten to see if the ordeal was finally over. Even after that whole mess I keptmy distance from their group. In that moment I didn’t care what Lady Bone Demonwould think, hearing him like that again made old wounds feel fresh.

Ihad to take a breath to clear my head of the memory. I tell them the wholeamnesia story, or at least the parts I knew, and that memories or no, that mancauses an abundance of property damage. Tell them that him, his little successor,and all of their friends were menaces in Megapolis. It didn’t matter if therewas a demon attacking them or not, something would get destroyedregardless.

Didyou know that same pig man leveled part of the city with ping pong of allthings? It’s a miracle my apartment hasn’t been eviscerated yet. They don’teven care about the damage they cause either! I’ve listened to them ask eachother if they should do something to help fix it and none of them did anything.It’s so infuriating. I groaned, massaging my temples. Honestly,I think they’ve done more harm than all of their enemies combined. It gives mea massive headache every time.

Whydon’t you just move? Lin questions.

Yeah,you could even live here if you wanted. Her Majesty offers, which isnice, but very unwanted. Even though I already know my answer I pretend to takea moment to think it over.

Wellbecause, I like the life I have there. I’ve got my apartment, my dojo, thetheater I perform at, it’s nice, comfortable even. The people there have becomea part of my routine and I don’t wanna change that. Plus, I wanna see where thekid goes with the whole, being Monkey King’s successor thing. Imumbled the last part. I don’t even mention the Bai He situation that’s alsokeeping me there for the moment.

Don’ttell us you’ve got a soft spot for him. Jin and Yin pushing againstme, I don’t have to look at their faces to know they’re smirking. I roll myeyes, shoving their chairs hard enough away for them to fall out of them as Ireply.

No,but someone has to make sure he doesn’t become a carbon copy of the king.Nobody wants that, especially not him.

OhI see, you just don’t want him stealing your job. I slowly turn myhead to look down at Jin where he lays on the floor. He’d somehow gotten one ofhis legs tangled in the top arm of the chair. I lean forward, putting my chinin my hand as I grin at him.

OhJin, I had no idea you finally wanted to learn some fighting techniques. We canspar right now if you want, you against me. My eyes glowed purpledand my grin turned toothy. Jin, at impressive speeds, untangled himself fromhis seat, takes a second to move it back upright, and nervously laughs as hestands next to me and hugs my hand, putting my face right against his oddchestplate. He pats my head as he speaks.

Nah,no need for that when we’ve got you. He starts to rock back andforth. You’re our sweet, irreplaceable, unique, shadow monkey whowould never hurt us for any reason because he loves us too much. Hegets a little baby voiced at the end before he places a kiss on the top of myhead, making an exaggerated kissing noise as he does so. I could hear everyone,but Yin trying to contain their giggles from watching such a display. Yinchooses to full on cackle at his brother’s attempts to escape my wrath, stillon the floor.

Jin,if you don’t let go, I will bite you. My voice wasmuffled from being squished against him. It didn’t stop him hearing me though.He lets go, giving me two more pats on head before sitting back in his seat,still looking worried for themself. I grab the arm of his chair and pull himclose to me. He lets out a tiny, high pitched, surprised squeak, from thesudden movement that does make everyone laugh. He’s completely tense, eyessqueezed shut, bracing for an attack. I stare at him long enough for him totake a peek which is when I choose to flick him in the forehead. All the tensionimmediately drains out of him and he goes slack in his seat, letting out awheeze of a laugh. You’re right, I wouldn’t hurt you, not seriously atleast. I smile ruffle his hair in the way he hates, making him swatmy hand away.

Notthe hair! I doubled down, getting up on one knee to lean closer andbury both of my hands into his golden locks, thoroughly messing it. This iswhen Pollux and Castor move to stand on the table.

Youdeserve this after that comment Jin. He grabs at my wrists, trying topull my hands off. You know I’m stronger than you, right? Ishake his head, laughing.

Alittle help over here Yin!

Igotcha. Yin recovers from his fit of laughter to practically jump onmy back, causing us to crash into Jin, making us all end up on the floor in aheap with a loud crash of chairs and bodies. Silence followed for a briefsecond, then an eruption of hysterical laughter. I roll off the side of thechair, with Yin still practically attached to my back. Rolling over placed mein his lap and a little under the table. He wraps an arm around me and my tailloosely curls around him.

Man,I missed you guys. Jin moves to hug me after my admission.

Aw,we missed you too Lulu. I shove him back, but not hard enough tobreak the hug.

Ugh,you know I hate that nickname. It’s not even how you say my actualname. I lean into Yin’s touch and wrap my arms around Jin’swaist.

Youlove it. He nuzzles my cheek almost painfully, and grins wide. Igrowl low, but they just laugh more in response. Those assholes. I nuzzle himback.

I’mguessing dinner is over? We all look back to see Lin, crouching downto look under the table at us with something between exasperated and annoyed.Her Majesty is crouched beside her, holding the tudi with sparkles in her eyes.The three of us exchange a look before turning back to Lin to give her theexact same tooth grins as our only answer. I could see the color drain from herface as despair and resignation entered her eyes. She was probably dreading thethought of there being a third headache entering her life. She stands upproperly and I hear her start cleaning up the table.

Youcan keep any of the leftovers and I can help you clean up. I try toget up, but they won't let go.

Thanks,but you don’t have to. You’re already helping by keeping them from breakinganything. Lin peaks under the table to give an ‘I’ve got my eyes onyou’ motion at them. At the same time Pollux and Castor carefully jump down andsit next to the still crouched Queen, staring at us. I chirp at them, theyexcitedly chirp back and bound over to us, jumping on top of Jin, only to climbover him, pulling his hair, to get to me. They crawl underneath my scarf,causing my whole body to shake. They make themselves comfortable there,wrapping some of it around themselves. Their fur and shifting against my neckmade me twitch.

Stillticklish? Yin asks. I didn’t enjoy the sinister energy that radiatedfrom both of them. For Lin’s sake I teleport us all out from under the table,before shoving them both off of me, getting some distance between us.

Don’teven think about it. The two looked between each other, grinningwide, then charging me. I turn tail and run. We play chase through the castle.I swing from pillars, overgrown foliage, and loose drapes while they followclose behind on foot. The feeling of being chased like this makes my chest feellight, and bubbly. It was almost embarrassing how nice it made me feel. I’lljust chalk it up to adjusting to my new found freedom.

Aswe move from corridor to corridor, they point out what all the different roomsare to me, giving me a very roundabout tour of the castle. I couldn’t helpnoticing that the hall with Lin and Her Majesty’s rooms in them was a lotcleaner than the hall with Jin and Yin’s room. Those slobs, so glad I don’thave to live in someone else's mess anymore. Even still, it’s kind ofcomforting to know they haven’t changed or at least not enough for this to makeme feel any different.

Weplay this game until I hear how worn out, they are from the running. I slidearound a pillar so I’m out of their line of sight when I dip into the shadows.They stumble when they notice they’re no longer chasing anything. I let themstand around confused for a little before jumping out of the shadows, only tobring them both in with me. I laugh at their panic and bring them to theirroom. We land on their, miraculously clear, bed with both of them underneathme. They recover from the fall, faster than anticipated, grabbing, andmaneuvering me to lay between them on the bed. They wrap their legs around mineto keep me in place as they descend upon me with a barrage of tickles. I don’tbother hiding any of my laughter from them and just let myself enjoy thecloseness. Pollux and Castor chirp and coo, giving me nuzzles and kisses. I tryto curl up, but they’ve got me pinned so I hold my stomach to try and satisfythe urge. I could feel tears pooling in the corners of my eyes as my laughsturned to wheezes.

Okay,okay mercy enough you win. They immediately stop, loosening theirhold on my legs so I can move again. I shift to lay on my side, facing Yin so Ican wrap my arms around him and bury my face in his shoulder as I catch mybreath. Jin scoots closer to be flush against my back and they both wrap theirarms around me. My tail curls around Jin’s thigh, the end thumps against him. Isigh, melting into the embrace.

Youalright Liu er? Yin asks, rubbing the back of my head.

Hm?I hum into his neck.

Yeah,you usually only come around when something bad happens. I sigh, snugglingfurther into Yin.

I’mokay, it’s just- I didn’t really want to explain everything with theLady Bone Demon and being unburdened for the first time in over 500 years oranything with Bai He or Mk, so I tell them a small part of my reasoning.I really missed you guys. I hold him tighter. Jin presseshis face into my back and rubs comforting circles into my arm. And Iwas wondering if I could visit you more often.

What,like every 5 years? Jin asks and I could tell he’s only halfjoking.

No,more like, I don’t know, monthly? I hate how quiet I get asking, butI love the way they squeeze me in response.

Really?

You’llprobably regret it. I nip Yin for saying that.

Yeah,really. If that’s okay with you guys.

Ofcourse, on one condition. I had a feeling I already knew where thiswas going. You have to wear the outfit. Yep.

Ugh,you know I hate that thing, it does not feel right on my fur, the buckles pull, and thechest plate is so cold. They laugh at mycomplaining.

Comeon, it's not bad.

Ohit is.

Justfor a little bit?

Howlong is a little bit?

Longenough for pictures.

Noway in hell.

Weargue back and forth over the horrendous outfit for over 15 minutes before I cave,and we find a compromise. I still ended up in the copy of their usual outfitthey had made for me ages ago. The only difference is that my chest piece iscrimson. It felt exactly like how I remembered. The pants were too tight, themetal was too cold, the straps rubbed my fur the wrong way, and I hateit.

Youcan get one picture each, but if you share them with anyone I get to teach youhow to fight with hands on training. One pair of twins watched mefrom the bed wrapped up in my scarf, while the other pair circled me, eyeing mecritically. I let them move my body into whatever positions they want to tryfor their pictures. They take a step back to admire their work, giving asatisfied nod.

Nowwe’re a perfect matched set and the outfit fits you great. Jincomments, trying to fix his hair for the photo.

Myfur feels so uncomfortable in these leather pants. Why are they sotight? I tug at the waistband, fingers only fitting a knuckledeep.

Becausethey make us look hot Liuer. Yin snickers at the way I cringe.

Canwe please get this over so I can get out of this. I summon a clone tohold their phones so they can get into the shots with me. They move in to posedramatically next to me, using their first picture. The next thing I know,Yin's scrambling under me and Jin’s climbing up me. Yin forms a base for me tostand on and Jin balances on top of me with one leg. We wobble for a solidminute, shadow me snickering the whole time, before we’re stable enough to geta good picture. We promptly collapse into another heap as Yin’s arms give outfrom carrying two people. Their shoulder pads poke me in odd places, and I sinkinto the shadows to escape the sensation. I reemerge next to my clone to taketheir phones from them and dismiss them. I look terrible in both, tense anduncomfortable, but I still send them both to myself.

Hey,do you still wanna hang out? We’ve got a karaoke machine buried in heresomewhere. My ears perk up.

I’mlistening.

Chapter 4: Heart to Hearts

Chapter Text

We sang our hearts out to old rock and pop songs well into the night. We went on until our throats burned and my ears were ringing. It felt good, spending time with them like this again. Back when we would travel together, we’d always find the time to enjoy ourselves in ways that would leave us completely drained the next day. We’d spend that day recovering, sleeping in a pile until the afternoon. In fact, the only reason I woke up when I did was because my phone was ringing. It took my brain a second to catch up, wondering who the hell could be calling me. The comfort of being nestled between Jin and Yin with my boys curled up in my arms did nothing to help me think. I locate my phone easily enough with all my ears tuned into it. Without looking I picked up with a grumbled hello.

Mr.Macaque? My tiredness evaporates from me in an instant at the soundof her concerned voice.

BaiHe? Is something wrong? I whispered, sitting up in bed slowly so asto not disturb the others.

No,I was just wondering if you were okay. It’s already 11 a.m. I look atthe clock on my phone seeing that it was 11:23 right now.

Damn,sorry I’ll be home before noon, promise. I carefully disentanglemyself from the sleep pile to get dressed in my normal clothes. I was toodistracted by the premise of karaoke to change back last night.

Okay,but Mk said he’d come back to check in on me so when you portal in be careful.I’ll see you soon? She sounded hopeful, but I could still hear howworried she was.

Yeah,I’ll see you soon and when I get back you can tell me all about yoursleepover. I try to sound as comforting and soothing as possible.

Andyou’ll tell me about how hanging out with your friends went? I smileto myself. I should have known she’d want details.

Ofcourse, I’ll tell you everything. Now I gotta go, I’ll be home soon, byeTiny.

ByeMr. Macaque, get home safe. I wait for her to hang up first beforepocketing my phone, now in my usual clothes. For the most part at least. Polluxand Castor were still wrapped up in my scarf. I could take it back, but theywere sleeping so peacefully, and I couldn’t bring myself to wake them. God Ireally am going soft, aren’t I?

Headingout? Yin groggily calls from the bed. He sits up slowly, making surehe doesn’t disturb any of the sleeping forms.

Yeah.I slink back over to the bed only to sit at the foot of it so I could change myshoes.

Areyou sure you’re alright Liu er? I pause, halfway through putting onmy shoe. I sigh, laying back on the bed, looking at him upside down.

No,but I’ve been doing better lately, bit by bit. Like I said, I like my life now,like being alive now. I know I haven’t been the easiest friend to have allthese years, but I want you to know that I’m grateful. You guys are alwaysthere when I need you and I’ve only just started to realize how much you bothmatter to me and how much I’ve been taking you for granted. My eyessqueeze shut to hold back the few tears that tried to form. I take a couple ofshaky breaths to calm myself. I hear Yin shift above me, moving to lay closebeside me, our sides flush with one another. It made me want to roll over andcurl up against him, but I restrained myself. If I did that there’s no way I’mmoving again before noon. I always get so clingy around them, and I could neverunderstand how or why they felt so comforting to me.

You’rea much better friend, and a better person than you think. He pressesfurther into me, leaning his cheek against my shoulder. I feel my tail looselywrap around his leg. I rub my eyes with my free arm. I didn’t believe himwhatsoever, but I needed to get out of here before I start crying, or venting,or worse, both. I briefly nuzzle his head before forcing myself to sit upagain.

Sorryto dump that on you and leave, but I gotta head out. I’ve got another kidwaiting at home for me. I speed through putting on my shoes, feelingawkward about my vulnerability.

You’vegot even more kids? I thought you didn’t get around like that. Heteases me, to lighten the mood, I’m sure. Even still, I shove him.

Idon’t! I whisper shouted at him. Any kid I have is adoptedfor sure, but this one isn’t even mine, not really at least. They’re onlystaying with me until they figure out some stuff, it’s onlytemporary. As I explained, I could hear Yin progressively strugglingto hold in his laughter. What’s so funny? He lets a fewsnickers slip when I whirl around to look at him.

Nothing,nothing it’s just that, even I know ‘temporary’ for you couldmean anything between 3 years minimum, to several decades so it’s funny seeingyou in denial. He looks me up and down, smug as can be.Plus, your glamour slipped a little while you were sleeping, and earswere twitching like mad. My face burns and my hands fly up to coverthem. I put a quick glamour over them for the time being. Something this hastycould fool most people, but if you had something like gold vision, well then,I’d be screwed. I’ll throw something stronger on later.

Thereanything else?I feel my face, as if that is going to help me, makingsure to check my fur too. Yin chuckles, sitting up to hold my face, tilling itthis way and that, careful not to touch my ears.

Youreyes look a little more brown than gold. He pulls my face closer,staring intently at me. Are you going gray? He tilts my headforward to get a better look at my fur.

No,some of my fur turned white after everything with the Lady BoneDemon. I lean away from his touch so I could reinforce the glamoursthat were fading and even the ones that weren’t.

Wecould dye it for you if you want.

I’mgood, I don’t like the feel of most dyes. Thanks though, foreverything. I nuzzle his cheek one more time before shifting togently take Pollux and Castor into my arms.

Seeyou in a month?

Yeah,see you in a month. I sink into the shadows, content knowing thatI’ll see them again soon.

Ireemerge inside my room, underneath my bed to make sure no one else, but Bai Hein the apartment. I heard one pair of footsteps as they paced back and forth,anxious. I dip back into the shadows, moving into the living room. I watch herwalk around the couch and kitchen counter in figure 8s. Every time shecompletes one, she sits down on the couch, checks her phone then gets up towalk again. I fully pop out of the shadows behind the couch when she sits downagain, heavily leaning over to hover over her head, just out of reach.

Hey.She jumps so badly she falls off the couch. The resulting sound wakes thelittle monkeys in my arms. The second they spotted Bai He on the ground theystarted to chirp and coo at her, scrambling out of my arms to hop over thecouch to her, knocking the wind out of them as they landed on her chest andstomach. I hop over the couch myself to plop down on it to watch the reunion.You alright down there? I ask as I wrap my now unoccupiedscarf around my neck. She wheezes, rolling onto her side to take the weightoff, monkeys climbing to rest on top of her side instead. I move to kneel onthe ground beside her, taking the boys off her to give her space. I hold themboth in one arm and rub Bai He’s back with the other. They squirm in my hold,wanting to help Bai He too. I nuzzle the tops of their heads to settle them. Iknow they mean well, but I didn’t want them to crowd her. Especially since theywere the cause of the state, they were currently in. After a few minutes shesits up, breathing returning to normal. Are you okay? Shenods, chuckling before it turns into a cough.

Thatwas mean Mr. Macaque. She coughs again, trying to clear her throat. Ipat her back.

Sorry,I didn’t think you’d have such a bad reaction. It was pretty funnythough. She pouts, but it quickly morphs into a smile.

Imissed you. Oh, well that’s sweet. Bai He always says the sweetest things,yet they always surprise me every time she does it. I set Castor and Polluxdown so I could hug Bai He properly. She eagerly returns it, the boys joiningin an instant.

Wemissed you too. My tail sways back and forth, occasionally hittingthe couch with a loud thump. The act makes her laugh. It only makes my tail wagharder. As we hug, Yin’s words replay in my mind. She hasn’t been here thatlong, but she’s been a part of my day to day for almost 2 months now. Alwayscoming to my plays, coming into my home, bonding with my kin, God changing howI view my relationship with Pollux and Castor with just one question. Now Yinhas me wondering the same about her in the exact same way. This kid is sotroublesome, she took over my room, stole my kids, took up two thirds of mydays, asked me endless questions, and none of it seemed to bother me. She washappy, thriving even, since she’s been here, though that might just be becauseshe’s eating and sleeping properly now. She didn’t need me for that, but a partof me is really glad she’s here. She’s like a ray of sunshine in my life now.Wait, no that sounds way too familiar for comfort. Like a tiny ball of joy?Yeah, I like that better. A tiny ball of joy that was thrown into my life withno warning.

Mr.Macaque? As cozy as your hugs are, I’m starting to cramp. Iimmediately let go. Pollux and Castor still cling to her, both holding onto herback.

Sorry.Maybe I’m overthinking this. She’s only lived here for three weeks. I’ll giveit some more thought if we hit 3 months. Then we’d be pushing the wholetemporary arrangement deal. For now, I’ll just keep doing what I have been,looking after her until she’s ready to tell everyone and whenever that happens,we’ll figure out where to go from there.

It’sokay. So, I remember you promising me stories, dish! I laugh. Ishould have known she’d bring that up as soon as possible.

Soeager, but okay sure kid. What do you wanna know? I stand, stretchingout my legs. I move into the kitchen, looking for something to give the boys.It’s been too long since they’ve eaten anything. Bai He struggles to get up toher usual spot with all the added weight, the stool almost falling overcompletely if not for Pollux grabbing the counter and pulling them all upsafely. I was kind of proud of how strong those two were getting. I’ll have tostart considering training soon, more to learn control rather than anythingelse.

Everything!What were they like? Did you have a good time? When are you seeing them again? OH,are they coming here next time? Am I going to meet them? Did they like ourfood? Did you talk about me? What was their house like? She speaks amile a minute.

Woah,slow down there Bai He. What were you holding all that in sinceyesterday? She beams at me excitedly waiting for answers. I roll myeyes, affectionately. This kid. Okay okay, so for starters, they werenice, super chaotic, but nice. It was a lot of fun seeing them again, veryrelaxing. I’ll probably see them next month, but I don’t know if we’ll be attheir place or ours. I’ll think about introducing you to them, they’re kind ofa lot and I don’t know if you’re ready for that. Them and their roommatesenjoyed the food, thanks to my little helpers, I’m sure. I didn’t reallymention you until I was leaving, sorry. Oh, get this through, it wasn’t theirhouse, but they do actually live in a castle now and it’s in the middle ofnowhere. I’m starting to think you were on to something with that. Iput a plate of assorted sliced fruits on the table for the kids. Only Polluxhops off of Bai He to the table. He doesn’t immediately eat, instead he movesthe plate closer to the edge, so Castor doesn’t have to separate themself fromBai He. Pollux sits on the edge with their legs hanging over it, swinging backand forth. Castor shifts to sit in her lap, happily munching on fruit with hisbrother.

See!I told you! So does that mean you do have asecret mansion somewhere? I shake my head, getting to work on makingsomething for myself.

NoBai He, what would I even do with all that space? I know I like my peace andquiet, but that would be too quiet. Far too quiet.

Youcould have more space for those dances you do or for rehearsing yourplays.

Psh,that’s what the dojo is for. There’s plenty of space for whatever I want downthere.

Iguess so, but then you could do it all in the comfort of your own home. Youknow, with no one to disturb you. There’s a persistent knock on thedoor. I shoot her a look. I didn’t strain my ears that hard to know it wasMk.

Yeah,I don’t think that would stop anyone. I mean, if Jin and Yin could stumbletheir way to some random castle in the middle of nowhere then anyone could findme. I whistle, and the boys drop what they’re doing to climb onto me.I’m gonna go hide in my room.

Okay,I’ll get- The door swung open before either of us could move.

HeyBai He you didn’t say anything, and I sawthat…the….door…..was…..open. We all wordlessly stared at each other,unmoving. That was until Mk wanted to make my ears bleed. IS MACAQUEYOUR DAD!? He points wildly between the two of us. I glare at himcovering my ears.

WHAT!HOW IS THAT YOU FIRST THOUGHT! He deflates at that.

Yeah,no that, that doesn’t make any sense. So, wait, what are you doinghere? Bai He and I exchanged a look. She looked like a nervous wreck.Pale, lost, and confused with no idea what to say or do.

Couldyou excuse us for a second? Help yourself to some fruits. Polluxloudly whines about having to share his treats with a stranger. Don’tgo anywhere. I pick up Bai He, who clings to me instantly, extremelytense from the situation at hand. I brought her into the bathroom, leaving thedoor open with just the smallest of cracks so I could easily hear if Mk triedto make a break for it. I set her down on the ground, staying down on herlevel. You didn’t lock the door?! I whisper shout ather.

I’msorry! I was stressed and I wasn’t thinking, and I missed you guys when youdidn’t tuck me in and I’m sorry. sh*t, she looks like she’s about tocry. I pat her head, pressing my forehead to hers. The boys jump down to hugher.

Hey,hey it’s okay, it’s okay I’m sorry I didn’t mean to get mad at you. Look, rightnow we need to figure out what to do about Mk. She nods, whimperingslightly. How ready are you to tell anyone about yoursituation? She visibly pales. Not at all, I guess. We cankeep it simple and vague. Sure, we live together, but we don’t need to tellexactly how or why. She sighs, leaning heavily onto me. Doyou want another hug? She’s already wiggling her arms free from theboys to hug me. I cradle her in my arms. The boys coo at her. Do youwant me to take care of this? She nods against my chest. Doyou wanna wait in here? She holds me tighter. I sigh, holding hercloser before standing up quickly, causing her to squeak in surprise. It makesme smile, but I don’t comment on it. I walk out of the bathroom, children allburied in my chest. Mk was sitting in Bai He’s stool, eating the twins' fruit.He sees us and I could hear the gears turning in his head seeing us like this.The sight makes me roll my eyes. At least he didn’t try to run away.

Soooo-

LookMk, to make a long story short, due extraneous circ*mstances, Bai He has beenliving here with me until further notice and we don’t want you to tell anyone,got it? No, we will not be answering any questions about this arrangement atthis time. Now what the hell did you barge in here for? My fur standson end. I really didn’t appreciate him being in my house. I could hear thegears in his head grinding as they tried to make sense of all this. I shake myhead when he takes too long to answer. I take a seat in the other stool rightnext to him and slide the plate of fruit closer to me, helping myself. When hisbrain finally catches up, he spasms in his spot, making the seat dangerouslywobble.

Whatdo you mean no questions!? Why are you living with Macaque? Did somethinghappen?

Willyou please stop yelling? You’re stressing her out, and you're making my earshurt. I whisper, not wanting to shout in the kids’ ears. He shrinks alittle at the light scolding.

Sorry,but what’s going on? I mean I knew you guys hung out a lot, but I didn’t thinkyou lived together. He continues, much calmer now.

Thatwas more of a recent development, and she doesn’t want to talk about it, notyet at least. I start gently petting her head. The motion draws his eye,and he stares. He lets out a deep groan, pushing his hands into his face.

Fine,but why Macaque? He gestures broadly at me, which I take offense to.In response, Bai He turns to face him, making a face of general disgust whilemaking a similar gesture toward him that makes me laugh, hard.Wha-what does that mean? He sounds so broken, and I can onlylaugh harder.

Mk,I think you and everyone else is great, I really do, and I’m grateful to youall, but you aren’t the people I want to talk to about all…this. Shesinks into me, getting a faraway look as she rests a hand on her bandagedcheek. We all fall silent, the only sound being the chirps and coos from Polluxand Castor in their attempts of comfort. That was until Mk started to fidgetuncomfortably, bouncing his leg, and tapping his fingers on the counter. Hepops up suddenly, remembering something. He pulls a small brown paper bag outof his pocket.

Iknow it probably won't help or change anything, but Sandy gave me some relaxationtea to give to you. He heard that you were stressed out and hoped this mighthelp. I’ll just leave it right here. He places it on the counterwhile he gets out of his seat. He’s probably feeling incredibly awkward withall the tension in the air and wanting to leave as quickly as possible. Beforehe can run away from this, I grab him, letting go as soon as I have hisattention.

ListenMk, promise me you won’t tell anyone about this. I try to soundstern, but not threatening while looking dead in the eyes when I ask. I’m notsure how successful I am in that task because he squirms under my gaze.

Uh-Bai He grabs ahold of his hand with both of hers. She looks up at him withpleading eyes. The boys, not fully understanding what’s going on, butunderstanding the look well enough to mimic it when they peer up at Mk.

Please?She pleads. He covers his eyes with his arms.

AlrightI promise! He drops his arms, sagging, pouting. You fightdirty Bai He. He points an accusatory finger at me. You’re abad influence on her. He says in a way that lets us know he’s mostlyjoking. Mostly.

Thankyou, I mean it. It feels weird to say after he so rudely busted in,but important. He sighs, and a small, tired smile formed on his face. It wasreassuring to see. That was until he opened his arms and moved in for a hugbefore I could react. Bai He seemed to enjoy the comfort, but the rest of uswere not so welcoming. I tensed, fur standing on end, Pollux hissed at him, andCastor simply chirped curiously, the only monkey to have a semi positivereaction. If it weren’t for the fact that I wanted him to keep this secret forBai He I would have shoved him off without hesitation. Since I can’t do that, Ijust keep Pollux from scratching or biting him. He gives a quick squeeze beforepulling back, keeping his hands on my shoulders.

Okay,I have to get back to work before Pigsy gets mad, but I’m gonna be visiting youhere from now on. I’ll see you soon, probably. He says it all with awavering confidence, but it did remind me of something.

Ohbefore you go. I summon a wad of cash in a money clip from theshadows. I’ve been putting money aside every time he delivers noodles to me. Itmade me feel weird knowing I was getting them for free when I knew I had thecash for it. Here, give this to your dad, for all the noodles you’vegiven me. There’s a little extra in there if you want that for a tip.Or to cover some of the free noodles Bai He has been eating all this time.While he does take it, he looks at it suspiciously.

Thisisn’t a bribe, is it? I scoff, rolling my eyes and waving himoff.

No,a bribe wouldn’t work on you anyways. Either you’d feel too guilty or somethingcatastrophic would happen as a consequence of your action and I don’t wannabring that on any of us. He makes a face, like he wants to argue, butthen realization enters his eyes, and he knows I’m right. He pockets the moneyand starts toward the door, still looking toward us.

You’repaying for the rest of your noodles from now on, mister! I smile. Heuses his ‘parent’ voice, but it just looks funny to me.

Iknow. He walks into the closed door, recovers quickly, throwing openthe door and slamming it closed. Even with my ears slightly ringing from thesound, I strain to listen to him leaving. I could hear the moment where heregisters the fact that I called Pigsy his dad and the slight embarrassmentthat followed. That kid makes me laugh. I’m drawn out of thought by Bai Hesagging into me, letting out an exhausted sigh.

I’msorry Mr. Macaque. I know you said you didn’t want anyone knowing where youlived and now Mk knows, and you weren’t even ready to see him yet and I-I’msorry. She starts tearing up. I contain a sigh and start to rock us.Castor starts grooming her and she cradles Pollux since he was still recoveringfrom Mk’s presence.

It’sokay Bai He. I summon a shadow clone, the same one I used with Jinand Yin, to lock the door for me. They quietly clean up the plate, tea, and putaway Bai He’s overnight bag from her sleepover while I do my best to comforther. “It’s for the best that this happened. I don’t know if I would have everhad the nerve to talk to him first.” I feel my ears twitch, already knowingwhat she’s going to say next. And I’m not mad, but I amupset. She hiccups. I know we live in an apartment in adecent part of town, but you can’t just leave the door unlocked. What ifsomeone, who wasn’t Mk, came in and tried to hurt you while I wasn’there? I already knew this kid had poor self-preservation skills,following a near stranger to a second and tertiary location then agreeing tolive with them being a prime example of that, but this is a whole otherconcern. She hiccups again. Just be more careful next time,okay? She nods against me.

Doyou think he’s going to tell anyone? Her voice is weak and wobbly. Itbreaks my heart, just a little.

Hewon't. Mk cares too much about his friends to ever do anything to hurtthem. The sentiment hurts me in ways that I don’t want to thinkabout. The fact that I actually believe it hurts even more. It was far toosimilar to how I used to think about him.

Promise?

Yeah,I promise.

Wesat in that spot for a long time after that, holding Bai He as she wept into mychest. I wished there was more I could have done for her, but if this was all Icould do, then I would. While we sat, my clone set up my room to be morecomfortable, adding more blankets and pillows to create a nest for her to sleepin. I usually only made them after a bad fight or dream, but this feels just asappropriate. I carry her to the room, finally separating from each other to puther down. She didn’t want to let go at first, but as soon as her head hit thepillow she was out like a light. I did still have to gently pry her sleepyhands off of me. I tuck her in, giving her a kiss on the forehead, then do thesame to my boys. It’s not even that late in the day yet and I already feelexhausted. I didn’t want to spend all day asleep in bed and I didn’t want toleave Bai He home alone, so I do some light workouts with my clone to distractmyself in the living room.

Theyhelp push me further in my stretches and act as an added weight in my strengthtraining. More importantly they listen to my innermost thoughts without mehaving to voice them. I wonder if I really know what I’m getting myselfinto.

IfI was in over my head. If this whole thing would end in a big, horrible mess.What am I even doing? You’redoing your best and you are freaking out about it. I’m not freaking out!You only ever talkto me when you’re having a crisis.This is different, I didn’t summon you for specifically this. Yet here we are anyway.

Ilay on the floor, already completely drained from everything. The weight of myclone leaves me, but they’re gone. They roll me onto my back and scoop me upinto their arms.

Whatare you doing? It’sokay to be done for the day, but if I leave you alone, you’ll stay on theground until one of the kids comes and finds you there. Plus, you haven’tbathed since yesterday and I’m not letting you go another day without a shower.You get yourself cleaned up and I’ll handle everything else.

Theycarry me into the bathroom and promptly drop me with zero warning on the coldtile. Asshole. Iheard that.

Asshole.They rolled their eyes, stepping over me to run the shower. I watch them testthe water from my place on the floor, feeling a familiar numb sensation full,or rather empty, my heart. Likely sensing the change, my clone head snapstoward me. They crouch over me, grabbing my face in both hands, making me face them.It’s hard to look them in the eyes, knowing that I’d hate what I saw. Forwhatever reason I could never properly glamour them. If it wasn’t the Lady BoneDemon, it was them, always reminding me of what trusting people got me. Maybeit’s something in me that won’t let me forget or move on.

Shower. You’ll have plenty of time to brood there. I’llget your clothes and bed ready.They kiss my forehead and, even if it was technically myself, it did feel kindof nice. They lightly slap me twice then forcefully bring me to my feet. Theyhold my hands, rubbing gentle circles into them. Wash your fur too, that always helps you to relax. They inspect the fur onthe side of my face, caressing my cheek. We can talk about all…this, later. They lightly smack meagain then withdraw from me and the room.

Isigh and get to work undressing myself, being sure to only drop my glamoursafter I enter the shower. The warm water feels nice after being on the coldfloor. That in combination with the pitter patter helps me to relax, if only alittle. It muffles all the sounds of the world further, enough for me to onlyhear the hard drops. I take my time, thoroughly scrubbing shampoo into my fur, makingsure every inch is covered. A sweet, mango smell slowly fills the room as I go.Breathing it in helps to soothe my mind further. All other thoughts than thetask at hand leave my brain so I can focus on the feeling. I can feel a purrtry to rumble its way out of me when my clone oh so rudely opens the showercurtain.

Whatthe hell! They roll their eyes again.

Just making sure you weren’t in heresulking.

Youdidn’t have to open the curtain for that! They scoff, dismissive, yetthey still close the curtain.

I left your new pajamas on the counter and thesofa bed is ready for you. Did you want me to play some music on your phone or oneof those 10-hour heavy rain videos you love so much? I could see they werealready going through my phone. I groaned, closing my eyes so I could rinse myfur.

Heavyrain. My playlists are an emotional minefield. They hum inaffirmation.

Did you want me to stick around to help you withyour fur?I think about it for about half a second.

No.If I need help, I’ll just summon you again. Thanks. I get to work onthe equally fruity conditioner.

Got it boss. They walk out of the room, setting up myphone before I feel them slink back into the shadows. Their memories of thelast few hours flash through my brain. It makes my worry for Bai He doubleseeing her look so small in my arms in the third person view. I saw how theychecked on her while I was in here too. She was tossing and turning, her facescrunched up like she was in pain. I see them try to ease her mind with littleluck. At least Pollux and Castor are sleeping easy.

Iadmittedly rushed through the rest of my shower. If she woke up from whatevernightmare she was currently having, I wanted to be there for her. I shook off alot of the excess water while I was still in the tub. Another feature I loveabout this apartment is that the bathroom had a strong heated fan system thatmade drying off less of a pain. That and it felt really nice. I still had touse a hair dryer and a towel so I wasn’t damp. On a normal day this would takeclose to two hours to be completely dry, but I cut my time in half, not sure ifmy fur was dry, damp, or just warm. I put on my bathrobe and the pair of boxersmy clone left out for me, not wanting to put my pajamas on yet with possiblywet fur. I’d get a clone to groom me tomorrow. For now, I let it go wild.

Iopened the door and was completely blindsided by Bai He standing on the otherside with their hand raised, mid knock. We lock eyes, her widen in shock orfear I’m not sure. My heart races, my fur stands on end, my hands shake. I slamthe door in her face. I throw on a quick glamour and try to calm myself down.Deep breaths Macaque, it’s okay, if she’s scared of you now, she can stay withMk. He’s a good enough option for the job.

Mr.Macaque? Are you okay? I didn’t mean to scare you. I-I can go, it wasn'timportant. My ears droop at that. I still feel sick but hiding from alittle kid while they’re scared would only make me feel worse. I gather up myremaining courage and open the door the smallest of cracks.

It’snot your fault, I just, uh, not good with um. I flounder with mywords, still recovering from the shock. Very few people have seen mewithout my glamour. Especially now that I look like…this. I gesturedto myself even though she couldn’t see me. I felt like curling up into a ballon the floor.

I’msorry. What do I do? Should I give you space or? She trailsoff.

Ijust need a minute.I lean against the wall, exhausted. Sorryfor scaring you.There’s a long pause.

What?I wasn’t scared of you. She sounded incredulous. I don’t buyit.

Youdon’t have to lie Bai He; I saw you. I wince, hearing how harshlythat came out.

Iwas surprised, but I wasn’t scared. Shegets defensive. I scoffed, sliding down the wall.

Yeahright. There’s another long pause. The door creaks open, I curl upand turn away. Since I didn’t stop her, she came in and sat beside me. Sheleans against me, resting her cheek against my back.

Iknow you don’t believe me, but I’ve seen a lot scarier than you. Icurl further into myself. To me, you’re just a big sweet fluffymonkey. You take care of me, and you’re patient with me, and you make me feelsafe here. She wiggles an arm undermine to hug it. I couldnever be scared of you. My ears twitch, trying to distinguish herlies for what they are, but I can’t help thinking that she sounds genuine. Myears must be playing tricks on me.

That’snice and all Bai He but it’s not-

Heyyou got to tell me that I wasn’t scary so Iget to tell you that you aren’t either. Shepokes the side of my head several times to emphasize her point. I could alreadysee her pouting without having to look up. I guess she had a decent point. I unfurlmyself to face her. My whole-body droops when I see her face. She had dark bagsunder her eyes and her skin was pale and despite that she still smiles up atme, small as it may be. Right, I had completely forgotten she was having anightmare before this. Now I feel like an ass for making her worry on top ofthat. I just had to make this about me, didn’t I? How to salvage this?

Whatwere you doing up anyways? She immediately looks away as if embarrassed.

Ohthat! I uh, I had a nightmare and was wondering if I could sleep with youtonight? Only if that’s okay of course. I know it’s a little silly. Ihold back my tears with a deep breath disguised as a sigh. Maybe she really wasn’tlying.

Ofcourse. I just have to change into my pajamas first, okay? She peaksup with a wide smile, practically leaping to her feet, noddingvigorously.

Okay!She runs out of the bathroom, closing the door behind her. I swear she is anemotional whirlwind. I shake my head, a smile making itself known on my face. Ichuckle to myself as I get changed. I didn’t think seeing her happy couldchange my mood so quickly for the better. I think I’m starting to get what Yinwas actually talking about. Every time I’ve traveled with anyone, I alwaysassumed they were one and done deals, but then I get comfortable, and I stickaround longer than I ever thought I would. This time is different though. Thistime she’s the one in traveling or well, staying with me,not the other way round. I can’t run away when I have doubts and there’s no oneelse in my head yelling said doubts back at me. It makes me wonder how thiswhole thing will end. For now, all I can do is be there for her until shedoesn’t need me anymore.

Withthat thought in mind I finally leave the bathroom. I see that Bai He broughtthe boys with her to the couch bed, and they’d made themselves comfortable inthe middle of it. Judging from how sleepy Castor and Pollux looked she probablyhad to carry or drag them to the other bed.

Youknow I could have just moved into the room. You didn’t have to come outhere. I climb into bed anyways. She hugs me as soon as I get within arm’sreach.

Ididn’t want to fall asleep in there again after my dream. I hug herback, cradling the back of her head.

Fairenough. Did you wanna talk about your dream? She nuzzles her faceinto my shoulder, sighing.

Isaw her again. It felt like when I was possessed again. Like a weird out ofbody experience. I saw what she did to people, did to you, to thespiders. She gets quiet, holding me tighter. I stroke her hair,gently getting out any tangles or knots. Mr. Macaque?

Yes,Bai He?

What-She takes in a shaky breath. What happened to them?

Who?

Thespiders. I’ve wanted to ask since I saw your lantern, but I was too scared ofwhat you’d say and I saw them in my dream and I just, I have to know.Her voice is small, like she’s on the verge of tears again. I hold hertighter.

They’reokay. She gasps, sitting up fast to look me in the eyes.

Really?She’s breathless, desperately hopeful.

Yeah,when I went to the wreckage of the spider mech for my lantern, I could hearthem struggling. The Spider Queen and I have a rocky relationship right now,but I couldn’t just leave her, so I helped them out. They were pretty bangedup, but they’re okay. Bai He looks at me, eyes on the brink ofoverflowing.

Youmean it? You’re not just saying that to make me feel better?

Ido. If you don’t believe me, they’ve got a market stall. We can go by theretomorrow if you’d like? She blinks, and tears finally stream down herface.

No!I don’t think I’m ready just yet. She returns to her spot against mychest. I do want to see them again eventually though. I wannaapologize for everything I put them through. I tug her hair.

Notyou, her. We have seriously got towork on that.

That’sthe thing. I still don’t know if she’s gonegone from me.

Whatmakes you say that? She sighs, and I can tell she’s rubbing her cheekagain.

You’renot the only one with scars. She mumbles into me. It makes me betterabout myself, but more concerned for her.

Shemay have left an impression, but that doesn’t mean she’s still here.She’s quiet again.

Yeah,but it’s more than that.

Whatdo you mean?

Mr.Macaque, I think I still have her powers, but I can’t control it. Myblood runs cold and it takes everything I have not to let it show. I hold hercloser as I feel her shake. I have to think about this rationally.

Doyou still hear her? Not just in your dreams and not just from memory, butactively talking to you. She takes her time, really mulling it over.I can feel the way her face scrunches up in my chest.

Idon’t think so? I let out a sigh of relief. Though she still has alot of trauma to deal with, I’m certain that shewon't be adding any more than she already has.

Good,good. Bai He I’m not sure how much this will help but take it from a guy who'shad that witch in their brain for over half a millennium, she’s gone. I haven’theard her voice at all outside of my own dreams since her defeat. The powersare likely a side effect of you being possessed for so long. Istarted grooming her hair again. It helps to stop her shakes.

You’reokay with this?

Um-hum.The lack of control is a little worrying though. We can figure out what to doabout that tomorrow though. For now, get some rest. It’s been a longday. She hiccups, burying herself further into my chest, if that wereeven possible at this point. I cradle her and hum songless tunes to lull herrestless mind. It takes her a while to get to sleep after that and when she does,I could tell I wasn’t that far behind. While I was terrified of having to dealwith anything resembling her power, I could only imagine how much worse it madeBai He feel. Hopefully, I could find a way to help her, but later. For now, Ilet the comfort of having my family close pull me into unconsciousness.Tomorrow we would figure this out, for all of us.

Chapter 5: Training Arc

Chapter Text

In the morning, I wake up to tiny hands smacking me in the face and a weight on the side of my neck. While I did miss sleeping curled up with Pollux and Castor, I didn’t miss the irritating ways they’d try to wake me on the rare occasions when I slept in. I gently picked whichever twin it was up with my free hand and dropped them onto an empty space on the bed, only for the other twin to tug the fur on the side of my head. I groan, defeated, and slowly sit up so I wouldn’t disturb Bai He. I rub the sleep out of my eyes, blinking several times to rid myself of the spots in my vision. The first thing I notice is the boys both pointing to their own faces, then a clearly conscious Bai He covering her eyes with both hands. It takes my sleep-addled brain a few seconds to catch on. I look at the back of my right hand and sure enough, white fur. My rather weak glamour must have slipped off in my sleep. It warms my heart seeing them care about my comfort like this after just one incident. If I was being honest, I may have overreacted a bit. I was uncomfortable with her seeing me like this, that goes without saying, but it hurt way more when I thought she’d be afraid of me. Now she’s trying to make sure she’snot the one making me uncomfortable. It’s sweet and aftersome deliberation I made a decision.

Ituh, it’s okay. You can look at it. It’s for the best, I think.Constantly spending energy on glamouring myself isn’t good anyways and if she’sgoing to stay here it’s better so I can do without in my own home.

Areyou sure? She turns her head toward the sound of my voice, eyes stillcovered.

Yeah.I avert my eyes, not wanting to see her reaction to my scared form again. I hugmyself when I hear her tiny gasp and my ears fold down. I tell myself that it’sokay, that I can handle this. I knew that younger monkeys were the ones thatwere the least likely to judge my appearance so this shouldn’t be anydifferent, right?

Thelonger she stares the more anxious I become. I start to scratch at the arm shecan’t see and my tail coils around my waist. Pollux and Castor climb me togroom my fur. It gives me something to focus on, grounding. My scratching turnsback into a hold, and I let out a sigh. She places her hand over mine, makingme glance at her. She had a small smile, and her other hand was over herbandage. She rips it off revealing a blue scar, resembling a crack or lightningstrike on her skin. I remember seeing those cracks during the fight, thoughthey had been much worse than just the one mark. Not only that, but it wasn’tglowing like they had been before.

See?I told you I had scars too. She sounded small, unsure. I pat herhead.

Doyou think this makes us even? I put on a smirk, trying to lighten themood.

Doesit? I shrugged.

Maybe.I'll think about it after breakfast. I’m starving. At the mention offood Pollux and Castor chirp in excitement. I get up, fixing the rumples in mypajamas, not bothering to put any glamorous back up. I’d have to get used toher seeing me like this so I might as well start now. I don’t change either,just get to cooking. I think I’m making mango pancakes, maybe some plum onestoo, today. I need some comfort food and I’m sure the boys will love it.

You’renot getting dressed?

Nope.I pop the p. Do you want anything in your pancakes? Shehums.

Gotany blueberries? I rummage through my fridge and find a carton ofthem.

Yep.I hear her get out of bed and start messing with the covers. I glance over myshoulder and see her cleaning up the sofa bed, completely unprompted. Goodkid.

Whydo you have so much fruit?

Becauseit’s great, obviously. Not like you should be complaining. I’ve heard yousneaking snacks at night. I hear her stumble, caught.

Fairenough. I chuckle at her. As I cook, I feed bits of excess slicedmango to the hungry monkeys on my shoulders to ease some of their hunger pangs.Castor hops off once he’s satisfied to help Bai He lift the bed of the sofa tofold it back into place while Pollux greedily takes up both shares of excessfor himself. I couldn’t really blame him though; I know he ate less so hisbrother could have his fill yesterday. He doesn’t have to, there’s alwaysplenty to go around for them now, but maybe it was a force of habit from beforethey were in my care.

Breakfast’sready. I place several plates on the counter for them to help themselves.Bai He takes her usual spot with Castor clinging to her back. He and Polluxpoint to the ones they want, and I make separate plates for the two of them toenjoy. The twins climb onto the table to sit with each other. Bai He takesgenerous portions from all three types, and I have whatever is left over.You’re going to make yourself sick from all that. She had astack of five.

It’snot my fault your food’s so good. She practically shoves food intoher mouth while maintaining eye contact as if she was making a statement ofsome kind. I smirk and shake my head at her. I indulge in my own food andsilence falls over us. In the silence I think about what we talked about lastnight. How best to approach this? She’d sounded unsure about the circ*mstancesbefore. She said she thinks she has her powers, but she alsocouldn’t control them so how could we test them and how did she find out aboutthem to begin with? Actually, before all of that.

Hey,so we need to talk about yesterday. I put my half-finished plateaside. Bai He stops eating, now playing with what was left on her plate. Shecloses her eyes and takes a deep breath.

Okay.She sighs out, having steeled herself.

You’vegot a couple of options. I know Wukong has a way to seal your powers if youwant, but they won't go away. Bai He cringes at the idea.

Idon’t want him to know about this, let alone get involved. Couldn’t you justtake my powers? Now it’s my turn to cringe.

Firstof all, it doesn’t work like that. Second of all, the last time I had her powerthis happened to me so I’ll pass.She deflates.

Oh,right. Sorry. I pat her head.

It’sokay, we’re just coming up with ideas right now.

Sohow would it have worked? If you did try to take my powers. I hum andlean on the counter with my arms crossed.

Well,first I would have to give you some of my power. Then I’d have you use themenough so it would integrate itself with your powers to make it easier for meto handle when I would have taken them from you. Ooo there’s athought. You know, I could still give you a little of mypowers. She gives me a confused look.

Sodoes that mean you will take my powers? I wave my handdismissively.

No,no I could give you my powers and teach you how to use them since I alreadyknow how they work. Maybe that training would help you learn to control herpowers. I figured out how to use their powers quickly enough from my experienceso it should be easier at least. She perks up at the idea.

Doyou really think that would work?

Yeahsure, even if it doesn’t, you’ll have a new skill. She has a briefmoment of speculation.

Shouldyou really just be handing out your powers like this? I wave her offa*gain.

Trustme, it’s fine. I gave Pollux and Castor some of my powers and they haven’tcaused problems so it’s perfectly safe too.

Theydo! Her head snaps to look at them. They briefly give her theirattention before going back to their own breakfast.

Mhm,for about a year now. I wanted them to get used to the feeling of having thatpower in them before I trained them. They can do a few things with italready though. I showed them how to glamour themselves a long time ago so Iwouldn’t have to anymore. She puts a hand over her scar and looks at me, starryeyed.

Doesthat mean you can show me how to cover this up like you do?

Eventually,if this is how you want to do this. She considers it for a longmoment. When she finally makes her choice, she unnecessarily bangs the tablewith both hands, resolute.

Let'sdo it! Her posture doesn’t change, but her face wavers a bit.How…do we do this? I give a small chuckle and pat her head,letting my hand linger for just a few seconds longer than usual as I let just adrop of my power bleed into her.

There,all done. She gives me an incredulous look, squawking out.

That’sit! She sure is shouting a lot today, but this is amusing so I’ll letit slide for now.

That’sit. It’s almost irresponsibly easy to give some powers. I go back tofood, already moving on.

Wait,so what now? I don’t even feel any different. She looks at her hands,opening and closing them.

Youwon’t feel anything for a while. I only gave you a bit of my power. It’ll taketime for it to grow and amass energy. Right now, you’ve got an empty well.While we wait for it to fill, I’m going to train you and teach you some of theways I handle my power. It also means that you’re joining me for morningpilates, every day, starting today.

What,no aaah. She sags in her seatgroaning. I laugh, leaning over to poke her, teasing.

Hey,this is what you signed up for. You’ll get better with manipulating your energyif you get better at manipulating your own body. You’ll have to learn how tolet it flow through and out of you and eventually it’ll become as easy asbreathing. It works a lot like exercise. It’ll be hard, but every day it’ll geta little bit easier. Luckily, I’ll be here to keep you on that schedule withoutfail. I smirk at the look of defeat that travels from her face totake over the rest of her body in the form of a slouch before her foreheadsinks to rest on the table. I ruffle her hair affectionately and clean up myplate. Don’t worry, we’ll start you off easy. Just some light stretchesand exercises, maybe a walk. You know easy breeze stuff; the twins could doit. As a matter of fact. You two are joining intoo. Pollux responds with a happy chirp and Castor grumbles, shovingsome of the last bits of pancake into his mouth. The idea of having trainingbuddies does seem to lighten Bai He’s mood, if only a little. We canstart after you finish eating. Did you want to do this at home or thedojo? Bai He lifts her head enough to lean on her chin instead of herface.

I’venever been to your dojo before. She mumbles. I walk into my room asshe thinks it over, to change into something more suitable, my usual attire.It’s then when I see how dark it is outside still. I check the time and seethat it’s only 3:35. Wow, that’s early even for me. Eh, but we did go to bedreally early too so that makes sense. I guess I’ll be portaling us to the dojo,if we even go. I find an outfit I deem more appropriate than my pajamas. Iclosed and locked my room door so I could change out of sight. As I change, I’mconfronted by my appearance again.

BeforeI died my fur was naturally all white, but I’d always made it appear black formy own preference. After I came back to life it just grew in black and I hadblamed the Lady Bone Demon and Wukong for that. Now half of its white againfrom the torso up for nearly the same reason. It felt weird seeing myself likethis. I could almost forget that this used to be its natural color after goingso long without seeing it. A part of me was curious how I would look all whiteagain. The rest of me didn’t want to know. As I cover myself back up withclothes, I take the time to glamour myself fully. Even though I knew it wouldjust be us, I still wasn’t completely comfortable being seen like this. Babysteps, Macaque, baby steps. When I walked out of the room I found Castor, andPollux cleaning up the plates, putting in the sink for me, and I could onlyassume Bai He was in the closed bathroom.

Sodid you decide yet? I call to her as I make my way over to the boysat the sink to make sure they’ve washed their hands of any stickiness.

Iwanna see what your dojo is like. She calls back.

Okay,then get dressed so I can portal us over. I get started on the dishesas I wait.

We’renot walking there? She opens the bathroom door, going straight to myroom, presumably to change like I said.

It’snot even 4 yet, it’s still dark out. I hear her hum, quizzically. Iturn my head to look at the room door when I hear her open it. She opened itjust enough to pop her head out.

Mr.Macaque, are you afraid of the dark? I fumble a plate I was drying,putting it down as soon as I have a good grasp on it again.

Whatmakes you think that? She hums again and looks at something inside myroom before her eyes dart to another place in the kitchen.

Wellyou’ve got a lot of nightlights and you don’t want to go out cause it’s dark,so I just thought, you know. I put my face in my hands, only toimmediately flinch back from the feeling of wetness. It’s okay if youare. I just thought it was a little strange, because it’s your wholething. It’s not my whole thing, is what I want to say, but Iknew that wouldn’t do anything for my case.

I’mnot, afraid of the dark it’s just- Igesture at nothing as I try to find the right words. I don’t alwaysfeel…comfortable, fully submerged in darkness.Especially when you know who was in my head. It’s like how I don’t like totalsilence either. Low light and quiet are really nice, but complete silence indarkness can feel really overwhelming so the light helps keep me out of myhead. And out of my memories the good, and the bad. It’s alsoprobably why I associate with so many loud people.

Thatstill sounds like you’re scared of the dark to me, but I think I getit. She goes back into the room, closing the door behind her.Why aren’t we waking there though? I shake my head.

Becauseit’s more dangerous at night Bai He. I dry my hands with a hand towelI leave on the oven handle.

It’sbasically morning though. The more she talks the more I get how shewas possessed by her. She is so reckless with her own safety. I wonder how muchthat orphanage or whatever school she went to taught her. Wait, shouldn’t shebe in school? Uh, I’ll ask about that later.

That’snot how that works and why are you even complaining about it? I thought you’dlike not having to walk there. Should I bring snacks with us? No,probably water though.

BecauseI wanna know how to get there by myself. She comes out of the roomwith a white short sleeved t-shirt and black capri pants with her usual sweaterwrapped around her waist.

Wecan walk there next time and you’ll see the route on the way back. Now come sitdown so I can do your hair. She practically skips over to hop intoher seat. I pick her brush from the counter; it never leaves the kitchen sincewe always do her hair here and start fixing her messy bedhead. She humshappily, swinging her legs back and forth. It takes me a second to realize thatI was matching her humming. It makes me smile like an idiot if I’m beinghonest. Oh, you never told me, how was hanging out with Mkyesterday? She perks up, bouncing in her seat.

Wehad so much fun! We went to the anti-gravity arcade with Mei, rode along withhim on his deliveries, had to listen to Mr. Tang talk about the journey to thewest story while Mk was with the Monkey King. She says the last partout the side of her mouth. I could practically roll her eyes at that.Ooo, we visited Sandy too, and I got to pet so many cats, they werecute. Did you know you kind of purr like one in your sleep? Iaccidentally tug on her hair, making her wince.

Sorry.I message that part of her head.

It’sokay, I already forgive you. She flashes a bright smile over hershoulder at me. I hold myself back from ruffling her hair, instead working topull it into a high ponytail.

Soforgiving. Also, I have no idea what you’re talking about. Monkeys don’t purr,kid.

They’realso not supposed to eat chocolate, but you do. I let go of herfinished ponytail and turned the stool around. She had the smuggest look on herface. Oh, she must be so proud of herself. Why was she even prepared forthat?

I’mmaking you run laps around the dojo.

Whatno come on, that's so unfair!

Nope,you’ve earned this. Come on boys. Bai He starts to get up from thestool, but I stop her. She looks up at me, confused. Hang on, one morething. I pretend to lick my thumb and rub over the scar on Bai He’scheek. She fIails a little, calling me gross before she realizes my thumb isdry. I cover it up with a simple, but strong glamour. I wasn’t sure what else she’dbe doing today, but I didn’t want to risk using a cheap one and Mk using hisgold vision around her. I summon a hand mirror I usually kept in the bathroomwith my shadows and hold it out to her. Her eyes fill with awe when she seesherself. She tentatively reaches to touch her now clear skin.

Woah.Is all she can say. She takes the mirror from me to further examine hercheek.

Now,I’m going to tell you what I’ve told everyone I’ve ever taught to glamourthemselves. There’s nothing wrong with having scars or looking how you do. Ipersonally just feel more comfortable covering up my, for lack of a betterword, flaws. My ears fold back, and Ihadn’t noticed when I looked away from her until she held and gently squeezed myhand. I look at her, slightly watery, eyes and she smiles softly at me.

Thankyou, and for what it’s worth I think you’re very pretty without your, whateverthis is. She puts the mirror down on the counter behind her so shecould gesture to her own cheek with her newly freed hand. I smile, believingthat she truly wasn’t scared yesterday more and more. My tail swishes from thecompliment. All the same I keep my glamour up.

They’recalled glamours and thanks. Maybe I won't make you run laps afterall.

Yes!She pumps her free hand in the air. I pick her up and she automatically holdson to me. The boys hold me tighter, and Bai He yelps as I fall backwards into aportal underneath me. My laugh echoes through the room as we fall, lingeringuntil the portal closes, only for it to reappear elsewhere, combined with thecomplaints of the mean treatment. The complaints only make my laugh lastlonger. This would be fun.

Thefirst thing we do after I calm down is give a brief tour of the dojo and a run-downof rules. No touching the weapons without permission or instruction, no runningwith said weapons for the same reasons, no yelling to test the echo, DO NOT gointo the storage room for anything, not only did I have some mystic stuff inthere, but I also didn’t forget about the little black box that’s in there.Maybe I should move it to the storage unit I rent instead? No, even thougheverything is organized there it’ll probably get lost. What else? Right, noclimbing, the last thing I need is any of them somehow getting on the ceilingsomehow and falling. Any other rules can be added or changed as weprogress.

Aspromised I started her out with an easier version of my morning pilates as a warmup.Despite how well-trained Pollux and Castor already were behavior wise, theyneeded closer instruction than Bai He did. Once Pollux got the hang ofimitating Bai He and I, he wasn’t much trouble, Castor on the other hand neededa lot more help on his form. While Bai was good at following my instructionsand her form was pretty good when she started, her balance was all off.Sometimes I would have to help her stay up right just so she could finish onepose and move on to the next. When it came to the endurance-based exercises, Inoticed that Castor seemed to have more stamina than Pollux or Bai He. Bothtapping out long before he did. He honestly probably could have gone on longerif he didn’t keep following them when they stopped so I joined in to just howlong he could last. Even still, he stops sooner than I think he needed to fromeither boredom or lack of interest. We ended that section with corpse pose andI allowed them 5 minutes to relax and taught them, mostly Bai He, somebreathing techniques before allowing them to sit in reflective silence.

Pilateslasted longer than it normally would if it were just me, going on for about 2hours or so, double my usual time. It was mostly due to how much I had toexplain, show, and correct about their forms. After that I walk them around theinside of the dojo, 30 times. I have to hold Castor and Pollux’s hands, so theydon’t try to climb me when they get tired. Bai He made the mistake of feelingenergized from the initial workout, and underestimating the size of the room,that she tried to run some of the laps only to exhaust herself after 1 and ahalf laps. She’d already been 4 deep at the time, and I still made her finishall 30 laps. By the end they were all sitting worn out on the floor. I portalsome water from our home fridge in to give to them, which they take greedily. Iwatch Bai He down a third of their bottle before asking.

Sohow did you like your first workout session? She flops down onto herback and groans in response. You know it’s only going to get harderfrom here. She groans even louder, and I laugh. Don’t worry,I’m only kidding, well kind of kidding. You’ll probably be a little sore tomorrow,so I’ll go easier on you guys.

I’malready sore today. She whines.

Iknow, I know, but eventually I’ll still be adding more difficult exercises. Fornow, you’ll work on this routine until it stops being so difficult,okay?

Okay.She agrees, begrudgingly. While they catch their breath, I clear up any sweatthey’ve left on the matts or anywhere else in here and turn on the A/C. Thesound of it clicking on makes Bai He sit up and shout. We could havehad that this whole time?! It makes me cackle even if it hurt myears.

TheA/C is for post workout only. I told her.

Villainous.She grumbles flopping back down. The twins chirp in agreement to the sentiment.Good, it’s good to have training partners you can agree with. Even if they bondover being annoyed with their teacher.

Aw,don’t be like that. Hey, I know it’s still early, but there’s some ice cream inthe freezer at home if you want. You know, as a treat for surviving your firstlesson. Pollux and Castor chirp curiously and the odd, possiblesqueak, that comes out of Bai He sounds close enough to them in pitch.

Really?She sits up again.

Yeah,now did you want to walk home or-

NO!I laugh at her again. Such a silly kid. This’ll be fun.

AfterI portal us home I let the kids help themselves to a reasonable amount of icecream. Bai He briefly complained about it being fruit flavored as well beforeshe actually tried it and literally ate her words. I indulge in the mangoflavored ice cream myself and let my tail sway idly in contentment. As we relaxed,I went over some of the places they could all improve, only really includingthe boys so Bai He doesn’t feel singled out even if they couldn’t fullyunderstand my critiques. After I have them all hit the showers, we discuss aschedule for this new development. We agree that we could still do the initialpilates workout in the morning, but for a typical day we could do the heavierworkouts later in the day in the afternoon. Unless, like today, I had a show todo in which case we would do them in the evening.

Sinceit was now around 7:40 in the morning, it was too early to go out shopping forworkout clothes for her. Instead, we take the down time to relax, and I decideto shower myself. Even though I didn’t break a sweat, bathing the boys alwaysleaves my fur damp anyways. By the time I get out and thoroughly dry myself, itwould appear that Bai He has armed themselves with more questions for me.

So,what does working out have to do with my powers? I sigh and take aseat beside her on the couch. I noticed that Pollux and Castor were curled uptogether in her lap. She wasn’t petting them per se, but she was fiddling withit. It takes a second for me to piece together that she was attempting to groomtheir fur. I wordlessly take her hands and try to show her how to groom themproperly.

Well,the stronger your body is, the easier it is to contain larger amounts of power.It also makes it less taxing to use them for extended periods oftime. I move her hands to delicately detangle and knots in Castor’sfur. Plus, this will help prepare you for the training we’ll do whenyou can actually use your powers. Those will probably be similar to the kind oftraining Mk does. She hums, her hands getting used to the motionsthey’re being put through. I let go of her hands and watched her separate thefur by herself.

Doesthat mean you’re going to teach me how to fight? Her hands are stilla little clumsy.

Mhm,it’s an effective way of teaching people how to harness their powers.She pauses to lightly scratch behind his ears, causing to curl further into hisbrother and let out a quiet purr.

Ehehe,see if they can purr so can you. She bumps into my side with hershoulder and stays there. I flip her ponytail over her head and into her face.She sputters for a second before she shakes her hair back into place.Rude…are there other ways to learn? I hum as I fix somestray hairs on her head.

Mypowers could naturally flow out of me when I danced in the form of smokeusually. I’ve been told it’s very pretty to watch. She hums back. Idon’t dance that way as much as I used to. I’ve had some performances for theother monkeys that have gotten close, but I haven’t really lost myself in adance in a long time. I can teach you that instead if you want, butyou’ll still have to work out every day. She leans further intome.

Ifeel kind of weird about fighting right now. Like I should probably learnsomething, but I’m scared that means I’ll have to fight. I put my armaround her in a side hug.

That’sokay. I can teach you some self-defense, but nothing hardcore and we can seehow you feel after? She turns, careful not to disturb the sleepingmonkeys in her lap and puts her legs up on the couch so her back is against myside. She grabs my arm and moves it around her middle so she could comfortablyhug it.

Canyou teach me how to dance too? I rest my cheek on the top of herhead.

SureTiny. Did you want me to teach how to dance fight while I’m at it?She nearly headbutts the side of my face from the way she sits up.

Youcan do that? I nuzzle the top of her head. I can clearly picture thestarry eye look on her face. This kid is so cute.

Yeah,it can be pretty fun too. I’ll teach you whatever you want. There’s abrief pause.

Anything?I could hear the hint of mischief in her voice, and I couldn’t help butindulge.

Anything.There’s an even longer pause.

Evenswear words? I chuckle.

Aren’tyou like 10 or something? You should know all the swear words by now.She giggles.

Iknow, I was just curious, but can I ask you another question? Themischief in her voice grew and I think I could tell where this might begoing.

Sure.I accept whatever fate she chooses to give me.

Areyou coming with me to Pigsy’s later? My brows lift briefly insurprise. She said it so innocently too.

Oh,uh well not inside…huh.

What’swrong? She leans her head back to look at me.

Nothing,I just thought you were going to ask me if I dated Wukong again. Shewaves me off.

Oh,no of course not, it’s gotta come up naturally. There’s a beat. Shetakes a deep breath. But now that you mention it! She alltoo happily says, amusem*nt oh so clear.

Iknew it! She giggles, incredibly pleased with herself. I’m tempted tomove my arm up that short distance to be around her neck, but I restrainmyself. It would be so easy though.

Soooo?

Sooooyou’re running laps tomorrow. This time no escaping it. This will bea much better punishment.

Hmm,I’ll get out of it. You’ll take pity on me. Oh now she’s definitely doing it.

We’llsee. Wanna watch a movie or something? Your pick.

Ooothere’s this old show about robot monkeys I’ve been wanting to watch. Is thatokay? Weird, but okay.

SureTiny. I manage to find the show quickly enough and we watch it untilclothing stores actually open for the day.

Therest of that day goes by in a flash until my show. I managed to cover up anyshock I felt from seeing Mk sitting beside Bai He in the stands. I carry onwith my performance, telling the story of the lonely princess of wind andprince of flames who were lovingly reunited with the bovine king aftercenturies apart. How their reunion was sweet, but it took time to bond and healto become truly whole once more. How failure and triumph brought them closerthan ever before and how they’ve finally found their perfect peace togetheragain at last. There were some touch and go moments where the audience thoughtthe family might be separated again, but thankfully there was no worry. For now at least.

Throughoutthe play I could hear Bai He explain some parts and details that Mk wasn’tprivy to in their family dynamic. I was glad that she didn’t have to tell himwho the story was about. Especially when it came to the little hero’s parts. Ididn’t do anything to make it seem like he was the bad guy in the story, layingout the family was doing wrong, but the story is less about thoseactions and more about their family healing.

Whenthe crowd cleared out, and it was just the three of us, I took down my hood,still in human disguise and took a seat on stage. The two move to stand in thefront row. I try to appear as casually as possible. It felt awkward having himwatch a play about Tieshan let alone one he appears in. I could only hope hedidn’t tell Red Son and it got back to her since this was one of my neweradditions.

Hey.I say, trying to maintain my cool.

Hey.He responds awkwardly. He’s had a confused look on his face since I introducedthe characters of the play.

HiMr. Macaque. I liked your new story. I thought you hadn’t talked with her for along time though? I’ve never been more grateful to have Bai He ask mesomething.

Wellin mortal terms I haven’t, but in immortal terms it was practically a week ago.I heard the Spider Queen’s whole plan way ahead of time and skipped town toavoid that whole mess. Unfortunately, DBK and Red Son were both already outwhen I got there so I couldn’t warn them to stay home, but it all worked out.

Soyou and them are friends? Mk asks for confirmation.

Ohwell uh-

Ofcourse they’re friends, he’s just shy about it. I feel my face heatup.

I’mnot ‘shy’ about anything. We worked together. I dismissed it. Iignore the smile this conversation puts on Mk’s face.

You’vegossiped with her, attended her wedding, and helped her with Red Son. You guysare basically family. I couldn’t refute any of her claims, so I turnto address the now much more relaxed Mk.

Anyways,Mk, did you like the show? Mk snorts at such a blatant display ofdenial.

Itwas fun, and you know, a lot less stressful than your other play. Hescratched the back of his head, trying to joke about the past. This is what Iwas afraid of. There’s a pause.

Yeah,sorry…about that. My ears fold back under my glamour andsubconsciously chew my bottom lip. Bai He moves to sit next to me on the stage.She takes my hand in support. We never got to practice this like we said, and Ifeel wholly unprepared.

It’sokay, I mean it’s all in the past right? I know I look at him likehe’s crazy. I could tell in his tone that he’s still bothered by it, but Ican’t tell whose feelings he’s trying to spare here.

Youdon’t have to pretend to forgive me Mk. I-I feel bad about preying on yourinsecurities and I feel bad for treating you like a copy, a tool, to get toWukong. You didn’t deserve that. I- I feel myself trembling, Bai Hesqueezes my hand, whispering an ‘it’s okay’ only I could hear. I take a breath.Mk, you’re a good kid and you’re a great choice of successor to theMonkey King and I’m sure he knows it too. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you then andI’m sorry for making everything worse. You sympathized with me, and I tried toforce you to see differently. I use my free hand to hug myself. Mksits on the other side of me. I want to look at him, but I can’t. Ijust, I’m sorry Mk, for everything. God I hate having echoed hiswords, but I don’t know what else to say, especially with so much more left tosay or make up for just to not feel uncomfortable around his usually cheeryattitude. My whole body was tense, my fur stood on end under my glamour, andI was close to breaking the skin of my lower lip. I’m violently startled by twopairs of arms on either side wrapping around me in a tight hug. Whatare you-

ThanksMacaque, I mean it.He holds me even tighter. I try to blink backtears, not wanting to cry in front of them, inevitably giving up and hugginghim back. There were still things that needed to be said, still emotions to beworked through, but those things could be done later. For now, we just holdeach other, silently weeping together.

Chapter 6: An Anxious Macaque

Chapter Text

It’s been 3 weeks since I apologized to Mk, and he’s found a way to insert himself into my life at every opportunity. He’s come into my home on deliveries, albeit briefly, and I had to formally introduce him to Castor and Pollux. Castor took a liking to him right away and Pollux still has an attitude with him, but he’s stopped taking swings at him. He’s poked around my apartment with Bai He and found all the drawings I kept, not that it was hard to find, but it was embarrassing. I honestly couldn’t tell if he was teasing me or genuinely happy that I kept them all, probably both. Either way I portalled him back to his cart when he tried to hug me again. Unfortunately, I couldn’t do the same to Bai He and I knew when shewas teasing me. At least now I didn’t have to hide it and soon all the pictureswere spread throughout every room, except the bathroom. I had to admit, it wasnice seeing them all the time again. The day after that I came home to Mk andBai He on the floor teaching Castor and Pollux how to draw. I put all of theirdrawings on the fridge.

Hecame to another one of my shows with Bai He. That one was about how thedisheartened warrior was captured by an opportunistic demon, aiming to enlisthim as a member of his clan through marriage. I did not appreciate his outburst at the mentionof marriage. Itold them how, thankfully, the disheartened warrior was captured along with twoothers. The colorful twins, who were well versed in the ways of demonicculture. They too were propositioned for marriage, but much like the warrior,they had no interest in marriage, let alone to a demon of lower status. Thethree, all agreed that they would temporarily team up to escape the demon’sclutches. The colorful twins freed them from their chains and the disheartenedwarrior quietly snuck them out unnoticed. The three of them trekked for hoursand all the while the colorful twins taught the warrior everything the warriorneeded to know to navigate the demonic lifestyle. Once they were out of thelower demon’s territory and ready to part ways the twins offered to accompanythe warrior safely to wherever the fledgling demon needed to go. When thewarrior told them he had no place to go, they invited him to travel with them.They would help him to safely integrate themself into demon society and inexchange he would help protect him the way he had that day. The warrior,feeling aimless and alone after losing their most beloved friend, agrees and hefeels just a little less alone.

Muchlike the first time, throughout the duration of the show Bai He explains to Mkwho all the characters are, excitedly tells him about her favorite parts, andeven mentions the current state of my relationship with them. At the end of theshow, I could tell wanted to ask her usual question about Wukong but held backbecause Mk’s here. But I stared at her grinning face the whole time Mk asked meabout the whole marriage mess I mentioned and if being captured was a part ofit. I had to explain demon courting to him and that a lot of the old traditionsaren’t as common these days since a lot of newer demons enjoy the way mortalscourt more. I never liked the kidnapping or the combat, but at least with thekidnapping they at least tried to woo me. It never worked, but it wasappreciated when in the early day’s demons tried more aggressive means. Thatnever ended well for them. I don’t tell them any of that, not wanting to worryeither of them and because it didn’t feel appropriate to tell Bai He when she’sstill just a kid. I do tell them that those practices have even morerules and restrictions these days and even before most of my ‘potentialsuitors’ were fairly hospitable.

Theworst of it was when he came by my dojo and found me training Bai He and theboys. He had a whole host of questions. Most of which we refused to answer likeanything about why any of them had my powers or if the twins were my babiesbecause they looked like me and had my powers. I just told him it’s complicatedand maybe one day we can both explain, but for now to just trust that there's agood reason for it and to not tell the others. He agreed, but only on onecondition.

That’swhat finally got me to come to Pigsy’s restaurant, holding Bai He’s handtightly in mine. I felt nauseous, like I shouldn’t be here. It would be tenseand awkward. Most of them wouldn’t want me there. I hardly understand why Mkeven wants me there. I hurt him, I hurt his friends, and I know that I helpedthem with the Lady Bone Demon, and we celebrated together, but I spent most ofthat time as far away from everyone as possible. Besides that, was probably outof courtesy more than anything else. What was I even doing here? This is amistake.

BaiHe puts her free hand over the hand she’s already holding. I turn to look downat her and she gently smiles up at me. She pets my hand as she speaks to helpsoothe me.

I’mreally happy you’re here and I promise it’ll be okay. I’ll be by your side thewhole time and I asked Mk if you could use his room if you need a breather. Ieven asked Sandy if he could bring a few of his therapy cats. I promise you’llget through this. I took several shaky breaths as she spoke. While alot of it was embarrassing to need in the first place, it was extremelythoughtful of her and I was grateful for that, even if she was a part of why Iwas here in the first place.

Istill needed to apologize to all of them for so much, but I feel completelyunprepared. Even though Bai He and Mk hadbeen helping me work on what I’d have to say when the time comes and making alist of all the things I needed to apologize for. Mk was weirdly supportive ofthe whole thing, not taking the time to tease me or antagonize me for mymistakes like I’m sure plenty of others would have. He sounded almost excitedwhen we went over our work and reassured me that I didn’t have to feel pressuredto apologize today if I wasn’t up to it.

Theyall already know that you’re coming so you don’t have to worry about any shockthey would have had seeing you. We can go in whenever you’re ready. Ihad heard when the two told them I’d be joining them. There had been plenty ofloud apprehension from Pigsy and Mei, which was to be expected seeing howprotective they were of their friends. I wasn’t expecting Tang to side with Mkon inviting me, since I attacked him directly and then there was everythingwith the samadhi fire. Though I have a feeling he has some kind of ulteriormotive behind being able to see me again. Then there was Sandy. I wasn’t toosurprised by his agreement to the idea, given his entire attitude during anytime I’ve heard or seen him, it was still hard to believe how someone could beso willing to accept their enemy with open arms.

Itake another deep shaky breath in to settle my nerves. I felt like I was deflatingon the breath out from how much my shoulders hunched. I didn’t want to do this,but if I wanted to make any real progress in my, ugh for lack of a better word,redemption then I had to. I fix posture, triple check myhuman disguise, putting on a mask of relaxed confidence and squeeze Bai He’shand once.

Okay,I’m ready.

I’dnever actually been inside of Pigsy’s restaurant before. It was nice and cozyinside. The air was warm, and the smell of broth and well-cooked food had mesalivating. The sizzle of meat and vegetables was oh so pleasing to my ears.Despite the fact that I had eaten only an hour ago I felt ravenous. Even thoughI thought it was odd to see pork buns on the menu I desperately wanted to tryit for myself. I was glad my tail was currently hidden or else I’d have to dealwith all of them witnessing it wagging and thumping against my legs.

Oncethe atmosphere sets in I register everyone else in the room. Pigsy behind thecounter with Tang situated right across from him, enjoying a bowl of noodles.Mei and Sandy were seated in a booth with four cats lounging either under thetable or on the seat next to Sandy. I recognize the blue one as Mo, who was theone laying in the actual seat of the booth. I look all of them over trying togauge their reaction and try to overlook the fact that I was being stared at.Bai He clears her throat to bring the attention onto her.

Higuys! She smiles, waving excitedly with her off hand. They greet herand I feel some of the tension ebb out of the air. Pigsy and Mei give me morepointed greetings, though I get a sense that Pigsy is more serious in hisapprehension and Mei is more teasing I had heard from Red Son, before we wentto fight the Lady Bone Demon while Sandy was fixing the T.E.A, what she waslike when they teamed up for the first time. He told me how, rightfully,hostile she was with him and how quickly she became ‘annoyingly’ buddy, buddywith him after calling him a hero. Of course, I laughed at him for it. Heclearly liked being around them and the attention, he was just too proud toadmit it. The irony of that thought isn’t lost on me. Hell, it even brought mesome comfort knowing how things worked out for that hot head. It gave me somehope that things might be okay with them eventually.

Sandywas a lot friendlier, offering me a spot with him in the booth, even if I thinkthat’s not a great idea with Mei right there. Not that I got the chance toaccept or decline before Tang got way too farinto my personal space with far too much confidence. So that’s where Mk gets itfrom.

Sooo,Mk and Bai He told me that you’ve got a lot of stories about the other immortalbeings. I don’t like the grin on his face. I already knew where thiswas going. I’ve heard him flip out over Nezha and Wukong before.

Youwant me to tell you about them don’t you. He grabs my arm and dragsme to the bar stools. Bai He follows and sits in the empty stool besideme.

Yes!He pulls out a book and pencil from nowhere. Bai He orders food for the both ofus, somehow knowing I wanted to try the pork buns and ordering that too. Shetells him I’d be paying for her this time around. He gives me a skeptical lookto which I only nod and he moves on to make our order.

There’sa lot of immortals, both demons and celestials. I’m gonna need you to be morespecific. Tang starts talking to himself about all the variousoptions to start with. Most of what he wanted to know was about those featuredin the Journey to The West story. I made it clear that I had no interest indiscussing the monk in any way. I could tell it disappoints him, but he’sundeterred.

BaiHe suggests telling them about the ‘moon goddess’ since Pigsy likes her show somuch and because most of them didn’t get to meet her. We agree to the idea ofstarting there and since she’s heard the story so much, and read mymanuscripts, I have Bai He tell the story and I use small shadow clones andillusions to act out the play. She excitedly tells them all about the moongoddess and her husband, the legendary archer. How their immortality wasstripped away from them after the legendary archer had to sacrifice sons of theJade Emperor to save the earth. How the archer went on an arduous, life-threateningjourney to become immortal once more to make his wonderful wife happy again.How in the end, due to fear and a communication error, the goddess swallowed awhole pill of immortality, causing her to float up and up and up until shereached the moon. How for the longest time the only company she had was a jadebunny and the immortal woodcutter. The origins of her business and all herunexpected gifts and visitors over the years going all the way up tillnow.

Anytimeshe forgets what comes next, I give her little nudges to reminder. Whether thatwas through my clones going starting to act out the next part or stating thenext few lines myself until she could on. It usually depended on how lost shelooked. We took breaks for the story once our food was ready. His food wasunfairly good at times. I don’t bother hiding my enjoyment, tail thumpingagainst the legs of the stool, which is covered by my robe. Damn these buns aregood. It’d been far too long since I’ve had meat, let alone pork.

Whatis that? Mei asked, lookingaround the room. Everyone goes quiet for a second and their eyes gradually maketheir way to me. I ignore it and make eye contact with Pigsy

Thefood’s really good. I say around a mouthful of pork. I needed toorder more of these for Pollux and Castor. Those two would love this. Pigsyhuffs, crossing his arms and I hear Mei creeping up behind me.

Wellat least you’ve got good tastes. There’s a smirk on his face and Ihold back rolling my eyes. I stop my tail from thumping by wrapping it aroundone of the bar stool’s legs right as Mei lifts the back of my robe. I turn tolook at her over my shoulder.

Wasthat your tail? I unwrap my tail to poke her in the face withit.

Don’tyou think that’s a little rude? She’s unperturbed and moves into myspace to put an arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer and pressing theside of her head against mine, hard. My fur stands on end under my glamour andI suppress a growl.

Awware you happy to be here? Bai He looks on, a little worried about me.I want to shove her away and tell her it’smore about the food than them, but I knew that would be pointless and wouldonly cause more teasing and cause Bai He to worry more. Instead, I sigh andresign myself to the situation.

Thatdepends. Does it actually matter how I answer that? She pulls backenough to stand up right properly but keeps her arm around me.

Nope!She steals one of my pork buns.

Hey!I was eating those! My tail flicks in annoyance and she watches themotion. She smiles, snickering at me. This time I dogrowl.

Doesyour tail do that for every emotion? I message my temples, groaning,and wrap my tail around my waist before glamouring it away like I should havefrom the start. You don’t have to be shy about it. She patsmy back twice, heavy handedly. I stare at her, raising a brow.

Isthis how you wore down Red Son? Just antagonize him and ignore hisoutbursts? I get to work on my noodles, already knowing how she actually endeared herself to him. It was nicelistening to him talk about her and how he felt being listened to and caredabout by someone who had every reason not to. I’m happy the kid has people hecould call his friends.

Psh,no. We just helped him take himself less seriously. He was souptight. Yeah, but that wasn’t his fault. He was raised by Tieshan,almost by herself. She’s not always the most emotionally available person andshe’s great as a friend, but motherhood is entirely different. I could onlyhope that things would be better now with DBK back and after everything that’shappened. If not, me and her are going to have a nice long chat about it.

Eh,he’s working on it. It takes her a second to register what Isaid.

Ohyeah, Mk said something about you being close to their family. What’s up withthat? She leans more heavily on me, and I push her off.

That’sa whole other story. We still have to finish the one about Chang’e.She groans, and Bai He quickly finishes eating so she can move on with thestory.

Duringthis time is when Mk shows up apologizing for being late. He told us thattraining ran long with Monkey King, but something about that doesn’t soundright. Like he’s leaving something out. He was highly suspicious, from hisnervous laughter, the sweating, and the way he was avoiding eye contact withme. You’d think he'd be better at lying after all the experience he’s had withit. When I tried to call him on it, he rushed to tell me that everything wasfine and ran up the stairs claiming he needed to shower.

Whatwas that about? I asked only to get dismissive responses of mysticmonkey business. I wonder if that’s how he’d gotten away with obviously hidingthings in the past or if this is an outlier. I know he was capable of beingcollected while lying, I’ve heard him do it before so either he’s doing it on purpose,or he really messed up.

Itry to ignore it, and it works long enough for us to finish the Chang’e storyand for me to start talking about the demon bull family. Specifically, aboutRed Son’s youth, as per Mei’s request. I was in the middle of telling them howsuch a cute kid, always so excited to show you something he’d just made ordiscovered when I felt eyes on me. It wasn’t from anyone in the restaurant, oreven nearby, but I had an inkling of who it was. I continued telling stories,unperturbed, and subtle shift so I could be facing the direction I felt thelook coming from. I put a weak glamour over my eyes so I could openly glare inthat direction with anyone asking any questions. I glare like that until I feelthe eyes leave me, dropping the flimsy glamour and adopting a more relaxedexpression. I doubt that it’s just a coincidence that as soon as the look wasgone, Mk came down from his room. Tang gives him a rundown of what he’d missedso far, and Bai He takes that shift of attention as an opportunity to check inwith me.

I’mokay, this isn’t going as bad as I thought it would. Bai He beams atme, making sure to keep her voice low.

See?I told you everything would be alright. She pauses and glances at thecats really quickly. Do you think-

Youwanna pet the cats, don’t you? I smirk down at her.

Yes!She whisper shouts, hopping in her seat. I chuckle and pat her head.

Goon kid, I’ll be fine. She hesitates for a moment. Ipromise. My smirk turns into a soft smile that she returns in kind.She gives me a quick hug.

Thankyou! And just like that she’s off to sit with Sandy. I watch her goand feel eyes on me again. I shoot a glance in that direction again, just tolet them know I know they’re watching me again before acknowledging the smileand wave Sandy gave me with a wave. I turn back around at the sound of Pigsy’s‘hmph.’ I don’t like the looks of his smirk.

What?I asked a little more defensive than I meant to.

Nothin…You really care about that kid dontcha? I grumble at the teasing andpull up my hood to cover my slight blush. It’s not even wholly his fault I feelflustered. It’s the distant, familiar chuckle I hear that really irritates me.It’s also the main reason I cover my face. I knew he could read my lips and Ididn’t feel like having him eavesdrop on me.

Ofcourse I do, I'm not a monster. I know not to deny it. Especially notwhen she was within earshot. That’d just be asking for disaster. That and I’msure that, much like with Mei, it would just reinforce the idea.

Right.I avoid looking at him, not wanting to deal with his smug attitude.You know you don’t need to disguise yourself here if you don’t wantto. There was no judgment or teasing this time. I sigh, feeling alittle uncomfortable.

Iknow that. It’s just easier this way. I tug my hood a little lowerover my face. He hums and drops the subject, moving on to serve Mk a bowl ofnoodles. My tail tightens around me under its glamour to keep it from flickingaround anxiously, even if they couldn’t see it.

Tanghad finished catching him up to speed and their attention turned back to me. Igot back to telling them about baby Red Son. Reminiscing about those times helpsme to calm down. He really was such a sweet kid, but fire training had been atrying process. Especially when you aren’t fireproof or fire resistant. It dideventually help me get over my fear of fire, but I don’t tell them that part.It would only prompt more questions that I didn’t want to talk about.

Imanage another hour of socializing before feeling pretty drained from stillbeing tense the whole time. From being watched and from knowing that, eventhough we were talking easily enough, I could tell they weren’t completelyrelaxed around me. I could hear it in the way their muscles tense every now andagain from sharp movements or unexpected reactions. Of course, I knew I wasdoing the same and there were times where I had to actively let my knee jerkreactions show so I could be ‘vulnerable’ with them. It makes me feel like afool, but if it helped gain their trust then I guess I had to do it.

Ithink Bai He could sense my social exhaustion because she made a show of sayingshe was tired and taking my hand so I could walk her home. Mk volunteers to gowith and before we can leave, I stop in the doorway. I turn to face everyone inthe restaurant. I feel anxious with all their eyes on me. I know I still haveto apologize to all of them and I want to, butI can’t bring myself to do it yet. So instead, I bow deeply.

Thankyou for your hospitality. I know I don’t deserve it. I could hearthat distant scoff again.

Youdon’t have to do that. Pigsy tells me, and I lift my head.

Yeah,any friend of a friend is a friend of ours. Sandy says.

Itwas nice listening to your stories. Tang gives me a soft smile.

Thepositive response makes my tail want to wag. I tightened the hold it had aroundmy waist and covered my blush with my hand. I see Mei, not so sneakily, take apicture of me and the only reason I don’t mind is because I’m disguised. I’dhave to talk to her or Mk about that later just in case it could cause anyproblems in the future.

Evenstill, I appreciate you being so accommodating so thank you. I onlynod my head this time. I could hear some of their muscles relax. Seeyou around. Come on kid. Bai He makes that odd squeak, almost chirp,sound again at being addressed. It makes me laugh. As soon as we’re out ofeyesight of those in the restaurant I scoop her up into my arms and she wrapsher arms around my neck and rests her head on my shoulder.

Aw,you guys are so cute. Mk smiles at us, I roll my eyes and Bai Hegiggles. Now that we weren’t at the restaurant, I let my tail unfurl. I couldfeel the moment his eyes leave us and now I could trulyrelax.

Whateverkid. I moved to hold Bai He in one arm so I could shove him.Please never make me do this again.

Oh,did you not have a good time? Bai He pulled away to look at my facewhen she asked. Mk looks to me, also wanting to know. I sigh, rubbing myeyes.

Imean it wasn’t painful, but it still felt awkward, which isto be expected. I could tell they were all tense with me being there.Mk bumps shoulders with me.

Imean yeah, but I’m sure they were just as worried as you were about this.Honestly, I was kind of surprised by how anxious you were. I would have thoughtyou’d be more relaxed and jokey at first, but it was nice seeing how seriouslyyou’re taking this. He smiles at me.

Iwanted to be, but I didn’t think that’d go over well. Especially not with yourdad. I grin at how Mk groans with a slight blush on his face. I’vebeen teasing him like this for a while now and he’s slowly getting used toit.

Pleasestop calling him that.

Hmm,no I don’t think I will. Besides, you called him that first.

What!No, I didn’t. He tries to deny it.

Ohplease, I heard you call him dadsy when everyone was asleep because of thatweird app. Mk stops in his tracks, gasping and pointing an accusatoryfinger at me.

Youwere awake! And you didn’t tell me! I snicker at him, and I couldfeel Bai He smiling against me.

Ofcourse I was. I heard their whole plan, so I didn’t even look at my phone untileveryone else woke up. Nice job with that by the way, but on earth would I havesaid anything to you about it? Mk jogs to catch up with me. I choosenot to mention how he’d gone off the deep end after thirty minutes of solitudeor how he managed to get Pigsy hurt due to negligence. Other than that, hehandled it well enough.

Youthink so? He scratches the back of his head, suddenly feeling bashful.This kid really needs more people to compliment him. I ruffle his hair.

Yeah,you saved everyone in the city all by yourself. You identified the problem,figured out a solution, and executed it without any help. It’simpressive. Mk practically preens at the praise, smile beaming.

Idid, didn't I? I can’t help the affection I feel for him, seeing howhappy the praise makes him. I hear Bai He’s breathing even and her heartbeatslow. I guess she really was tired after all. I hold her more securely in botharms again and she nuzzles into me in her sleep. Mk’s smile softens at thesight before shifting into something else.

What?I spoke in a hushed tone. He shakes his head.

Nothing.I guess I’m still not used to seeing you act all soft. I don’t know why BaiHe’s living with you, but I’m glad she is. We were all getting pretty worriedabout her before you took her in. I remembered how worn down shelooked by the time I reached out to her and thought about how energized sheseems to be now.

Icould tell. There’s a pause. Hey, are you sure you haven’tsaid anything to anyone Mk? I give him a pointed look. I could hearthe way his heart dropped when I asked.

Yep,I’m positive. He avoids my gaze when he says it.

Really?Not a single person, anything Imight want to know about? I lean into his space. His eyes dartedaround all over the place. I already had a good idea of what he’s done, but Ineeded to know exact details.

Uh,oh! Would you look at that I think I hear Pigsy calling me. Gotta get back towork on deliveries. I know you didn’t get to buy more of those pork buns youwanted. I can drop some off later. Okay bye! He runs off back to therestaurant. I was tempted to portal him back over here but seeing as I wasbound to see him again later, I let him go, for now. Besides, I wasn’t beingwatched at the moment so hopefully this was a onetime thing. If not, then I’dhave to have a talk with Mk. For now, all I wanted to do was go home and relaxwith my kids. Just to be safe, I portal home to keep from being easily followedhome.

Ihave to gently shush Pollux and Castor when we get back because they excitedlychirped and ran up to us as soon as they saw us. I chuckled at the two of thembeing slightly dejected by it. I coo at them, and they climb my body, ending upon either shoulder so they could peer down at the sleepy Bai He in my arms. Ibrought her to my room so I could set her down on the bed. She whines when we separatebut doesn’t wake up. The way her face scrunches up from it is adorable. I pather hair and move a stray strand of hair behind her ear and her face relaxesagain. For a split second I think I feel eyes on me again, but it’s gone tooquickly for me to really suss it out. I can’t think about it too long since myphone vibrates in my pocket, insistently. When I see who it is I nearly drop myphone, fumbling with it until Pollux catches it and hands it back to me. My furstands on end when she starts calling me. Castor chirps happily seeing hercontact pop up and answers it while I’m still frozen.

Mihou…I quickly walked out of the room, so as not to disturb Bai He slumber with thistalk.

H-heyTieshan, to what do I owe the pleasure?

Careto tell me why you haven’t told me about your apparent ‘redemption?’Her voice is dripping with judgment. Castor doesn’t seem to mind because hepurrs just at the sound of her. Meanwhile, my tail is already tucked between mylegs and my ears are all folded back.

Ihave no idea what you’re talking about.

Oh,and what about your upcoming visit with Jin and Yin? Do you know about that? I laugh nervously.

Uh-

Whyis it that you’re visiting Wukong’s troop and those two hoodlumsbefore even contacting me! I pull the phone further away from me.I never keep it to my ear for any conversation, let alone with Tieshan.

Wellto be fair, it’s not like I was with Wukong himself.I try toargue.

That’shardly any better and do you have a daughter now?I’mnow almost certain that Yin was the one that told her.

Shenot, ugh, it’s more complicated than that.

Ohplease, you said the same thing about those little monkeys of yours and nowlook at you. Introducing them as your sons to the gold and silver demons. Howlong are you going to wait before you introduce me to my niece Mihou?Already calling her, her niece huh? I shouldn’t even be surprised. She did thesame thing as soon as she met Castor and Pollux.

LookI don’t know, I’m still trying to deal with everything else going on rightnow. I sigh, flopping onto the couch, jostling the boys. I lay on myback and the two move to curl up together on my chest.

What’swrong? Her genuine concern makes my ears unfold.

Guh,where do I even begin! Raising so many kids is so exhausting and they’ve seen me unglamoured which is a whole otherthing. I look even worse than the last time you saw me. Half of my fur turnedwhite from the Lady Bone demon and now, get this, while I was teaching Bai Hehow to groom monkey fur she found out that the rest of my fur is coming inwhite again. The one good thing about coming back from the dead was my furnaturally coming in black and now that’s gone too. I sink furtherinto the couch. It felt good to finally get some of this stress off my chest,even if she does laugh at me at times.

Iwould say you coming back at all was a good thing, but this could be a goodsign Mihou. If your fur’s coming in white again then that means yourresurrection is complete. My ears twitch in confusion.

Whatdo you mean?

Mostof the time when someone gets resurrected, they come back looking the same waythey used to. I have a feeling that, that witchkept you from being completely resurrected to keep you better under her thumb.She probably could have killed you at any time that way. A shudderruns down my spine at the thought, even if I had an inkling the whole time thatshe could have done that, hearing her say it makes it feel too real.

Ihave been feeling more alive lately, so to speak. I curl in on myselfas much as I can without disturbing the boys.

Good,I’m glad. Now tell me, is Bai He the name of my new niece? I guess Idid mention her, didn't I?

Ifthat’s what you insist on calling her, then yes, it is. I canhelp but smile thinking about her.

Tellme about her. I hum, feeling full of fondness.

Okay.

Itold her all about how that reckless child had managed to crash into my life.About all the headaches she’s given me and how happy I am to have her around. Itold her how close she’d become with Castor and Pollux and how she visits allmy shows. How I’ve started training her and the boys and how much she hatesgetting up so early. About how she’s been steadily improving even if shedoesn’t see it. I told her all the sweet things she’d done for me today when wewent out to Pigsy’s and all the little cute moments of catching her and theboys together. All the sweet things she’s said to me and how I feel like I’mgoing soft because of how much I care about all of them and Tieshan reassuresme that it’s okay to care about them as much as I do.

Ifelt full of warm fuzzies by the time I ran out of things to say about her.Tieshan tells me to stop being a baby about being a dad now and stop secondguessing it. To be happy that I have the family that I wanted and live in themoment. Even if I think she’s right, I don’t want to get too attached just yet.We still don’t know if she’s going to be staying here after she tells everyoneabout her situation. A situation that I don’t elaborate on when she asks aboutit, telling her it’s not my place to say.

Ourphone call ends when Mk comes by with my food and she has to go to dinner withher family since they promised to spend more time together. Before I hang up,she makes me promise to check in with her more often and that she’d get to meether niece soon. It was nice to talk to her, even if it started with her yellingat me. The hard part was over now at least, and I was looking forward tospeaking with her again. It’d almost distracted me enough to forget abouthaving been watched earlier. The thought had left my mind entirely until I wokeup the next morning due to the feeling of those eyes on me, far closer than they had before.

Ah sh*t…

Chapter 7: Sun Wukong

Chapter Text

Wukong’s P.O.V. The previous day.

I was in the middle of meditating when Mk showed up for training. It was always nice having him here. The monkeys were nice, but it got so quiet here. The silence was felt even deeper after we had gotten back from our journey. Being surrounded by friendly voices and life got me feeling all nostalgic and sentimental. I hated it since it just made me sad so having the kid here helped. I’ve thought about coming down the mountain to talk with his group, he’s even invited me before, but I always tell him the same, maybe next time. It’s not that I don’t like them, it’s just, sometimes it hurt to be around them. Whether that be because they reminded me of times long past or because of the times I’ve failed them in the now depended on how I was feeling that day. They were happy together and they didn’t need me mucking that up. Besides, if I was feeling really lonely, I could just watch from afar with my gold vision.

Mk seemed anxious today for whatever reason. He was all fidgety, his motions less measured. I could tell that there was something on his mind blocking his focus. He was thrown off his rhythm faster than usual and was in a rush to leave today. He was practically inhaling the food we shared in the post-fight.

There's something wrong, Mk? I asked after he nearly chokes on a dumpling. He beats his chest coughing and I rub his back.

Hm! Oh, it’s nothing. He dismisses me. I put my arm around his shoulder jostling him and bringing him into a side hug.

Ah come on Bud; you can tell me. You were pretty off during training so it can’t be nothing. I grin. If there was something up with my student, then I wanted to know about it. He hesitates, leaning back a bit.

Well, it’s not a big deal. I just forgot that Macaque was coming by today and- My hold on Mk tightens.

You’re hanging around that guy again. I don’t bother hiding my displeasure at the idea. Sure, he helped out with the Lady Bone Demon, but that doesn't mean I'm not still mad about everything else he’s done. Even if it was nice fighting with him again.

Yeah, I mean I know he fought us before and everything, but I think he’s trying to make up for that. I pulled away from Mk so I could cross my arms, disapprovingly!

Yeah right. I grumble.

Come on, don't be like that. He’s been making a real effort to improve himself. We’ve been working on how he’s going to apologize to everyone, I mean he’s already apologized to me, so I think he’s being genuine. While I’m happy to hear he doesn’t seem to be up to something yet, I still hesitate to believe it. It’s been a while since anyone’s actually antagonized Mk, so he’s probably due. Plus, I can hardly fathom Macaque actually recognizing he was in the wrong for something.

Can I come? I want to see this for myself. Mk immediately puts up his hands as if to put the conversation on hold.

Oh, I don’t think he’s ready for that. He’s only prepared for everyone at Pigsy’s today and the last time you guys were together you argued with each other.

He started it! Mk gives me a look and I get the sense that I’m just proving his point on why I shouldn’t come. I can be civil. I could see he wasn’t buying it.

Hmm, even if you could, it’s not just about you two, Bai He put a lot of work into making sure Macaque would be comfortable and I’m pretty sure you coming would throw a wrench in things.

Isn’t that the kid that got possessed by the Lady Bone Demon? What does she care about him for?

Well he has been taking care of her. Mk sucks in a breath as if to take back his words.

What? Those two sound like a terribly suspicious combination. I would have thought he’d want nothing to do with even a reminder of her after everything he’d gone through.

Nothing! Don’t worry about it. He gets up, pulling out his staff. Look I’m already late, just promise you won’t do anything weird okay, bye! He uses the staff to propel himself off the mountain.

MK! The other end of the staff starts to recede, and he becomes a small speck in the sky. I groaned at not getting any answers from him before he ran off. I could easily catch up to him, but I’m pretty sure that would only make things worse.

I stare at the spot in the sky where he'd disappeared from my normal vision for a minute, stewing on what he said. He’d been hanging around Macaque again for who knows how long and apparently the hostess kid was with him. Why was he even taking care of her? Why did Mk regret telling me? What was his angle in all of this?

I looked over the city and used my gold vision to enhance my line of sight. It takes me a second to locate them, assuming they’d be at Pigsy’s if he was supposed to be meeting with everyone. I strain my eyes to peer inside and find Macaque in human disguise, being crowded by Tang, Mei, and Bai He. I knew how he felt about his looks, but did he really have to go as far as that? What were they even doing acting all chummy with him? They didn’t even act like that with him when we celebrated our victory over the Lady Bone Demon. I mean sure he was teased by Mei and Mk thanked him for helping them and Pigsy was still kind enough to feed him, but that was all beside the point.

I’m snapped out of my train of thought when we lock eyes, and he glares at me. At first, I told myself that it was just coincidence, but the longer he stares, the more I get the sense that he definitely knows. It hardly matters if he knows or not. I couldn’t just let him get away with doing something sneaky just because he knew I was watching. I had to make sure they were safe, at least until Mk had eyes on him. Then my mind would be at ease. Besides, his story about Red Boy seemed interesting enough. I was only around him as a kid for a very short time before…trapping his father, so I didn’t know a lot about the kid. From the way he talks about him he sounds adorable.

When Mk comes back, it takes some effort to actually look away from them like I told myself I would. I wanted to hear more about my feral nephew when he was little and not being a menace. To ease my feeling of disappointment I tend to the monkeys on the mountain, grooming their fur and letting them climb all over me and groom me in turn. Worry nags at the back of my mind, but I had to trust Mk’s judgment, even if I was skeptical. Besides, he’s handled himself well enough against Macaque before, so I’m sure if he is plotting something, he could take care of it.

That mindset lasted me about 15 minutes and before I knew it, I was crouched by the mountain’s cliff edge, activating my gold vision again. I barely caught the sight of him smiling so softly at Bai He as she practically skipped away to pet cats. I haven’t seen him smile like that since before I was trapped under that mountain. It was so sweet and genuine and…happy. My tail thumped lightly against the ground. It was a good look for him. Unfortunately, the look didn’t last, and he shoots me another look before waving at Sandy. I couldn’t help but laugh at the way he reacts to Pigsy’s teasing. His blush was always so cute. Too bad he hides his face from me.

I know Pigsy confronts him on his human disguise, and I know it doesn’t make him drop his disguise. I wish I knew what he said in response. He always had a problem with showing his true appearance, long before he even met me, and he never gave me a straight answer as to why. Only saying things like he didn’t like his ears or that he preferred his fur in black. Even when we were close there were just some things, he wasn’t ever ready to talk about. I wonder if he ever did tell anyone the real reason?

I watched him socialize with the others for who knows how long, enjoying the way they seemed to actually be getting along. As it went on, I was hit with waves of nostalgia. I missed watching the plays he put on for the other monkeys on the mountain. He was always so animated and expressive with his storytelling. I missed the way his ears would flap, and his tail would wag when he was really excited. It was so adorable, and he’d get really self-conscious about it when someone pointed it out. Even when he’s leaving the shop he takes a bow, and I could see him so clearly in the way he used to look, and I scoff at myself for seeing him that way. The way that he holds Bai He only reinforces that old image of him, and I have to look away before the sweet feeling turns sour.

I sit cross legged on that cliff, holding my head in my hands. I close my eyes and all I can see is his smiling face, as he tended to the little ones on the mountain. I slap myself to see if I could knock the image out of my brain. When that doesn’t work, I try to remind myself of how things are now. Macaque was a manipulative ass, who only ever smiles in smirks and mischievous grins, who would only laugh in snickers and scoffs. At least whenever I was involved that’s what he was like. He seemed pretty genuine just now, and I didn’t even have an inkling that he was up to something. I don’t know for sure that it’s not all a trick, and I don’t know if I’d rather it was or not. Of course, I’d love it if I never had to worry about him hurting someone I care about again. If he could be happy like this then that’s great, but there’s a part of me deep down that knows that it would hurt too much to think he’d want nothing to do with me. That he’d find happiness and never bother trying or even wanting to fix things with me.

I wonder if we're both just waiting for the other to make the first move or we’re even considering it possible to be close again after everything that’s happened. I pick my head up out of my hands to look at the city again. I find where I last saw him and sweep my eyes across the city in search of just a glimpse of him. I see him, for a fraction of a second, tenderly caring for Bai He with two small monkeys on his shoulder. The moment feels too personal, which is why I look away so fast. I wonder where those monkeys came from? Were they his? Did he find a mate to couple with? Even from that brief glimpse I could tell they had his power coursing through them, weirdly all of them did, and that they were covered in heavy glamours. Did he give them his powers or were the little ones born with them? More than that, why did I sense there was more than just his powers in all of them? Curious, I astral projected to Mk, figuring if he knew more and tried to hide it, I’d see it on his face.

Hey Bud. I greet him. I was pretty sure he was driving from his seated position and the way his arms move like he’s swerving. He shouts in surprise and only stops when I assume he’s corrected his driving.

Monkey King! He looks at me and I assume that I appeared to him in his seat next to him.

Eyes on the road Bud. Mk turns to face forward, but frequently glances at me.

What are you doing here?

Oh, nothing too big. How’d everything go with you know who? I act as casually as possible about it. It must have been convincing because his smile was beaming.

Great! He was pretty anxious about it, but I think he made a good impression. I think Mr. Tang wants to start seeing his shows with Bai He after hearing him talk about Chang’e. Mei was texting Red Son, teasing him about how cute he was as a kid. I think they were planning on talking about sharing baby pictures in exchange for more current embarrassing photos. I’m a little worried about that friendship, but at least they’re bonding, I guess. Sandy was always very open about everything, Pigsy was pretty unhappy about it, but he promised to be civil. I’m really happy that he’s more okay with him being around now. I don’t know when he’ll come back to the shop since he seemed pretty drained by the whole experience. I’m just glad he did it. Mk’s posture relaxed as he went on. He takes another glance at me, this one lingering for a few moments longer. You know I can talk to him for you if you wanna try and patch things up. I know you guys used to be close. I force myself to laugh the idea off.

Who told you that? He gives me a skeptical look.

He did, says you guys were beloved friends. I choke on air at the phrase. Plus it’s kind of obvious that you’ve got some kind of history together. You’re arguing always feels pretty personal. He says it all so easily and I feel like I’m being accused of a crime.

When did this happen?! Mk shrugs.

The first time he said it was when you were away on ‘vacation’ and the other time was during one of his plays.

You ran into him while I was gone! Mk doesn’t immediately answer. I think he’s probably making one of his deliveries from the way he stands, and a bag of noodles appears to me in his hands. It doesn't take long for him to return to his cart.

Yeah, a lot of stuff happened while you were gone. Macaque’s shadow play, that dumpling that fell from the sky, Pigsy’s ping pong table fiasco, I got cursed with hiccups, Jin and Yin making a rival restaurant that challenged us to a food war, all the stuff with the spiders. Macaque actually complimented me today on how I handled myself the first day you left. Mk preens at the memory. I didn’t realize how much he had to deal without me. I knew about what happened with the Lady Bone demon, but everything else was new to me. I couldn’t tell if he had just processed it all really well, or if he’s hiding how he feels like I would.

Wow, I really missed a lot while I was gone huh? I felt guilty about how much I left up to him, even if he is my successor. At the same time, I was proud of him for how much he’d grown on his own. When did you start calling the gold and silver demons by name? Mk’s eyebrows raise in mild surprise.

Huh, I didn’t even notice. It’s probably because of how much I’ve heard about them from Macaque, and Bai He stories.

Have you been hanging out with Macaque behind my back this whole time? I watched him tense at that, a nervous smile formed on his face.

It’s only been a few weeks. He admits, but it doesn’t make me any happier.

You’ve been hiding this from me for weeks! I scold him, and he gives me a look.

You’ve hid plenty of stuff from us just this year and it’s not like I was hiding it for him. I feel like I take physical damage from that. He’s not wrong and I know that, but it still stung having him call me out like that.

I’m sorry, I was trying to protect you and it all went terribly okay! Mk laughs at how defensive I get.

I know. The situation with him is complicated. I don’t even know all the details, but I know he’s trying, and they’ll tell me when they’re ready. I assume he stops the cart again. This time he walks for much longer. More bags appear in his hands too.

Seeing all that food is making me hungry. My stomach growls. The peaches were not enough.

I can come by after this with noodles if you want. While I think it over as he makes his delivery. Any thought about that leaves my mind when he says. Hey Macaque! Got your order. He lifts the food higher in his arms to emphasize his point. I wish I could hear what he was saying like this so I wouldn’t be stuck listening to half of a conversation because I could clearly tell that Mk was allowed inside. I can’t stay long, I’ve got a few more deliveries after this. I watch him look around wherever he is as he sets down the food which promptly disappears from my sight. Where’s Bai He? Mk opens his arms, and a small figure appears in them. It was one of the small monkeys I’d seen earlier. It chirped adorably at Mk, tail loosely curling around his arm. Now that I got a better look at them, I could see some of the resemblance to Macaque, but I still couldn’t see through their glamour. I couldn’t get a better read on their powers like this either. I could tell that they were well cared for at least. Their fur looked so clean and fluffy. A part of me was always jealous of how good Macaque was at grooming himself and others. I'm surprised when the little guy looks directly at me. They tilt their head curiously and I copy the movement. I smile and wave at them.

Hey there little one. I whisper to ensure that Macaque won't hear me. Hopefully, he was too distracted by Mk to focus on hearing anything else going on. The little monkey cub chirps in response and I chirp back. I tense up when they try to jump toward me and move to catch them as if I could do anything. Luckily, Mk managed to catch them, and we shared a nervous laugh. He either hands the little cub over to Macaque or sets him down. Before they disappear, they give me one last look and a chirp. I’m not sure if they heard me respond before they’re gone.

I should probably head out. I’ll text you tomorrow okay, tell Bai He I said hi! He walks out of his home, or at least I thought he did, but he stops to look over his shoulder with a guilty look. Of course I’m sure I haven’t told anyone about this, you know that! Anyways goodnight, bye! He speeds away, at some point making a rapid poking motion before letting out a sigh of relief. He looks over at me and squints. Hey, you haven’t done anything weird right? He already sounds suspicious of me.

I stayed away from him and the restaurant just like you wanted. I’m innocent. He hummed to himself, considering my words.

True, but you’re the only person I told about him taking care of Bai He. Maybe he was just testing me.He tells himself. I don’t know why it’s even a secret though. If he was genuinely just looking after the kid, then why feel the need to hide it? Then there were those cubs. They didn’t look that old. Definitely not newborns, but maybe juveniles? It was hard to tell, especially since I had no idea what they really looked like. They looked like ordinary monkeys, but if they were his, then that’d be a whole other story.

See! My good name is in the clear and since that settled, what’s up with that baby monkey I saw? I have to make sure he doesn’t know I’m aware there’s two of them.

Oh, I don’t think I’m supposed to tell you about that either.

Come on, I already saw them, I have to make sure he didn’t take them from the mountain or something just as devious. I lean into his space, phasing through him slightly. I can see the gears turning in his head as he mulls it over.

I don’t really know where they came from honestly. He says they’re adopted, but never says anything more about it. Oh, but their name is Castor by the way. That doesn’t help me much.

Well that isn’t suspicious. I grumble and Mk shrugs.

You could always ask yourself one day. If you ever want to fix things with him. I know you kind of dodged the question earlier. He faces me fully and I assume he’s gotten back to his cart because he’s seated again. I hug myself as I’m confronted with the idea again. I must look pretty anxious because he tacks on. You don’t have to decide now. I know you still don’t trust him. But I want to. There’re still some things I have to figure out before I can even begin to believe that he’s trying to change, to move on.

I’ll think about it. I stand up and dust myself off. Good luck with the deliveries, night Mk.

You didn’t want me to come by later? He looks up at me from his seated position.

Nah, it’s fine. I’ve got some things to attend to tonight. Later Bud.

Night Monkey King. I shut my eyes and let out a deep sigh. When I open them again, he’s astral projection is gone. I stared at the spot his image was for a while, wondering if I should have told him the truth that I had spied on them. I think I heard something about Mei spying on them all the time before so maybe he would have taken it well. I even spied on the kid before and admitted to it, so I knew he probably would’ve gotten over it at least.

I left my spot to head to the peach grove again. I lounged in one of the trees as I stuffed my mouth full of peach to sate my hunger, pits, and all. Once I had my fill, I patrolled my mountain to ensure the safety of its inhabitants before I left. I hadn’t planned on being gone long, but all the peace and quiet the last few months have left me on edge, just waiting for thinking to inevitably go wrong. When I was sure that there were no threats on the mountain I set off on my cloud to the city.

It took me no time at all to get there. I ditched my cloud as soon as I got to the edge of the city and transformed myself into a bird. I knew it was harder for him to notice me when I transformed and that I could use that to my advantage. I vaguely remembered where I’d seen his home, despite how brief my glimpse of it was. It did take me a while to actually locate it though. When I got to the familiar area, I made myself even smaller and transformed into a butterfly. I fluttered about looking for the building knowing that I couldn’t just use my gold vision again. He’d know that I was watching him before, and I didn’t want to raise any suspicion on this mission. I was reserving my use of gold vision until I was close enough to see for sure what was going on with those monkeys and that kid. I tell myself that it’s to ensure their safety even if I knew deep down a part of me is just being paranoid. Knew that despite what stories have said, Macaque wouldn’t hurt those baby monkeys and that he wouldn’t hurt Bai He either. Knew that if it didn’t concern me then he could be good. Even knowing that there was another part of me that couldn’t shake the weird sense I got from seeing their powers.

He was being secretive about so much surrounding them that I had to know. What was so important that he felt the need to hide it from everyone, from Mk? Was something horrible going on with them? Had something else horrible already happened to them? My curiosity and worry were nagging at me to find out.

I came across the building I recalled seeing and I’m positive that it’s the right place. I could already sense his energy emanating from the place. I followed the feeling as it got stronger and stronger. I find a window along the outside of the building when it feels the strongest and land on the glass. Unfortunately, the curtains were closed, so was the window, so I couldn’t see inside without using my gold vision. Weighing my options, I chose to wait a bit until I was sure he’d be asleep. It had already taken a while to get here and taking into account the time it took me to leave the mountain, I figured another hour would be good enough.

In the meantime I fluttered up to the roof and took in the surrounding area. There were only a few other apartment complexes in the area with most of the other buildings being businesses of some kind, from what I could tell. The place he was staying at wasn’t particularly tall and didn’t provide a good vantage point compared to some of the others that surround it. Not that the other complexes were much taller, with only two or three more floors than this one. It was hard to picture him actually living here. Even at night the city could be pretty loud to someone with normal hearing. I could only imagine how grating it must be on his sensitive ears. Everything from a pin dropping to the thunderous clanging of construction was amplified from miles away. I knew he could hear everything that happened in the city, from any point in the city easily with those ears without trying to listen. It wasn’t a power he could turn off; it was a passive ability that was hard enough for him to live with on the relatively quiet mountain. A noisy city must be hell.

The hour passed by at a snail's pace. All I could think of was him and those kids. I didn’t know what to expect or what I wanted to see. I flutter down and land on the glass of his window again. I have to hype myself up before I took a peek inside. I sat there for a few minutes before I finally looked inside. I let out a quiet gasp at the sight.

Apparently the window led into his bedroom and there he was, unglamoured curled up with the kids. I hadn’t seen him like that in so long I had almost forgotten what he looked like. Of course, he was different now. Only part of his fur was white now, though I could clearly see that it was growing in white now. Speaking of his fur had gotten longer since the last time I’d seen him. He usually liked to keep it short, though I do remember the few times he’d grown it out and how much he’d complained about how long grooming it took. Although, I think he’d only say that, so I’d offer to help.

Then there were his scars. Though most of him was covered by his pajamas, there were some still visible. The one that drew my attention the most was the one on his right brow. It wasn’t as big as it used to be. The last time I’d seen it was right after he…when it was still fresh. I had thought that it was still the same size since his shadow kaiju always appeared with it as prominently as it had been that day. While I still felt guilty just looking at it, I was happy to see that it was healing, albeit very slowly for an immortal being.

My eyes are drawn to the movement of his ears flicking in his sleep. God, it had been too long since I saw those adorable ears of his. They were so much more expressive than other monkeys. They would flap when he was excited or happy, flutter when he was shy or nervous, flare out when he was mad, fold down when he was sad or scared, flick when he was annoyed or anxious. Sometimes they even glow when he was consumed or overwhelmed by an emotion. Usually that would happen when he was embarrassed by some calling him out for how cute he was. That someone was usually me.

He shifts, and I press closer to the glass because even after all this time I still recognize that shift before he does my favorite thing. His body arches as each ear wiggles one by one, starting with his top right ear and ending on his bottom left, each ear dimly glowing before they all wiggle and glow together. I was so distracted by the sight of him that I’d forgotten to look at the others odd powers. I’d also forgotten that the act I’d watched was the process of him waking up. I hadn’t even noticed that, despite the fact he hadn’t moved to get up, that his ears flicked and twitched as if searching for something. I only realized he was awake when a shadow portal opened up beneath my feet and pulled me in.

Macaque’s P.O.V.

When I woke up feeling those eyes on me, I wanted to scream. I’d put up with it when we were at Pigsy’s because I didn’t want to cause a scene or worry Bai He but watching me in my home was crossing a line. I had to calm myself down and clear my head. He was obviously closer now so finding him would be easy enough. I try to relax and listen to my surroundings, straining my ears to hear more to better hear all the minute sounds beyond my walls. It took me longer than I’d like to admit to hear the familiar beating of his heart just outside my window.

I simultaneously dip into the shadows and replace myself with a shadow clone. I open a portal underneath him and bring us both to the roof. It was still dark out and I hoped that this would get settled before the kids woke up. As soon as we both emerged on the roof, I watched him transform from a butterfly into his usual form in a puff of golden smoke on the ground and I threw on a quick glamour. I crossed my arms and glared down at him.

Wukong. There’s a pause where he looks up at me like a deer in headlights before he pops up to his feet and slips into his lax persona.

Hey Macaque I was just in the neighborhood and I-

What do you want? I wasn’t in the mood to listen to whatever bullsh*t reason he was going to give for being here.

Huh?

You only ever acknowledge my existence when you think I’m a problem, so what the hell do you want? I growled out at him. There’s a second where he seemed thrown off by my accusation and it just riles me up that he had the gall to act surprised by my behavior for a single second. His eyes dart around, and hands make vague gestures as he searches for something to say. When he eventually meets my eyes his whole-body sags with a deep sigh.

Well, Mk told me you guys have been getting pretty close lately and you don’t have the best track record so I thought I’d make sure you weren’t up to something shady. Ugh, I feel like my eyes just rolled into the back of my head.

So you spied on me in my home in the middle of the night? You know you really are the same old Wukong. Still creeping around just to get a look at me with my guard down. He sputters, letting out an offended and turns a deep shade of red.

Would you let that go already! You know that wasn’t my intention and besides you threw sand in my eyes! I managed to crack a smirk at his reaction.

Never, it always gets a rise out of you when nothing else does and you totally deserved it. Plus, now you’re worse than ever. Peeping on me and my kids is a new low. I shake my head in disappointment. I slip into my usual mask of nonchalant condensation.

That’s not, I didn’t mean-

How did you even find out where I lived? Did you follow me home from Pigsy’s? I gasp in mock surprise. He’s growling and his face was steaming red. I hadn’t seen him worked up like this in a long time. I had to admit I kind of missed it.

No I just- He lets out another sigh as he recollects himself. Look, I just wanted to make sure you weren’t up to anything-

In the middle of the night. He glares at me.

Hey scheming at night is very on brand for you!

Is it though? Because almost every time I attacked you guys it was the middle of the day. It only ever got dark because of my powers. He looked like was going to argue more, but I could tell he had to think about what I said for a moment. I could see when he realized I was right and retracted whatever he was planning to say.

Anyways the only thing suspicious about you are those kids of yours. Since when did you have kids and why do they all have your powers? My fur stands on end. I was hoping he wouldn't bring them into this.

You can be suspicious of me and spy on me all you like, but you do not bring them into this. They have nothing to do with anything I’ve done, got it? I growled at him and put his hands up in defense.

Woah, didn’t realize that’d be a touchy subject for you. I want to yell at him more but, my clone tells me the kids will wake up soon. I groan and rub my eyes. I have to wrap this up quickly.

Look, if you’re that worried about Mk and keeping an eye on me, then there are better ways to do it. I don’t want you watching my kids in the place where they feel safe. Not that I want you watching them at all. I don’t spend all my time here. I have a job, a dojo, I go out shopping, out with friends, you don’t have to watch me in my home! You probably could have just asked Mk if you could tag along for any of that, but I guess you thought it'd just be easier to watch me from on high than actually talk to me.

I did ask.

Huh? I swear my ears must be playing tricks on me. There’s no way he’d want to be anywhere near me.

I did ask, but he didn’t trust enough to act civil and something about Bai He, I don’t know, he didn’t really get to explain that before he left the mountain.

What did he say?

Well, don’t get mad at him, but he did say that you’ve been taking care of her and that got me curious and then things kind of snowballed into, uh…this. He widely gestures to everything around us. This guy is just so-

You’re so stupid.

Hey!

There were so many other steps you could have taken. I can’t help but start to laugh at the fool in front of me. I wonder why his heartbeat spikes at it. Maybe he’s just embarrassed at being made fun of. Ah, okay, I have to get back to those kids before they wake up and start to worry. If you want to pick this up later just as Mk where I’m at. He’s got my number. I slip into the shadows and take the place of my clone just as the kids started waking up. I’m thankful that I don’t have to wait to get up or try to go back to sleep at the moment. I needed all the distractions I could get after talking with him of all people.

Wukong’s P.O.V.

Wait, wait, and he’s gone. Great. That could have gone better. I didn't get to see anything that I wanted and I’m sure he’d just come up here again if I tried to look at those kids' powers again with my gold vision. Although I was still fairly close, so I do have another idea.

I found a spot on the roof that was right above his apartment to sit and concentrate. I let myself feel everything around me. The wind on my face, the cold, rough texture of the roof below me, the smell of stale city air and the fair smell of mangoes left behind by Macaque. I feel his power where he’d left and all throughout his apartment. I feel the faint traces of something familiar being cloaked by him again. I try to follow the sensation and feel a sense of dread wash over me. I could feel that unmistakable chill of her powers within her old host, but possibly more unbelievable, I could feel a small semblance of my own power underneath the thick shadowy cloak from both of the small monkeys.

I snap out of my trance and try to rationalize it all. Bai He I could understand to some extent still having a part of her lingering inside of her. She had left us all with a reminder of her presence, even me, but those kids. I knew Macaque had stolen Mk’s powers at one point, but I don’t think he can freely give that to others. They do seem like a diluted version of my powers though so maybe he can? But if that were the case, then why doesn’t Bai He show any signs of them? Maybe I could just ask Macaque. He did just give me an open invitation to bug him again, whether he meant it or not. Hmm…

I stood and dusted myself off. If I wanted to get more out of him, then the first thing I had to do was find Mk. I’d probably have a lot to explain if I wanted to convince him that Macaque had actually given me permission to bother him. He’s not going to be happy hearing how I got said permission, but maybe he’ll overlook it if I tell I want to patch things up like he suggested. Yeah, I’m sure that’ll work.

It did not…

Mk chewed me out for 5 minutes after getting confirmation from Macaque that everything I said was true, which, hurtful, but he did end up giving me Macaque’s usual schedule and gave me an oven invite to tag along whenever they hung out outside of his home so I still counted it as a win.

Chapter 8: A Rocky Evening

Chapter Text

Okay I’ll be honest. When I told him we could pick this up later, I hadn’t expected to see him at my show with Tang, Mk and Bai He. I’d heard them come in when they showed up, but I thought my ears were playing tricks on me when I heard his voice, but there he was, terrible disguise and all. Was it really that hard for the literal shapeshifter to use a human disguise? A hoodie and sunglasses don’treally hide much.

Theywere seated in Bai He’s usual row, 4 rows from the stage, and she did not lookpleased. Wukong sat on the far left next to Mk and Bai He was on the far rightnext to Tang. She glared at Wukong from around Tang and wasn’t even trying tobe subtle about it. Not that they paid her any mind. Tang and Mk were too busychatting about what concession to get while Wukong sat quietly and visiblyuncomfortable. What was he even doing here? I mean I heard him talking to Mk earlier,so I know why he’s here, but why is he here? It’s not like I’m going to talk to him with them around,least of all Bai He. He has to know that right? He’s not tone deaf, and I can’timagine him wanting to actually talk to me, so was he just keeping an eye onme? No, that doesn’t make any sense either. He wanted to keep an eye on me, hewould have just stayed on his mountain so he wouldn’t have to deal with me,but he did say he wanted to come toPigsy’s yesterday so that’s not entirely true. Maybe he just wanted an excuseto get off the mountain and hang out with Mk. Hmm, I guess that made enoughsense for now.

Whatever,I didn’t have time to think about that right now. I had a show to put on and Ididn’t need him clouding my mind. The theater darkens and I poof onto stageready to tell the story of how the lost warrior came to work under the princessof wind. How, in one of the warrior's lowest points, the colorful twins reachedout to the princess to give him stability, safety, and purpose that they knewthe warrior needed. How the warrior became the princess’s personal bodyguard.How the title alone kept the warrior safe from demons trying to kidnap them.How no threat could reach either of them in their time together. How theprincess brought the warrior peace of mind and comfort in being themself. Howthe warrior encouraged the princess to embrace their abrasive personality andpursue their love for the bovine king.

Theshow ends on the warrior leaving the princess’s care when she and the bovinekind started courting one another. It’s a bittersweet memory of having to leavethat comfort, but I was happy that she was living the life she wanted forherself. Now, in hindsight, I probably could have stayed if it weren’t for myown insecurities, but there was nothing for it now. I should really go seeher.

Asthe audience was clearing out their little group came up to me. Mk made sure tokeep Tang reeled in enough to at least understand my personal space. Not thathe had much of a chance to badger me before Bai He rushed up to me and draggedme away to talk, still clearly annoyed. I let her drag me backstage and shechecked real quick to see if any of them had followed before speaking in ahushed tone.

Whydidn’t you tell me he was watching us? Oh that’s why she’s mad.

Whatdo you mean? She huffs at me.

WhenI went to Pigsy's, Wukong was there, and Mk had said ‘I still can’t believe youstalked Macaque.’ How long was he watching us for? She scolded me,but I could tell she was tense. It doesn’t feel good to be watched and sheprobably feels creeped out and uncomfortable. I got down on her level and gavea long sigh.

Asfar as I know, he only started yesterday when we were at Pigsy’s, and I caughthim doing it again this morning. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you toworry. I’m still trying to figure out why he did it. Are you okay?She was still clearly upset, but I noticed her heart rate change when I toldher. It sounded almost panicked.

Areyou lying? Alarm bells started ringing in my head.

No,why? Did something happen? She locked up for a second, then she tooka deep breath and her whole demeanor changed to a false relaxed state. It waslike when she’d first moved in. How she’d pretended to be okay after she’dcried in the shower.

No,it’s nothing. I’m okay. I’m just a little paranoid after everything thathappened with her. Her heart is still racing,and she obviously didn’t want to keep talking about this.

BaiHe-

It’snothing I promise. If something actually happensI’ll tell you, okay? I ground my teeth. I wanted to say something toget her to talk about this, but I knew she’d try to dodge the question again.Ideas swarmed through my brain, and I landed on one that would work fornow.

Ifyou want, I could find a therapist for you. I know Red Son started seeing onethat he recommended after their own LBD fiasco. I know there’s plenty I don’tfeel comfortable telling people I know so it might help. I suggested,and she gave me a skeptical look. That’s good since her heartbeat slows alittle.

Whatare you not comfortable telling people?She says it with so much judgment that I’m honestly a little offended.

Plenty.Do you have any idea how much you know about me that I don’t tell anyoneelse? She’s seen me without my glamour, met Castor and Pollux, liveswith me, and she’s going to meet Jin and Yin and Tieshan. Who knows what kindof things they’ll tell her.

What,like how you’re actually nice? I shoot her a side-eyed look and shegrins.

No,but I’m serious, Bai He. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, but if something’sgoing you don’t have to handle it on your own. She sighed and gave mea small smile.

I’llthink about it. I give her a smile of my own.

Good,that’s all I can ask. Now come on, the others are waiting, and I think they’regetting antsy. I whispered the last bit teasingly and it made hersmile grow. She insisted on holding my hand when we walked out, and I had nocomplaints.

Whenwe regrouped with the others, they politely took a moment to ask if everythingwas alright before Tang rushed into my personal space to ask rapidfire questions that were overly personal to me. There was no way I was going totell him why I was at one of my lowest points atthe time or anything I was doing before I was employed by Tieshan. I’d justgotten out of a work contract, and it did notend well.

Idecided to just explain how work contracts worked though. So long as a demonhad a work contract active, if anyone wanted to court them, they’d have to askfor permission from their employer. The tradition was a little outdated, but itkept more old-fashioned demons away. I told them how I currently had a contractwith the owner of the theater and I had anextra layer of protection because I was recognized as a member of the demonbull clan so they’d also have to ask them for permission, because not doing sowould be seen as a slight to their clan and warrant retaliation. Even withthose safety nets there were some opportunistic demons that thought they couldskip all that and try to catch me off guard. Tang took everything in with anodd morbid curiosity and I told him that if he’d wanted more details, he’d haveto catch me when the kids weren’t around.

Rightnow I had some grocery shopping to do. I’d hoped that would’ve made them loseinterest, but they all followed us. I had to tell Tang to keep all thequestions about demon culture to a minimum to avoid drawing attention to me andI just glamoured Wukong myself to have a more convincing human disguise. He wasvery unhappy about it, but I paid him no mind. We already draw more attentionin a bigger group and Mk being around is always bound to bring more demon eyesto us. I explained all of this to them so they can fully grasp how serious I amabout this being an issue. Thankfully, they understood, but Wukong was beingpouty about it. I snickered at him, and we argued about each other’s presenceuntil I felt people starting to stare. Then I just ignored him entirely.

Whenwe got to the market, I wordlessly texted Bai He a list of things we needed andasked her if there was anything she wanted me to get for us. We split up intotwo groups, MK and Bai He went off together to get the basic household thingswe needed while Wukong, Tang, and I got all the ingredients I’d need to preparefor the picnic I was having with Jin and Yin soon.

Sincewhen were you friends with those two? The question made me roll myeyes. He sounded so dumbfounded by the idea and it annoyed the heck out of me.I made sure that Tang didn’t hear my reply.

OhI don’t know for about 600 years or so. It was only a couple of months after Iwas revived. I give him a pointed glare that momentarily shuts himup.

Duringour shopping trip Tang shared how shopping like this usually went with Pigsy.How they’d spend hours going from stall to stall and hardly have anything. Hetells us that no matter how many times he’s gone shopping with him, everythingstill looks the same to him. I told him how I’d gone through a similarexperience with Chang’e when she asked me to help pick fruits and vegetablesfrom her garden.

Wukongjust trailed behind us, pouting. I could hear him making vague sounds ofinterest and his stomach growling as we walked by a certain food stall. Whenthe sounds got further away, I turned to look at him and he was gone. I debatedleaving him to his own devices, but if we regrouped and he wasn’t with us I’msure Mk would have questions. That and Tang seemed worried about him gettinginto trouble, which just made me want to roll my eyes again. He was a near allpowerful monkey. If something happened, he’d be fine, he wasn’t a child. I’veheard him come into town before by himself…but I also heard what he was likewhen they were gathering the rings of the samadhi fire so I knew he could bepretty lackadaisical and foolish at times, even around other people…ugh fine!

Itwas later in the day so there weren’t as many people crowding the streets. Itmade it easier to track the sound of his heartbeat to place where he was. Itook Tang’s wrist and practically dragged him to where I heard that dingussalivating. I spotted him in front of a roasted vegetable stand, and I had toadmit it did smell really good. I whistled at him to catch his attention andhis head snapped to look at us with wide eyes. I just shook my headdisapprovingly at him.

Hey,don’t judge me! I rolled my eyes.

Toolate for that. I grumbled under my breath. He growled at me, and Icould hear Tang’s worried heart before he had to say anything. I sighed, I can’t believe I have to keep the peace with thisguy. If I buyyou some food would that keep you from wandering off? That piqued hisinterest. His whole body perked up in an instant. He quickly tried to cover forhis clear excitement at the idea by forcing himself into a nonchalantstance.

...Imake no promises, but it might help. I snorted at his behavior.What? He got defensive, but I waved him off, grinning.

Nothing.I ordered four servings of assorted roasted vegetables. One for him, anotherfor Tang, and the other two for Bai he and the boys to try later. If neither ofthem liked it then I’d just eat what they didn’t, but if they did I’d figureout something else for myself when I got home. That being said I did add a fewmore vegetable items to my shopping list because of this little stop.

Thankfully,feeding him kept him satisfied enough to stay with us. When he was finishedeating, I promised him that we’d go to a sweets shop after we were doneshopping and that made him behave for the rest of the trip. Although behave wasa bit of a stretch because he and Tang would not so subtly ask me to buy themmore food from other stalls, which I shutdown every time. When Bai He texts meto say they were done, I decided to get the last things I needed later. Weregrouped at Midnight Roast, and I could tell that the two of them had boughtmore than what I’d told them to, considering they held a bag that had theprominent logo of a toy shop on it. I gave the bag a questioning look beforelooking at them both. Bai He smiled innocently at me, and Mk avoided making eyecontact. I shrugged and walked into an empty alley to portal everything home.I’d find out soon enough what the two just hadto get from a toy store of all places when I got home.

Icould hear that while I was portalling everything home, Bai He had led theminside of the dessert shop and introduced them to the owner. By the time Ijoined them she’d already placed our usual order and the others were stilldeciding. I told the owner that I’d be paying for everyone, and I apologizedfor not giving him a heads up that I’d be coming with a larger group today. Notthat he seemed to mind too much since it wasn’t really busy right now andhe’d already met Mk.

Withthe knowledge that I’d be paying, the three of them got over their indecisionand ordered an abundance of food, Tang getting extra for Pigsy. I’d be annoyedif I didn’t find a bit of humor in the situation. It reminded me of when I’dfirst brought Bai He here and the sheer amount of excitement she’d had thatday. Speaking of Bai He, she seemed more relaxed than she had been when we’dleft the theater.

How’reyou feeling? I asked in a whisper while they were still going overwhat they wanted. She sighed and drummed her fingers against the table.

I’mokay. I talked to Mk about it, and he said he only learned, you know,then so he probably wasn’t watching us before. Like I said, I think I’m justparanoid. Ever since I left the home it always felt like people were staring atme so when I heard about what happened with Wukong I freaked out. I’msorry. She put her hands together and leaned closer to the table,averting her eyes. I gently petted her head.

Youdon’t have to apologize for anything. I’m sorry you felt that way and I’m sorryI didn’t tell you sooner. If you want, we can talk more about this later whenthey’re not around. I looked at the three tagalongs without turningmy head and caught Wukong staring. He was probably eavesdropping, but this timeI don’t mind. I was worried about what Bai He told me since there was alwaysthe possibility that she really is being watched and it might be good to askhim to get confirmation. I know I’ve never heard anyone stalking around whenI’m with her, but if someone had a silence charm orspell, then they could effectively hide from me.

Okay.I patted her head twice and stood up. The others had finished ordering and Ihad to pay for their sweet feast. I helped carry whatever treats were alreadydone to the table and quietly thanked the owner for putting up with this. Theyonly nodded and smiled as the shop filled with eating and chatter.

Somehow,I’d ended up seated next to Wukong at the round table. I sat on Bai He’s left,Mk on her right, Tang sat next to Mk, leaving Wukong to sit between us. Weshoot each other a glance and grimace, getting various reactions, ranging fromconcern to amusem*nt, from everyone else at the table. I turned my body awayfrom him and busy myself with my hot chocolate to keep myself from sayinganything. He does the same and rapidly stuffs his face with tarts and sweetbuns.

So,when are you having your picnic? Tang asked through a mouth full ofmarble cake.

Threedays from now. We’re having it at the flower garden I go to sometimes, butwe’re meeting at my place first.

Ooo,that sounds nice, which one?

Ican’t remember the name, but it’s by the water and has a massive gazebo withvines and flowers growing on the roof of it. Sometimes I wouldtransform into a cat and curl up in one of the flower fields or under one ofthe tables in the gazebo. It was always pretty quiet there, not that itobstructed any of the noise from the rest of the city, but it was still nice.I’d even brought Castor and Pollux there before in human disguises. They lovedplaying in the flowers together. It was adorable.

Gotany pictures?

Ithink I’ve got a couple, give me a sec. I took out my phone and BaiHe scooted her chair closer so she could rest her head against my arm so shecould see my phone. I didn’t mind, my gallery consisted mostly of landscapepictures, some rehearsal videos, me in costumes I’ve acquired over the years,and me outside of theaters I’ve visited. She leaned over and scrolled back upon my phone and stopped on a familiar pair of pictures. She gives me a weirdlook that I don’t acknowledge, and I went back to scrolling down.

Whatwas that about? I’m offended by the disgust in her voice.

Ugh,they just like us looking like a matched set. I hate that outfit, it’suncomfortable.

Arethey going to wear that at the picnic?

Iasked them to keep a low profile, so we’ll see. She’s still grimacingat me.

Youdon’t have to meet them. I grumbled outthe side of my mouth.

OhI’m gonna, I have so many questions. She grinned, and Ishook my head affectionately.

You’regoing with them Bai He? Tang asked her. She half chirped in surprisethen beamed in excitement, nodding.

Uhhuh! I can’t wait to see what they’re like. They sound so interesting andreally weird, but Mr. Macaque always talks about them so fondly that I’m reallycurious about them. She went on to enthusiastically retell all themany stories she’d heard about them to Tang who nods along to everything shesays. Every so often one of the three would butt in with a question that shecould usually answer by herself, but sometimes she’d have to look to me foreither confirmation or the answer itself. The only times she pauses is to eatmore dessert, barely even stopping to do that. I worried that she might choke,but clearly, she wasn’t concerned in the least.

Wespent the rest of our time at Midnight Roast exchanging stories. Bai He kepttalking about my experiences with Jin and Yin, Mk and Tang talked about theirown experiences with the demon twins, and Wukong snuck bites of food fromeveryone. Mostly from Mk and Tang since anytime he came for our food, I swattedat him. I’d already known about the times those two tried to mess with Mk andhonestly, I thought that they’d had some pretty good ideas, if a bitconvoluted, they just didn’t always have the best executions. I knew betterthan to say any of that out loud with Wukong here. On the subject of Wukong, heseemed a bit confused hearing Mk and Tang’s stories. I had a feeling it’sbecause they sound incompetent compared how they use to be. That dissonance islikely what caused that confusion to be mirrored in the other two. None of themhad the context for the apparent shift in behavior. Truthfully, a part of thereason for the change was to keep from being seen as desirable to other demonsas marriage prospects and the other part was because they found more joy inlife living without a care for what others thought. Since none of them saidanything about the disparity I didn’t offer up the answer. I found it moreamusing that way.

Ittook some gentle nudging to get everyone to finally get up and leave so wecould go home, and I could tend to my boys. It took some firmer nudging to getTang to leave, with Mk practically having to drag him away. That just leftWukong, Bai He, and I. The absence of the other’s was felt instantly, withtension filling the air all around us. It made my fur stand on end.

What do you want? I growled out at him. Onlynow does he feel the need to appear outwardly uncomfortable instead of justvaguely annoyed or put out.

Wellfor starters, an explanation for this whole situation. He gestured toBai He and I. She reached for my hand and squeezed it tightly.

Likewe owe you one. I glared at him, and he glared back making Bai He hidbehind me. I sighed in an attempt to relax my posture and give her hand agentle squeeze, but I kept my glare. Look, it’s complicated and we’renot comfortable telling you of all people about thespecifics.

Whynot!? He shouts, and I give him an unimpressed look.

Wheredo I start? There’s plenty of reasons ‘why not.’ You’ve stalked us, you makewild assumptions on little info, make rash decisions that only make thingsworse, and neither of us are very fond of you. Just to name a few. Itlooks like he takes physical damage at my words.

Likeyou’re so great. You’re a liar, manipulative, you hurt Mk and his friends, andyou helped the Lady Bone Demon. We growled at each other.

That’snot fair. Bai He piped up.

Huh?We both turned to look at her. She was pouting and scowling at him.

Idon’t know about anything before, but I know it’s not fair to blame him forwhat happened with her. She scolded him in my defense.And I know you know I’m right. Her scowl deepened, and Icould hear the way his body tense and his heartbeat spike. He shakes off theshock and huffs.

Whatare you even talking-

Hey!I’ve seen inside of both of your heads while I was possessedbefore so don’t try and deny it. She cut him off. I did notlike hearing she’s seen inside my head. I wondered what she could have seen orheard while we were under the Lady Bone Demon’s influence. I could tell Wukongwas thinking the same. There was a long stretch of silence where she kept hereyes on Wukong, waiting for him to say anything in his defense or to contradicther. When none came, she sighed and messaged her temple with her free hand.Mr. Macaque, can we go home now?

Yes,please. I think I’m at my limitwith this guy. I scooped her up into my arms and she nestled into me.

Wait!He called out, even moving to reach for me, only to stop short.

What?I groaned. He stood there awkwardly frozen in place. The longer we stared ateach other, the more his heart raced. Well?I prompt him, losing my patience. He took a breath and let it out in a deep,tired sigh.

Look,I don’t want to fight you anymore. I’m sorry forspying on you guys and making Bai He uncomfortable. Everything with her wasterrible and hearing that thetwo of you were palling around got me paranoid. Especially when…when I saw thatshe still had her powers. He whispered the last partconspiratorially. Even so, Bai He still tensed up when she heard it. I cradledher closer to me, turning my body away from him protectively. From the soundsof it, he did seem remorseful, but it really ticked me off.

Youand I would know better than anyone else that she’s gone, Wukong. Itticked me off, but I understood. How could I not? She’d plagued my mind forover half a millennium, but she was already locked away by that point. Even ifit wasn’t the same experience, I had to wonder how her existence tortured himall these years.

I know that! He caught himself shouting and took a second tocalm down. I know that, but it doesn’t stop me from worrying. Hearingyou of all people say she’s gone helps though. Hearing him say thatshouldn’t flatter me as much as it does. I cleared my throat to rid myself ofthe feeling.

Whatever.Was that all you wanted? He chirped and, on reflex from the boys, Ichirped back. He snorted and I frowned at him, which only made him chuckle moreopenly. Wukong! He put his hands up in surrender.

Sorry,sorry, it’s just been a long time since I hear you make a soundlike that, that it just doesn’t fit you at all. I growled at him andsmiled at me. I wanted to ask about those cubs of yours actually.Where did you-

Bupbup bup bup bup, I am not telling you anything about them. Not here atleast. Never knew who was listening.

Whynot? I hesitated.

...It’scomplicated. Just like everything else in my life right now.We can talk about them later in private, okay? I lookedaround the dark streets for any prying eyes. Though I found none, they’re notreally the demographic I’m worried about.

Whydon’t we go back to yours then? He suggested, leaving Bai He and I tolook at him incredulously. A part of me really wanted to make a joke at thatline, but I knew better than to say something like that with Bai He around.

Huh?

Wellit’s either there or the mountain right now. He continues like eitherof those ideas were normal for us.

I’mnot going anywhere with you; I have to feed them dinner still! Iargued.

Thenwe can go to your place like I said. He was next to me and throwinghis arm over my shoulders before I could blink. He started walking us in thedirection of my apartment. I know it’s not that far from here and thisshouldn’t take too long. I dug my heels into the ground, but he’sundeterred. I was still recovering from the direction all of this had taken.I’m snapped back into the present by the sound of Bai He whining.

Wait!I need a second to talk to Bai He about this! He stopped walking, buthe didn't let go. He hummed, giving me a skeptical look.

Okay,but you better not try to run away. He reluctantly released me, and Iimmediately put some distance between us. I set Bai He down and stayed low totalk to her.

Idon’t want him in our house. I told her straight up.

Meneither, but if you’re keeping secrets I wanna knowabout it. She pouted and crossed her arms.

Sowhat, if I tell you about it, we’re in agreement, but if I don’t, he cancome? I say, semi sarcastic, foolishly thinking she wouldn’t be thatpetty.

That’sright. She nodded deeply. I really need to stop underestimating thiskid’s need for knowledge.

Idon’t want to tell either of you. I whisper shouted, but she stoodfirm.

ThenI guess you’re telling both of us. It’s my house damn it.

Iam not making this easy for him just becauseyou want to ask questions. She hummed and rubbed her chin. Shesnapped her fingers as an idea struck her.

Howabout we give him some conditions and see if he agrees to them? Iconsidered it for a moment. I could get some petty revenge out of this to seehow serious he was about all this. That was a pretty appealing option…

Okay,I’ve already got a few things in mind. I smirked, and shegrinned.

Sodo I. I stood up straight and took her hand in mine again. I don’tget any closer to Wukong, instead choosing to just talk normally again.

We’veagreed that you can come inside, but only if you abide by a few rules, BaiHe? I wanted her to go first.

Rulenumber one, you’re not allowed to ask anything about me living with Mr. Macaque.He grumbled at that, but nodded along anyways. Rule number two,neither of you are allowed to argue or be mean to each other and rule numberthree, you both have to say something nice to each other before you comeinside. Both of us groaned at that one. Hopefully, I didn’t have togo through with that. Be nice. She sounded very amused byour reactions. Your turn. She grinned up at me. I signed andaffectionately shook my head.

Don’tworry, I’m only going to ask you to do one thing for me. I grinned athis apparent worry he felt anyways. You have to drop yourglamour. His heart rate spiked again. Bai He looked between us inshock.

Whaaat, Idon’t use a glamour. I snickered at him.

ReallyWukong, you’re going to lie to me about this. Do you want me to list all of thethings you’re covering up right now? I was fairly certain he wouldn’tgo through with this. He was almost as self-conscious as I was about his appearance,so I doubted he’d ever show us what he really looked like.

Ihave no idea what you’re talking about. He continued to denyit.

Comeon, I know you must have seen me without my glamour while you were peeping onme. Fair’s fair isn’t it? I half-heartedly tried to convince him. Hisheart was pounding right now. It almost made me feel badfor the guy, if it weren’t for the fact that he’d invaded my privacy. He gulpedand hugged himself.

Couldyou uh, let me think about it? He sounded so vulnerable that Idecided to take some pity on him. I shrugged in faux nonchalance.

Sure,you can figure it out on the way. Just know I have no qualms with slamming thedoor in your face. Even if it would hurt my ears. I started making myway down the street without him.

Okay.He slowly trailed behind us. I snickered when I heard him start dragging hisfeet. Surely, he wouldn’t agree to this by the time we got there.

Whenwe got to our apartment, we took the stairs as per his request, so he’d havemore time. I indulged him since the longer this went on, the more I felt bad. Iknew realistically I shouldn’t since he brought it on himself, but somethingabout it rubbed me the wrong way. Maybe it was because I knew how anxious itmade me when Bai He saw me without my glamour. Sometimes it still made my furstand on end.

Westopped outside my apartment door and Wukong looked like a mess but determined.It was kind of admirable seeing him trying his best for something that seemedso minor. I leaned against the wall with Bai He.

So?I prompted.

So.He fidgeted with his hands.

Areyou going to say something nice about each other? He relaxed a bitand I tensed. I give her a look and she acts innocent. What, I thinkit might help you both feel more at ease. Yeah right, she just wantedto see us flounder.

Himfirst. He was the one coming into my space after all. We turned ourattention to him, and he chirped. This time I managed to catch myself beforechirping back.

Oh,uh, well I really liked your show earlier. Now I chirped in surprisefrom being complimented on my work. I felt myself blush in embarrassment whenthe two of them chuckled at me.

Thanks,I um- What’s a non-weird, nice thing to say about him? Should Icompliment Mk as an indirect way of complimenting him? No, he’d already saidsomething that was directly related to me. I glanced at him, and we made eyecontact. Even if he was just laughing at me, he looked so vulnerable and open.I’m still angry with him, but seeing him like that… While you wentabout all this in a ‘weird’ way, it could be nice talking withyou without having to fight. I smiled at him and I think I hear hisheart racing again, but I tell myself it’s because he had to consider droppinghis glamour again. Bai He creeped into the corner of my vision with amischievous grin.

Areyou sure you two never dated? We both choked on air. He startedsputtering and I snapped my head to look at her.

BAIHE! I yelled at her, and she just giggled.

Weweren’t, I mean we never even- His face was bright red. I knew minewasn’t much better.

Wukong!I didn’t wanna know what he’d say next.

Whyis she even asking that! I ignored him to face her fully.

Donot answer him. Do me a favor and goinside and start putting groceries away please? I asked with a forcedsweet smile.

But-

Bai He.I said through gritted teeth.

Fine,you’re no fun. She crossed her arms and huffed, pouting. As soon asshe went inside the apartment, I turned to face Wukong again. He’s looking atme like he’s still waiting for an answer to his previous question.

Look,I don’t know why she keeps asking me that, she just does, don’t read into it.Now are you going to drop your glamour or aren’t you? Either way Iwanted to move past looking any deeper into that question. We both already knewthe answer. Wukong sighed.

I-Idon’t-

Icould portal us into my bathroom or something so the others don’t have to seeright away. I offered for some reason. He worried his bottom lip, andhe gave a shallow nod.

Istepped closer to him so I could open a portal underneath us. He flailed a bit,no longer used to shadow travel, and I held his shoulders to steady him. Wereemerged in the middle of my bathroom, where I immediately separated from himso I could tell Bai He it was just us and not to worry when I closed and lockedthe door. I grabbed my towel and used it to cover the mirror in the bathroombefore addressing Wukong again, who just stood awkwardly where I left him. Itook him by the arm and led him to sit down on the closed toilet. I dropped ourhuman disguises and took a seat on the edge of the tub. I watched his tail flickanxiously behind him.

So?He looked at me with the expression of a kicked puppy. I sighed and massaged myeyes. What am I doing? I’ll cut you a deal. If youdrop your glamour, I’ll drop mine. That makes him perk up with achirp that I don’t return. We don’t have to do this all at onceeither, but you have to start. Why am I giving him this option? It’s not like Iowe him anything. He did look more open to the idea.

Okay,I think I can do that. He sounded determined, but it fizzled outpretty quick. What uh, where should I start? Now he justlooked like a lost child. Ican’t believe this is the same guy who recklessly fought the celestial realm. Sensing this might take a while I sentmy shadow clone to help Bai He with groceries and to feed the boys.

Whydon’t we start small, and you can show me your eyes? I offered, and Iheard his muscles tense. I knew it was a sore spot for him after what happened,but it would be a one-to-one trade. He closed his eyes, and I patiently watchedhim hype himself up. It took him a while, but when he opened his eyes, they hadbrilliant crimson sclera and gleaming gold irises. His gaze darted from me tothe floor. It was so odd seeing them like that again. I barely got to see themafter it happened since he hid how they looked pretty soon after out of fear ofscaring the others. Though I was used to how they were, this wasn’t a bad lookfor him.

Well,aren’t you gonna? I snapped out of whatever trance I was in.

Right,right, sorry. I blinked, and my eyes went from that same gold colorto one being a vibrant magenta and the other being a pale lavender and I showedthe scar on my brow. I watched his eyes go between looking me in the eyes andlooking at my scar. What next? That gets him to focus on myeyes. He didn't say anything as his fur turned slightly darker and it wasclearly singed. The sight brought back vivid memories of his possession and ofmy own experience with burnt fur. It had been months, yet he still hadn’t takencare of that. Why does your fur still look like that? Iasked him, and he shrugged.

It’lljust take care of itself eventually. That is nothow that works, even for him.

Noit won't.

Wellthat’s how it got better after the last time. I felt my eye twitch.Some deep seeded part of me was incredibly annoyed by this lax behavior towardhis fur. I remember a time where he would come to me to groom him over barelymessed fur and now, he won’t even get a haircut? I don’t think so.

You’rewashing your fur. I told him. You’re washing your fur andI’m cutting your fur. I dropped the glamour I had over my own fur tobuy me some time as he gawked at me. I popped my head out of the bathroom doorto tell Bai He that Wukong would be staying a little longer than anticipatedand if she needed anything, then she could ask my clone. I closed and locked thedoor again, turning my attention full back to Wukong. His eyes were wide fromshock and his heart was racing. Well, what are you waiting for? Takeoff your pants. His heart raced faster, and even faster when Istarted to get undressed.

Whatare you doing? He squawked, and I chuckled. I figured I could havefun with this by messing with him.

Ialready told you; we’re washing your fur. I say it like it’s the mostobvious thing in the world.

Yeah,but why are you getting naked!?

Psh,you think I trust you to wash your hair properly, let alone with my shower?Besides, what’s the problem? We’ve bathed together before haven’t we?I smirked at his rapidly reddening face.

Thatwas different!

How?It’ll be the exact same. I’ll get your back and head and you’ll do the rest ofyour body. He stammered and struggled to find a response. Isthis too intimate for you? Is that the problem since there’d usuallybe other monkeys around? Would having clones around help? I spoke tohim in a teasing tone and at this point he sounded like he was going to have aheart attack.

Ofcourse not! That’s so much worse! His mask had disappeared under hisblush. Why are you like this? He whined and hid his face inhis hands. I took this time to get completely naked and started running theshower. I heard the way he shuddered at the sound of the water turning on. Itook out two new towels from the cabinet I had in here and hung them up by theshower. I checked the shampoo and conditioner I had in there and figured I hadenough for this, but I grabbed more from under the sink to be safe. Dome a favor and shrink yourself down to your actual height, I don’t want to usemore product than I need to. He peeked out from behind his hands, andhe gasped. He openly stared at me, and I snapped my fingers to get hisattention. He was unfazed. HEY! His eyes flicked up tomine.

Idon’t know what you’re talking about. He murmured his denial.

Wukong,we both know you’re not as tall as me. He averted his eyes with apout. If you do, I'll show you my ears. His tail waggedexcitedly. I don’t understand his weird obsession with my ears, but theyusually worked as a bargaining chip. He shrunk down about a foot, and I let thelast of my glamours fall. We stared at each other, taking in our true forms. Itwas nice seeing him like that again. I always thought he looked so cute in hissmaller form, and he only got self-conscious about it while on his journey.So are you going to get undressed now or what? He shylylooked away from me.

Couldyou turn around first? I shrugged and did as he asked, only to turn rightback around at the sound of his suppressed laughter.

What?

Nothing,nothing, I just forgot about the heart shape you had on your butt. Ikicked him in the shin.

Ow,hey she said no fighting! He held his leg.

Youdeserved it, and you know it. I stormed into the shower to wait forhim there instead. I was already starting to regret this decision. I did notpicture myself getting naked with Wukong when I woke up this morning, but hereI am blushing in my shower waiting for him to join me.

Ugh what a day…

Chapter 9: Fur Care

Chapter Text

It took him a bit to actually join me in the shower and when he did, he looked self-conscious. He had his arms wrapped around his stomach as if he were trying to hide it from me, which didn’t make any sense. Sure, he wasn’t as cut as he used to be but by no means was he out of shape. Heck it’s not like I’m as well defined either, but I never put on as much bulk as he did. Maybe he was just being self-conscious in general still, but if you asked me, he looked great.

Imade him stand under the water so we could wet his fur before lathering it inshampoo. That’s when I saw how a large patch of fur on his back had turnedwhite. Images of his possession flashed through my mind again and the sense ofterror I’d felt in the moment. The sound of his struggle would be seared intomy brain forever.

Iran my fingers through the fur of his back and shoulders to help thoroughlymoisten his fur and he shivered at my touch. I was surprised to feel how muchtension his body held, though I really shouldn’t be. I remember it being likethis when we were on the mountain too, but it was never this bad before. Imoved him out from under the water and reached for the shampoo so I couldmassage it into him. I dug my thumbs into his back and shoulders in the hopesto ease some of that tension, making him start to hum and purr at thefeeling.

Youknow if you wanted to talk now’s the time. I grunted, still doing mybest to work out the knots in him.

Hmm,are you really not going to tell me anything about the whole Bai Hesituation?

Uhhuh, it’s not my place to say and telling you now would only cause more trouble,I’m sure. I lathered my hands with more shampoo and worked furtherdown his back, making him lean forward.

Whatabout those cubs then? AH! He yelped in pain at a particularly badspot.

Sorry,what about them? I worked that samespot until he relaxed again.

Wellfor starters, why do they have my powers? I halted in myministrations. He looked at me over his shoulder and I stared back.

Areyou being serious? I asked in a hushed tone. He gives me a skepticallook.

Ohcourse I am, why wouldn’t I be?

sh*t.I swore under my breath. When I’d found them, I knew that there was a possibilitybased on their appearance, but I had no way of knowing for sure until they wereolder or started exhibiting any signs. Are you sure?

Completely.Ofcourse he is. Now I feel like I have to tellhim. Otherwise raising them might become problematic.

It’skind of a long story, but above all I really don’t want anyone finding outabout this, got it?

Wouldyou just tell me already? He groaned, getting in patient. Isighed.

Fine,but first. I used my powers to cloak the room in shadows. Any likewas tinted purple and dim, making it harder to see for most. It would preventanyone from spying on us, but only for a short time since the amount of powerit takes to effectively block anyone from the celestial realm or anywhere elsewas immense. I’ll be as quick as possible. About two years ago I gottipped off that one of the demons that’d tried to court me for my powers in thepast was trying to replicate instead but wasn’t having much success, so theytried to clone me. I was told that he may have found a way to do so, but he hadto use mine and another monkey of our kind to do so. From my understanding it’sbecause he was running low on my genetic material and nothing else was workingso he tried something new. I always knew that it was a possibility that couldbe you, but I also knew that when everyone left the mountain that not all ofthem stuck together so I just hoped it wasn’t you. No onewants another you running around causing chaos, let alone two. Nowthree if you count Mk. So out of fear for their safety I glamouredthem as best I could and I tried to hide them with the other monkeys,but they’d bonded to me at that point and I didn’t have the heart to leavethem. Artificial light started to fill the room again as the shadowsreceded and I let out a shuttering gasp of exhaustion. It took me a minute tocatch my breath and Wukong let me lean on him in the meantime. He didn’t reactright away, likely still processing what I’d said. When he did, I could hearthe way his heart raced in thinly veiled anger.

Whathappened to the guy? He sounded calm, but I knew better.

He’salready dead. After seeing the condition they were in when I found them, therewas no way I’d let him walk away. His fur bristled at that. I let outa heavy sigh and resumed the task at hand. Not that it matters now.They’re doing much better now, but it’s obvious how much it’s affected them.They were already a year old by the time I found out about them.They’d been malnourished and, from the wounds they had, they must have beenexperimented on daily.

Whoeven told you about them? I could feel he was still angry, but hisheartbeat was slowing the more I massaged him.

Wouldyou believe me if I said Nezha? His head turned sharply to look overhis shoulder at me again to loudly exclaim.

HEWHAT!?

Wouldyou keep it down? I scolded him and made him look straight and downagain so I could work on his lower back.

Sorry.He grumbled. I sighed again.

Pleasedon’t go charging up to heaven to confront him about it. He would have toldyou, but you were still MIA. He onlyconsidered me an option because he knew I was friends with Chang’e and that ifthere were clones then I’d take care of them. We switched placesagain so I could rinse the shampoo off his back and shoulders. I still ran myfingers through his fur to make sure I got everywhere.

Iwasn’t gonna. He crossed his arms and pouted very convincingly.

Sureyou weren’t. I pulled him back out of the water and tilted his headback. The angle felt a little awkward and I didn’t want him to tilt his headforward and get soap in his eyes, so I turned him around to face me with hishead tilted back only slightly. I lathered my hands again and worked his furs,using my nails to scrap his scalp. His purring returned full force and heleaned into my hands. When I reached around to get the base of his skull he cooed,and his eyes fluttered shut. I felt more of his weight in my hands, and Iglanced down to see his knees slowly start to bend. You alrightthere? My voice was dripping with amusem*nt. I moved my hands to cuphis face so I could get the fur there with my thumbs. He peeked one of his eyesopen halfway and he had a lazy smile on his face.

Mhm.He nodded and nuzzled into my hands. I quirked up a brow at him. I think he’seither starved for touch or he is not hereright now. A part of me is tempted to take my hands away and see if he’d fall.To satiate that temptation by squishing his cheeks together. He grunted and stoodstraight on his own again. Hey. I chuckled at his slightlymuffled voice. I eased up and tilted his head further back.

Closeyour eyes. He obliged, and we switched positions, and I massaged hisscalp again. He was relaxed again in seconds and if I went on longer thanexpressly needed then well, neither of us would say anything. The second I tookmy hands away he whined embarrassingly high, making both of us jump. He coughedinto his fist, blushing furiously.

S-sorry.

It’sokay. I cleared my throat in much the same manner as him.So, you can do the rest of you and then I’ll help you again with theconditioner okay?

Gotcha.We switched places once more and turned our backs to each other. I started towash myself as he lathered his arms, legs, chest, and tail. So, uh,what do they look like? He asked totry and cut through the awkward atmosphere.

Almostnothing like what I make them look like. I’d show you, but I never know whensomeone from up there is watching. I looked up at the ceiling.Bunch of creepy pervs. He snorted before full on cackling.The sound does funny things to my heart. He really has no right to still haveany sway over that part of me after all this time.

Oh,sorry I shouldn’t laugh. They do have atendency to spy on people and before you say anything, I know how that soundscoming from me after I…didthe same thing, but Iknow it sucks. Even I can’t tell when I’m talking to a celestial in disguise,but there is one place they can’t spy on. He says as his laughterdied down.

Ohyeah? I looked over my shoulder at him and found that he was goingthe same.

Imade sure the mountain was safe from their prying eyes and behind the waterfallis even safer.

Areyou inviting me onto the mountain? I asked in a playful manner. Hejust rolled his eyes at me.

Don’tact so surprised, you were just there.

Dude,that was months ago and I’m pretty sure I was only allowed up there because ofMk.

That’snot- I gave him a look. Okay yeah, it was, but you werestill there. He grumbled and crossed his arms. We switched placesagain. Besides, I don’t think it’s thatbig of a deal and I’ll be getting something out of it soo.It might be nice for the boys and it might be fun to show them some of theplaces I used to love to hide away in.

I’llthink about it. It could be good for them to socialize with other monkeys inthe open.I watched his tail wag, and I can only assume he’d takenthat as a yes.

Great,I can’t wait to see their cute little faces. I haven’t seen a monkey cub in solong I bet they’re adorable. I chuckled at him.

Youhaven’t seen another monkey like us in general in who knows how long. Otherthan me of course. He gave me a pensive hum in response.

Yousaid you tried to give those cubs to them, right? Does that mean you know wherethey went? He turned to look at me with a forlorn expression. Isighed. There was a time not so long ago where a look like that might have mademe happy, but now I just feel kinda bad for the guy. Even if a part of me stillthinks he deserved them leaving the mountain for being such a terribleking.

Yeah,I even helped them on their pilgrimage to find a new home and used anenchantment to hide them from anyone that might want to harm them. They wereall doing just fine the last time I visited them. I could hear someof the tension leave his muscles once he heard they were okay, but I could tellit was a bittersweet feeling. Knowing they were okay doesn’t erase the years ofloneliness and worry or that he would still be alone when he returned to themountain tonight.

Good,that’s good… I could tell he wanted to ask something more, butinstead he just hugged his arms and curled himself slightly. See him like thisreally rubbed me the wrong way. I took him by the shoulders and switched placesagain. I grabbed the conditioner, this time starting on his head.

Icould take you there one day. Maybe after I smooth things over with them andwhen the only reason we’re not fighting isn't because of other people.He was already easing up under the ministrations of my hands again.

...Iwant to, but I don’t think I’m ready for that just yet. His eyelidsdrifted shut.

OhI assure you, neither are they. I still haven’t told them we have a truce.Gibbon isn’t gonna believe it. He lightly chuckled at that.

Heprobably thinks we’re both insane.

Yeah,but I’m pretty sure he thought that before. He laughed a littlelouder before it died off. I stared at the frown that took over his features. Iknow he wasn’t a good king, but I also knew somewhere deep in my heart that hetruly cared about his people. It’s just that back then, he cared about himselfa little more. I have to wonder if he cared about himself at all thesedays.

Macaque?I snapped out of my thoughts at being called. I don’t know when, but my handshad stopped moving and he’d peeked an eye open to check on me. I’m not evensure how long I must have been staring at him for. Apparently, it was longenough for him to get antsy since his tail was flicking anxiously behind him.Both of his eyes opened when I didn’t react. Looking at the concern on his facemade me sick to my stomach. Having him close and complacent in my hands made mewant to ruin it somehow. There were still so many hurtful things I wanted tosay to him, but it all felt so exhausting now. Now that there wasn’t thatconstant, nagging voice in the back of my mind telling me all the ways he’dhurt me, hurt his people. All of the ways he’d failed and abandoned us and yetnow…I’m so tired. I felt a part of myself go numb when Iasked.

Whydidn’t you come back?I felt all of him sag at the question. Hecouldn’t even look me in the eyes. Pathetic.

I-Idon’t know. Liar. For a while the only sound that washeard was the rushing water of the shower and the steady beating of our hearts.I was mad at him, but it didn’t feel like anything. Not wanting to stay in thisfeeling much longer, I sighed.

Turnaround, while I do your back you do the rest of you, this should sit in yourfur for a little before we rinse it out. He wordlessly followed my instructions,and we finished the rest of our shower in silence. I was only mildly annoyedwith myself for still massaging his back after that, but less so when I foundanother bad spot to dig into that made his whole-body twitch in pain.

Whenwe finished up, I told him we’d take turns shaking off in the shower. I wentfirst so that when he was in the shower, I could turn on the heating fan for usand I summoned a second shadow clone. This one wasn’t as detailed as my otherclone, but it would do the job. I got my other clone to get a change of clothesfor both of us and set them on the sink. I wrapped a towel around my waistbefore I poked my head out of the bathroom door. I felt like my brain stalledout when I saw the small swing in the corner that the boys were taking turns onwhile Bai He supervised.

Whatthe heck is that? I said more to myself than anything. They allturned to me with a deer in headlights look. I put up my free hand to stop anyattempts at explanation. It’s fine, it’s fine, but could you do me afavor and push the couch back against the wall? She looked confused,so I elaborated. I’m cutting Wukong’s hair, and I need thespace. She gave me a slow nod and eyed me suspiciously.What?

Wereyou two…in the shower together? She asked slowly, filled with a mixof suspicion and disgust.

Hey,it is perfectly acceptable for monkeys to bathe together. I will not be shamedfor this. Is all I told her before closing the door again. By thattime Wukong had gotten out of the shower and was enjoying the feeling of thewarm fan on his wet body. I tightened the towel around my waist and took histowel, which was still hanging up, and covered his head with to ruffle his furto soak up more of the water that was still on him. I snickered at hisflailing, or that was until he grabbed it and did the same to me. When herelented and took his towel off my head he pointed and laughed at me.

HA!You should see yourself. Your fur is wild.He kept giggling at the sight of me. I know my fur was probably an absolutemess and was fluffing up, but it’s not like he was much better.

Psh,have you seen yourself? You look crazy. I gestured to all of him. Helooked like a cartoon character just had a bomb go off in their hands. He stuckhis tongue out at me and started toweling himself off. I watched him pause inthis process to put his face into the towel.

Damnthese are soft. I heard him say into it. I laughed at him under mybreath and started toweling off myself.

Oncewe were done with that part, I had Wukong make a few duplicates of my hair dryerfor my clones to use. I only had him make two since I also didn’t trust him todo this part by himself. The extra hands helped me cut down on the amount oftime it usually took me to dry my hair and when I’m done, I had my other clonehelp tend to Wukong. I put on the change of clothes they brought for me, a loose-fittingt-shirt, and sweatpants, and walked out of the bathroom. The couch had beenmoved back like I asked, and the kids were playing with a rope in the openspace. It looked like they were playing a very one-sided game of tug of war.Castor and Bai He were on one side pulling with all their might while Polluxwas on the other. Even if he looked like he was struggling, Pollux was stilldragging the both of them forward, little by little. After the conversation Ihad with Wukong about the twins, the sight was mildly concerning. I let themplay a little longer while I got a white tarp from my closet I used when I cutmy own hair. I only made them stop so I could lay the tarp down in the spaceand moved a stool into the center of it.

SoI’m guessing the rope and the swing are just some of the things you got for theboys. Is there anything else I should know about? I asked with pureamusem*nt.

Uh,one sec. Bai He sped walked into my room and came out with the toyshop bag. She came up to me and pulled out a stuffed black monkey, a smallfluffy ladybug blanket and a red bounce ball. I knew I gave her extra cash, butI’m pretty sure Mk must have also bought some of this for them.

Didyou get all of that for them? I crouched down to her level to get abetter look. The Castor and Pollux came over to see for themselves. Bai Hehanded the blanket and the doll to them and Castor, upon feeling the blanket, putit over his brother’s shoulders to share it with him. Pollux tried to offer thedoll to Castor, but when they refused, Pollux hugged it tightly. It waspossibly one of the cutest things I’d ever seen, especially since the doll wasthe size of them. Sometimes I think every time I see them, they do somethingeven cuter than before. I blame Bai He.

Yeah,I thought they might like something to play with whenever we’re out of thehouse. She gave Pollux head scratches, making him purr.

You’reso sweet. I ruffed her hair and she giggled. Truth be told I didn’tgive them a lot of things to play with out of fear they might break somethingor fight over things, but clearly, I didn’t have to worry about the latter. Theball and the rope were still a concern though. But don’t let them playwith the ball inside, okay? I patted her head twice and stood upstraight, taking the time to crack my back.

Okay.She smiled brightly up at me.

Whydon’t you find something to put on the T.V. while I go check on the old monkeyking, alright? She nodded and looked for the remote as I popped backinto the bathroom. Wukong was currently resting his forehead against my mainclone and getting his head patted while my other clone finished drying the backof his legs. I closed the door behind me before I said anything. Whatare you doing? I sighed in exasperation. Wukong tried to pull away,but my main clone held him in place. You’ve got eyes. I groaned internally. This is why I can’ttrust you to fight on your own with the other clones. They rolledtheir eyes but released Wukong. I ordered them to gather my brushes, combs,hair oil, and scissors together and to put a cloth over the kitchen counterbefore putting them down there. I crossed my arms and glared at Wukong.I better not hear one word from you about that. We both know yourclone is way worse. Wukong put his hands up in defense.

Woah,hey I didn’t even say anything. I sighed, thankful that my otherclone could behave.

Isanything else still damp? I looked him over, but I don’t pat himdown. Instead, I watched him pat himself down and pointed out the spots hishands missed. I hate to admit that I did get a little distracted when his handswent over the fur on his chest.

Youalright there? I did not like the smug tone in his voice. I lookedhim dead in the eyes and sure enough he had a face to match.

Youwere staring at my ass constantly in and out of the shower.Wukong blushed a bright red. I kept talking before he could respond. Ithink you should be good after they’re finished. I ran a hand throughthe hair on his head just to make triple sure that at least that was dry. Heleaned into my touch, and I watched his tail leisurely sway behind him. Hereally needs to get out more if this is how he gets after getting patted by meof all people. I retracted my hand to grab the other set of clothes for him andI could hear the way he suppressed a whine. I had him put on the underwear andsweatpants and dismissed my extra clone. Their memories flashed through my mind,and I got to watch my other clone getting closer than expressly necessary toWukong to dry his fur and the way Wukong slowly relaxed under their attention.I gave Wukong a look and shook my head at him.

What?I didn’t answer him, just kept shaking my head and handed him the clothes. Iwent ahead and dismissed my other clone to avoid them doing anything elseincriminating in front of Bai He. I got all the memories of them taking care ofBai He and the boys. Of them helping assemble the swing I saw and of himtending to Wukong. I could faintly feel the sensation of him leaning against meand I had to suppress a shudder at the feeling. I’d have to have another talkwith him about this behavior.

Justget dressed. He raised a brow at me but did what I said. When I triedto get him to leave the bathroom he hesitated.

DoI have to go out there like this? I don’t wanna scare them. His tailwrapped around himself, and he hugged his arms. I sighed and held in an eyeroll.

I’mpretty sure you’ll look less scary to Bai He like this than what you normallylook like and the boys don’t have any frame of reference for what ‘should be’ scary ornot, but I get it. It would make it harder to cut your hairthough. Oh, and I’d glamour myself again too. He whined at theconditions. I heard his heart race from the anxiety and sighed internally. Iran my hands through the fur on his head again. He leaned into my hands beforeI even touched him this time. Bai He can keep a secret and she won’tjudge you. I was pretty worried she’d be scared of me when she saw allthis. I gestured to myself. But she was more concerned aboutmaking me uncomfortable. I started to groom his fur. He hummed and westared at each other.

Okay.He sighed out. But you walk out first. I smiled athim.

Easy.I patted his cheek twice then turned to walk out the room. Bai He, Castor, andPollux were on the couch together. Castor and Pollux were curled up against herside under the blanket she’d gotten them, and Bai He was still looking forsomething to watch. Hey, don’t be weird about Wukong not beingglamoured okay?

Iwon't! She does look away from the T.V.

Iknow you won't, but I had to be sure. I leaned back into the bathroomto gesture for Wukong to follow. I didn’t expect him to grab my hand. I staredat our joined hands for a second then shook my head. I gently pulled him out ofthe bathroom, and I could immediately feel eyes on us. Castor started chirpingloudly. They shook their brother and pointed animatedly at Wukong. Pollux chitteredin confusion, and I eyed Wukong. Wukong…why does he recognizeyou? Wukong looked as far away from me as possible. Castor jumpedfrom the couch to trot over to us and climb up Wukong’s body to investigatehim.

Ihave no idea what you’re talking about. He murmured. It’s too late inthe day and I’m too tired to try and figure this out. Whatever, we’lltalk about this later. I pulled him over to the stool and made himsit down. Castor had grabbed Wukong by the face to stare into his eyes. Wukongpulled him away from his face when they tried to touch his open eye.Castor, what have I told you? I lightly scolded him.

Aw,it’s okay little guy. Wukong cradled them one arm and he nestled intothe fur on his chest. He gave him chin scritches that made him coo and nuzzleinto his hand. He’s adorable. I love him so much. Wukongfawned over him, and I rolled my eyes for the umpteenth time tonight. At leastit was keeping him from thinking about his appearance. I got started on oilinghis hair.

Youtwo had to have dated. She squinted atus and spoke under her breath, but it was loud enough for both of us tohear.

BaiHe please! Wukong turned redagain.

What!You two were just in the shower togetherand you were holding hands and just look at him! You just look like acouple! I let out a long sigh through my nose. While I can understandhow him cradling a monkey cub that looked a lot like me and doting on themwhile I groomed him may look…

BaiHe, I care about you, and I love that you speak your mind, but please shutup. I could feel my own face burning. Bai He grinned at us, and I’venever wanted to punt a child more.

Come on, youcan tell me. She begged, and I glared at her. It’s an easyyes or no.

Youare a little gremlin child, you know that? I pointed an accusatoryfinger at her before getting back to Wukong’s fur. Speaking of Wukong, he wasputting all of his attention into grooming Castor’s fur so he wouldn’t have tobe a part of this conversation. Castor was happily purring from the affection.Training is gonna suck for the next two weeks for you.

Youknow I’ll just think the answer is yes if you don’t tell me,right?

Threeweeks.

Alright,alright I get the point. She groaned and kept flicking throughoptions of what to watch. How do you feel about watching Herculesagain?

Don’t think I don’t know what you’re doing thereyoung lady.She grinned even wider. Wukong turned to look at me over his shoulder toquestion what that meant. I forced him to look forward again. Don’tworry about it. I moved on to oil his shoulders and basically startedto massage him again. Why don’t we stay away from those kinds ofmovies tonight?

Fine, wecan keep watching Adventure Time instead. She put on the show andpulled Pollux into her lap to pet him. He was wrapped up like a baby in aswaddle at this point. The sight made me a little less annoyed at her.

Thingssettled down after that and I got to do Wukong’s fur in peace. Castor startedto help me groom Wukong’s fur, much to his amusem*nt. As he got more comfortable,he started asking about the kids. I told him that Castor was more outgoingwhile Pollux was reserved and shy. Pollux was the older of the two and veryprotective of his brother and that it was weird how okay he was with Castor beingcradled by him. I told him that Castor was more sociable but refrained fromspeaking because Pollux doesn’t like to talk. It was at that point Bai He cutin to ask what I meant by that since they both chirp and chitter a lot aroundher. I had to elaborate by saying they could speak like that and Wukong and Icould understand them, but they could also speak in a way that everyone elsecould understand. We watched her process the information and her eyes lit upwhen it fully registered.

THEYCOULD TALK THIS WHOLE TIME! Pollux stirred at the commotion.You’ve beenholding out on me.She complained in a low, pointed tone of voice. Wukong and I chuckled at herantics. While it’s true they could speak, it was easier to hide their truenature if they didn’t. Not that I discouraged them from doing so. There isone thing I wished they didn’t learnthough.

Onlya little since they don’t exactly practice it. They can understand a lot ofwords obviously, but they’d need to learn how to say those words and you knowsentence structure and grammar. I picked Castor off of Wukong andwalked him over to the couch to rejoin his brother. They both complained aboutit, but I didn’t want him to get covered in orange fur nor did I want toaccidentally cut Castor while he was crawling over him.

Whatdo they know how to say? Castor perked up at the question and histail wagged excitedly. He looked to me and Pollux as if seeking permission tospeak. I really didn’t want him to since I already knew what was going tohappen, but I nodded anyway, as did Pollux. He chirped in joy and startedpractically skipping around the room to point out all the things he knew.

Couch!Fruits! Mango! Keychin (Kitchen)! Drawing! At that one Wukong startedto actually take in all the drawings on the walls. He gave me this soft knowinglook. I raised my scissors in a wordless threat and he went back to watchingCastor. Sink! Fur! Lights! Door! He raced back to Bai He andPollux. BaBE! Polly! He hugged his brother, who chirped atthe affection. Then he turned his head to look at me with a big smile andpointed at me. Mama! I knew it was coming, but I just smiledat him, not wanting him to get upset. Bai He gave a short, surprised laugh thatshe quickly covered up, but her amusem*nt was still clear. Wukong on the otherhand did nothing to cover up how funny he’d found his declaration. He doubledover in laughter and held his stomach.

Whydid he call you that? He asked through his laughing fit. I pulled himup by his hair to sit straight, but it didn’t deter him whatsoever.

Well,I tried to teach him how to say my name, but at the time it was too hard for him,so he ended up babbling to Mama and he refused to unlearn it thatway. I calmly explain to hide the embarrassment I actually felt overit. Now stop laughing or you’ll make him self-conscious aboutit. I bopped him in the head, and he tried to swallow his laughter,but his shoulders shook. And stay still, it's not even thatfunny. I looked over to see if Castor had taken anything to heartonly to find that Bai He was already trying to teach him how to say her namecorrectly. I thought it was sweet seeing how much she cared about them andwanted to bond with them and was thankful that he was sufficientlydistracted.

OnceWukong got a hold of himself, things found another lull. Bai He tried to teachCastor more words until the activities of today caught up to her and I told herto get ready for bed. While she was in the shower, I took care of Wukong’s hiparea, which was very tense and awkward, but we had to get it out of the wayinevitably. Without Bai He around, it was relatively quiet, especially since Iturned off the T.V. and put the boys to bed already so it was just Wukong andI. I’d moved on to his legs by that time, so he was free to move his head andhe took in my little apartment. Though I could tell he was mostly looking atthe drawings again and his tail gently swayed in content.

Thisreally is nice. He says in a soft tone with a small smile on hisface. I stared at him for a moment before going back to trimming his furwithout responding. I could feel him look down at me as he continued.Why did you even agree to this? I paused in my work againand shrugged without looking up.

Idon’t know. I didn’t even want you in my house, but here I am on my kneescutting your hair for you in my living room. I let silence fallbetween us again as I stared blankly at his leg. I’m still mad at you,but after everything with the Lady Bone Demon and Mk, fighting you doesn’treally feel worth it anymore. I went back to trimming his fur afterthat. I could hear his heart rate spike and there was another bout of silencebefore he responded.

I’mstill mad at you too… He sighed out like all of the energy he had waszapped from him. But I never wantedto fight you in the first place. I scoffed at that.

Yeahright. I finally looked up at him. I can think of a fewtimes you’ve wanted to crackmy skull open.He flinched at my words. Why didn’t you just kill me again when youhad the chance? I know you wanted to after what I did to Mei. You could havehad the perfect excuse while you were possessed so why didn’t you? Myeyes stung, and I hated how hurt he looked from hearing this. He hadsome nerve to even look remotely upset by any of it. When he reached for me, Idid my best not to flinch, but it only resulted in me trembling. It made himhesitate, but he still went on to cup my right cheek. He wiped away the tearsthat threatened to fall from my eye with his thumb and looked into my eyes withdeep remorse.

Macaque,I never wanted to hurt you and even if we’reenemies, I couldn’t stand to lose you again. I gulped. Everything hesaid sounded sincere, but I couldn’t stand to believe any of it. I swatted hishand away and made a shadow clone other than my usual one to keep cutting hishair for me. I stood up and took a shaky breath.

Iopened a portal underneath myself and brought myself to the back of mybuilding. I threw on a glamour and walked around my block. I needed a breather,and I couldn’t listen to him or his impossible sincerity.Looking at his stupid sad face just made me so angry and so…so…I have to takeanother steadying breath. I hate that I still want to believe that asshole. Ihated how much I still trusted him when we were fighting side by side. I feltso stupid for letting myself feel anything other than resentment for him.

BeforeI knew it, I’d summoned my phone and sent a text to the only person I couldtalk to about my Wukong problems. I knew it would take a while for them to getmy message and even longer to respond, but I knew it’d be worth the wait. Italways was.

Ipocketed my phone and let out a growl of a sigh and walked back to my apartmentto give myself more time before seeing him again. I could tell he hadn’t left yetsince I didn't hear any signs of him exiting my home, nor did I spot any goldenclouds racing through the sky. By the time I reached my apartment I wascompletely drained. Instead of opening the door I opened a portal to walkthrough, dropping my glamour in the process. The door was locked, and I didn’thave my keys, so it felt easier than having to knock.

Wukonghad curled up into a ball and hid his face in his knees. My clone was brushinghis fur to make him look neat and tidy. From the sounds of it Bai He wasgetting out of the shower. Okay, I had to make this quick then. Even though Iwanted to yell at him for all the bullsh*t he’d put me through and foreverything he’s done that hurt us, there's not enough time. I had to remaincalm in this.

Hey.His head popped up at the sound of my voice. He went to speak, but I cut himoff. I don’t care about what your intentions were at any point. Evenif we forget about the times I’ve done something to warrant your reaction, youstill do sh*t that only makes things worse for everyone. I don’t want to hearanything you have to say about it now.I couldn’t even muster up the strength to glare at him. He clearly wanted tosay something, but the bathroom door opened and a sleep Bai He came out. Iwalked right past Wukong to her to gently pick her up. She put her arms over myshoulders and nuzzled into me. Ready for bed? I asked her,patting her head.

Mhm.She nodded against my shoulder. I walked into the room to tuck her in bed withthe twins.

You’vehad a long day. Get some rest, okay? I gave her, her kiss on theforehead and she hummed, nestling into the comforter. I’ll be backsoon. I took this moment of peace to calm down further, then went backto Wukong. When I exited the room, he and my clone were already staring at me.He looked like he still wanted to say something, but now that he had the spacefor it, he floundered for the words. I didn’t feel like standing around doing nothing,so I sent my clone to grab a broom and Wukong’s clothes while I investigatedWukong’s fur. My clone had done a nice job finishing things up. Now that allthe burnt bits were gone his hair was shorter, but healthier looking. There wasa spot on his head that had some gray streaks that I’d assumed was a part ofthe singed fur, but it was clearly coming in from the roots. I checked the furon his back to see if it was the same there. I could see some orange at theroots in parts so I’m sure it’ll clear up eventually.

Doyou think things will ever be okay between us? He asked in a sadwhisper.

Pshnot without a mountain of time and help. I answered instantly eventhrough my surprise at the question even being asked. I took my hands off himjust as my clone came back. I took the broom from them then dismissed them. Isaw visions of Wukong’s downhearted face, as he stared at the spot I’d leftfrom. I watched him curl up and heard him murmur ‘I should have known that’dscare him off’ to himself. I sighed. Time and space. I’ve still got alot to process now that I don’t have herin my head anymore. He watched me sweep his fur into a pile. He gotup and made another broom and a dustpan from two of his cut hairs so he couldhelp me.

Wouldyou still visit the mountain with those cubs? We swept with our backsto each other.

Onlyif Bai He and Mk come too. I really don’t wanna be there with just you andthem.

That’sfine by me. I guess we can figure out a time later, huh? I felt histail brush against mine.

Yeah,I guess. I let him wrap his tail around mine in a bout ofnostalgia.

Wedon’t talk anymore after that. He helped me clean up all of his fur and putaway everything I used for his fur. Whenever he got the chance, he’d wrap histail mine and I let myself indulge in the small affection. I knew neither of uswanted to actually apologize or talk about any of the things we’d done to eachother but letting him do this might help us at least get used to being aroundeach other again. I should have known that after everything tonight thatallowing him something so small might make him more daring. When it came timefor him to leave, he paused in the doorway. He hugged me before I could even react,and it didn’t feel like he was going to let go any time soon. I felt my wholebody shake and my tail betrayed me by wagging. My fur even fluffed up from thetouch. My heart was hammering in my chest, and I pushed him away when I felt apurr threatening to escape me.

Okaythat’s enough. My face burned, and my ears twitched from me trying tokeep them from flapping. He had a bittersweet smile on his dumb face, and Icouldn’t look him in the eyes.

Sorry,I couldn't help it. There wasn’t an iota of sincerity in that apology,and I didn’t need super hearing to pick up on that. I know thingsaren’t great, but I meant what I said. This wasnice. His smile turned into a lopsided grin, and I hated how mystomach flipped. I coughed into my fist to clear away the butterflies I shouldnot be feeling then scratched the back ofmy neck.

Uh,yeah it kind of was, despite you know, all the other stuff. We sharedan awkward laugh. Well, goodnight Wukong. I smiled at him,and I watched his tail wag. I sighed internally. What a dork. I’m not much better. Ireally am a fool when it comes to him aren’t I?

Goodnight,Macaque.

Chapter 10: Dance with me?

Chapter Text

Wukong’s P.O.V.

Yesterday had been…weird, to say the least. I got some answers that I was looking for, but now things felt just…weird. Fatherhood was a good look for him, but that made sense. He did always say he wanted cubs of his own one day. I never got it back then but seeing how much he cared about those cubs and Bai He, I kind of get it. He looked so soft with them, and he even dropped his glamour around them. He was hardly comfortable showing his white fur before, always saying he preferred it black. I mean eventually he was okay enough to show the others and I, but it took a long time. How the hell was he so comfortable showing them so soon? Was it because they were kids? I know that the little monkeys were some of the first to see him unglamoured so maybe that was it? Ugh, that’s kind of the least of my worries though.

I was supposed to be the skeptical one to keep the others safe from him. Why did I let him wash my fur? Why did I let myself get so comfortable around him? Why did I hug him and why did it feel so nice!?

I curled up on my bed and hugged myself. When was the last time I even hugged someone like that anyways? I know I’ve had side hugs with Mk, but those were different. Hugging Macaque felt so warm, however brief it may have been, and he’d looked so cute after too. I’d gotten use to him trying to be all calm, cool, and collected all the time that I’d forgotten how adorable he used to be or get. The way he blushed, and his gears glowed, and his tail wagged and uh it was so cute f*ck! What is wrong with me? Sure, there’s a chance that he really doesn’t want to fight anymore, but I still can’t believe it. After all this time and now he’s just gotten tired of me? After everything he’s done to Mk and his friends? Why do I still want to be around him? Am I that desperate for someone to talk to that I’d settle for Macaque.

I sighed and rolled onto my other side. No that’s not it. I know that’s not it. If he really wants to move on, then I’m happy for him. I guess a part of me always hoped that he’d reach out to me if that ever happened, but he’s gone on for months probably not even thinking about me. Which is good, but I really thought that maybe…

This is stupid. He’s not a threat for the time being and we’re going to talk again eventually. He agreed to bring me wherever the others left to and to show me what those sweet little monkeys look like on the mountain. He’s making plans with me in the future so he must be willing to talk about…everything, at some point or another. Mk even said he’s trying to find ways to apologize to the others, so it has to come up right? Not that I should even care this much. He’s been a jerk longer than he’s been my friend at this point or at least whatever they were before.

I stewed on that thought longer than I would have liked. What were we exactly? We never mated and I only really realized that things weren’t platonic between us after I lost him. Gods I was so stupid back then. He couldn’t have been more obvious about how he felt, and I was dumb enough to think any what we did was platonic.

I sat up and started banging the back of my head against the wall behind my bed just thinking about it. It was so embarrassing now. I doubt we’ll ever have anything close to what we had before, even with help. He made it pretty clear what he thought of me and he’s not really wrong either. I kept getting people hurt from my mistakes, but he’s still not better. He was still a liar and hiding things from me and everyone else.

What got me out of my mental funk was Mk coming over for training. I took it as a much-needed distraction and tried to get my head straight before seeing him. Unfortunately, I didn’t account for the kids' curiosity and worry.

So how did everything go with Macaque yesterday?

Uhhh-

You didn’t fight, did you? There wasn’t any surprise in his voice, just disappointment.

No! I was civil! He looked doubtful. I was, and I’m insulted you think I wasn’t. I crossed my arms in a huff.

So how did it go?

Uhhh-

Well?

I’m getting to it! I sighed. I was…okay I guess. We went to his house, and we talked. I left it there and Mk just stared at me waiting for me to continue.

And? He prompted when I stayed silent. I held my tail in my hands to fiddle with it.

Um, we hugged, and he did my fur for me. I quietly admitted. Mk smiled and pumped his fists.

That’s great right? He beamed at me, and I scratched the back of my neck and looked away from him.

I don’t know, maybe? It’s complicated bud. Macaque and I aren’t good, but I don’t think we’re bad right now either. Which is weird, but not terrible.

Well, did you have a good time?

Uh, yeah, my fur feels a lot better. My whole body felt so much lighter after I left his place. Though I couldn’t tell if it was because of the freshly cleaned fur, the massage he gave me, or the company.

Did he have a nice time? I had to think about that for a moment. Did he really have a nice time or was he just pretending to be nice for the sake of the others? He didn’t have to invite me over and he definitely didn’t have to wash or cut my fur for me. Even in private he wasn’t terrible. We even laughed together. I missed that. Honestly, he might have been more open in private. I don’t think he would have let me hug him, let alone react the way he had, if Bai He or the others were around. Maybe he did have a nice time then? Even if they yell at me a bit.

I think so?

Then that’s progress right?

I suppose. I answered hesitantly. I wanted it to be true. That he’d really given up on fighting me and for there to be a chance to reconcile with him, but I keep telling myself to doubt him. I didn’t wanna get my hopes up just for it all to be one of his schemes to hurt me, but if I never believe him then we’re never gonna get anywhere. Hey Mk, can I ask you something?

Sure, what’s up?

What’s he like when you’re around? He looked thrown off by my question.

Huh?

I’m just curious about something.

O-kay, well he’s a lot quieter than I thought he’d be. Like, when I’m at his house he usually just listens to Bai He and I talk. Unless we’re working on his apologies, but that’s mostly us practicing how it’ll go. What else? He’s about what you’d expect during Bai He’s training and his shows.

What does that mean?

I don’t know he’s just more Macaque that way. He just seems so calm and mellow any other time. Even during training he’s more lax than I was expecting, especially after the way he trained me. I couldn’t help noticing how he sounded a bit bitter about that. I’m not that surprised hearing that through. He’s only really interacted with in a fight or when he was using him so he wouldn’t know what he’d be like outside of that. He generally kept to himself on the mountain. Even after he warmed up to the rest of us, he acted like he was just a spectator. Though he did get less snarky and more teasing after he got comfortable with us. The only times he really let himself be open with the others was when he was performing for them. Whether that be telling stories to the little ones or dancing and singing during feasts and celebrations, he’d always look so captivating when he was in his element.

She’s just a kid bud, he’s probably not gonna do anything too intense. Although, from the sounds of it, that might not be the case for the next few weeks.

I, yeah that makes sense. He pouts. I patted his shoulder.

Don’t worry, I can go easy on you if you want today. Mk waved me off.

Nah, it’s alright. I was pretty distracted last time so I probably shouldn’t have another off day.

You know, you’ve gotten really dedicated to this kid. I’m impressed.

Thanks. I just wanna make sure I’m prepared for the next big thing you know?

Yeah, I get it. Things were pretty close last time, but don’t worry. We’ll make sure you’re ready. Now come on, let's get to it bud! I jumped away and put one hand behind my back so we could spar. Mk gave me a determined grin. He pulled out his staff and got into a fighting stance.

Here comes Monkie Kid!

Macaque’s P.O.V.

Again.

Bai He groaned. We were currently in my dojo, and I was having her repeat the same dance over and over until she got it down perfectly. It’s exhausting and frustrating work, that I know from experience, which was exactly the point. I was serious when I told her training was going to be hell and I think that’s finally sinking in for her. All together the dance took about 2 minutes to complete. She’d been learning the moves for a week already so it’s not brand new, but still new enough that this would feel impossible, even if we’ve been at it all week. Castor and Pollux were attempting to learn it too, but it was clear they had more stamina than her, but her form was better than theirs’.

Seriously!? What was wrong that time? I rolled my eyes.

You’re getting sloppy, and your posture is slipping. Do you want another demonstration? I kept offering to show her even though I know she knew the routine by now as a way of giving her a small break. It’s really the only leniency I’m giving her here.

Sure! Why not? She threw up her arms in frustration and walked off to the side. How does this even help? She grumbled and flopped onto the ground. Castor and Pollux joined her with a bit of concern.

I already told you it’ll help your powers flow through and out of you.

I feel like it’s not doing anything, and it doesn’t look like it’s doing anything when you do it either. She complained, and I get it. It’s frustrating when you can’t see your own progress and feel like you’re being lied to. I sighed.

That’s because you need to relax and I have more control over my powers, but you’re doing a lot better than you think. I can still show you what I’m talking about though. I walked into the center of the mat. I took a few breaths and I let my glamorous drop. I kept them on during training just in case someone, Mk, barged in again. It was easier to let my power flow out of me without my glamour acting like a cap. I breathed out a puff of purple smoke, closed my eyes and started the routine I taught her. With every step and sharp movement from my arms, smoke puffed out of me. I swirled around me as it coalesced and followed me as I danced.

How come that doesn’t happen when we do it?

It does. Just in smaller amounts and the boys' glamours keep the smoke from pouring out of them. I glance at them. Well that and I don’t think they fully understand what they’re doing. I’m sure that if they did, they’d be further along than this. I see Bai He rub her glamoured cheek.

Does that mean this is doing the same thing?

Hmm, no it’s just a small glamour. Mine, Castor, and Pollux’s glamours cover our whole bodies. She nodded along, still holding her cheek in deep contemplation. I spun over to her and smoothly sat beside them, making the smoke fan out around us. We can try something else if you want. I know if I’m dancing to music that I prefer freestyle. It’s kind of like meditation to me. I can just let my mind empty and feel the moment if that makes sense or we don’t have to keep doing dance. We can change it up and do something different, like traditional meditation or visualization if you want to try and make something more physical. She leaned against my side and hummed. I patted her head and listened to her heartbeat. I could tell she was still recovering from before and I couldn’t blame her. We’d been at it for almost an hour now. Even with all the small breaks I’d been giving her, it’s still a lot.

Can you dance with me? She asked, sounding oddly shy for some reason. While I wasn’t expecting it, I was open to the idea.

Sure, but maybe after a few more minutes of rest. She nuzzled into my arm.

Okay. As we sat together, Castor curled up against Bai He’s side and Pollux rested on top of my leg. I gently scratched behind his ear, making him purr and stretch out like a cat. When were we going to Wukong’s so I can see what these guys look like? She held Castor’s head and fiddled with his fur. He started purring and loosely held her wrist with both of his hands.

Uh, I don’t know we didn’t really get into specifics and I’m gonna be busy for the next two or three days so sometime after that, I guess. We also have to ask Mk about it since I want him there too. Maybe we’ll go on a day when he has training to make it easier. I honestly had some conflicting feelings about it. I know I was back on the mountain not that long ago, but it’d felt weird being there without having to hide in the shadows. Plus, it’d felt eerily quiet there without after everyone else left. Then there was the fact that I’d have to be around Wukong again. I had no idea what to expect whenever I saw him again after last night. It felt like things would be awkward and I had no idea what the hell we’d even talk about. I kept thinking about what he said all night while I was trying to sleep. Even when I did get to sleep, I had a nightmare of our falling out. When I woke up this morning my right eye hurt like hell. I was tempted to wear my eyepatch because of it, but I didn’t want Bai He to ask about it. It still hurt a little, but at least it was manageable now.

I can ask him what days those are for you if you want. She offered, snapping me out of my thoughts.

Hmm, yeah, I’d like that. I don’t know why, but I’d feel awkward asking myself. I actually just don’t want him asking any questions I don’t have the energy to answer right now. I know he must be curious to know about how yesterday went without him. I heard him leave for the mountain earlier, so he’s probably already asked Wukong about it. I wonder how he feels about yesterday and if he feels as weird about it as I do… How’re you feeling? She stretched out her arms and legs and groaned.

I’m okay. I carefully moved Pollux off of my leg so I could stand up. Bai He got up slowly to give Castor plenty of time to move on his own. We walked back to the center of the mats. I took both of her hands in mine, and she looked down at our feet with deep consideration.

Something on your mind there Tiny?

Can I stand on your feet?

Aren’t you a little big for that?

Maybe a little. It’s just, I’ve seen on T.V. before and it’s not like I’ve had a chance to do it when I was younger. She sounded embarrassed and disappointed. She was looking away, so she didn’t see my lopsided, affectionate grin. I lifted her up by her hands and placed her so her feet would be on top of mine. She still looked embarrassed, but she was definitely happier. I started making us sway and she giggled while still looking down at our feet.

Okay yeah, this is a little silly. She looked up and she was grinning from ear to ear.

Yeah maybe, but if it makes you happy, I’m fine with it. This would probably be easier with Castor and Pollux though. I turned us so we could both glance at them. They were currently mimicking us, with Castor standing on Pollux's feet as they precariously wobbled from their similar size. I snorted at them, which turned into a full-on chuckle when they fell into a pile. Maybe we should stop before they hurt themselves huh? I say as I watch them chitter together.

That might be for the best. I still want to dance with you though. She stepped off my feet.

Of course. I started teaching her how to waltz just because it was a slow dance. I'd probably move to something faster later to keep her on her toes. It felt odd to dance the waltz with the music from her routine, so I summoned a clone from the cloud of smoke that was forming to turn it off. Then they formed a violin from the same smoke and started to play.

You can play the violin? She asked and the moment she took her eyes off our feet to look at the clone, she stepped on mine. Not that it hurt at all. Sorry.

It's okay and of course I'm a monkey of many talents. I boast a little over dramatically just to get a laugh out of her, which worked wonders.

Okay, then what else can you play? She goats and I'm happy to rise to the challenge.

Hmm, now let's see there's… I paused to summon another clone in much the same way, this time they had a flute. The flute. Bai He oooed at their playing and I made us dance a little faster. The clarinet. We twirled sharply, making a puff of smoke. The sound of the clarinet was heard before the clone could be seen through it. Castor cooed and clapped with every new addition while Pollux’s eyes glimmered at the display. The piano! Another sweep, and a clone with a piano was added to the arrangement. We’re officially no longer doing the waltz and more just twirling and spinning wide circles around the room. I rapidly added three more instruments. The harp, the trumpet, and the cello. The room got progressively darker as more smoke and clones were created. It wasn’t much of a problem though since the more I used my powers, the more my eyes and ears glowed. The glowing of my ears made some of the smoke turn different colors to match their tri-colored nature. I could see all of the colors reflected in her eyes as she took in everything. I added more of the same instruments to get a more cohesive sound and started to sing.

Wukong’s P.O.V.

We had just finished up training and Mk was laying in the crater I left him in, resting on his back. I leaned over him to see if he was okay, and he seemed fine. Especially when he pulled out his phone because he got an alert. I got down next to him to see what he was looking at. He sat up so he could better share the screen with me. Apparently, Mei had texted him a picture of a dojo with familiar purple smoke creeping out from the door and the windows blacked out by it with the caption ‘I’m going in.’ Which I’m sure is a terrible idea. Mk texted her back not to, but we know it’s too late when she sends a video and I won't lie, the video made my heart skip a beat. Macaque unglamoured and completely immersed in singing and dancing with Bai He, surrounded by clones playing the accompanying music. His ears were glowing beautiful and lighting up the room full of colorful smoke around them. He looked so happy and relaxed, and I hadn’t seen him perform like that in such a long time. I missed it. The video ends when Macaque stops singing, the music stops, and the smoke dissipates. In a split second he and a few clones turned on a dime and lunged at Mei. She captioned the video with ‘I’m in trouble.’

Send that to me. I asked him quietly as if, even if Macaque could hear us, that he'd have the context of what I’m asking for. Mk gives me an incredulous look.

What? Why? I don’t even have your number! He shouted at me, and I shushed him just to be safe. I could never tell how much or how clearly Macaque could hear.

Just because okay!? I whisper shouted back. Here. I whipped out my phone with my tail and gave him my number and he hesitantly sent me the video. I’d probably watch it on repeat later. Mk’s phone went off again, catching both of our attention. It was another picture, this time from Bai He of Macaque, now glamoured again, presumably scolding an amused Mei. About what I had no idea, but from the text, it seemed like everything was fine. Mk sighed in relief and flopped back down. I was already watching the video again on my phone.

I know we’re not fighting anymore, but they really had me worried for a second there. I patted his shoulder without looking away from my screen. My tail lightly thumped against the ground.

Eh, I’m sure he was just embarrassed getting caught with his guard down. He probably wasn’t as freaked out as he would have been if she were a kid. I know he’s just as worried about scaring people with his looks as much as I am. Mk’s phone went off again, drawing both of our attention. It was another, shorter video from Macaque of Mei teaching Bai He and the cubs more animated dance moves. While they looked like they were struggling they seemed to be having fun. The video was captioned with Macaque letting Mk, and by proxy me, that Mei knows about their situation now and she asked just as many questions as Bai He does with an exasperated frowny face that made us both chuckle.

Well, I’m glad I don’t have to hide this from Mei anymore. She was getting pretty suspicious of me since I started hanging out with them. He let out a very tired laugh before standing up and dusting himself off. He stretched and pulled out the staff.

Where are you going? I stood up and did most of the same.

I’m going over there. I missed hanging out with Mei as much as I usually would, and it looked like they were having fun, so I wanted to join.

Can I come? Mk gives me a skeptical look and a smirk spread across his face.

You wanna see Macaque, don’t you? He confidently accused me. I sputtered, embarrassed at being called out.

What no, I'll be there to supervise. Just because we had one okay time together doesn’t mean I trust him. I huffed in denial.

Yeah, sure, that’s why you wanted that video of him. To supervise. He snickered at me, and I knew he’d officially been spending too much time with Macaque.

Obviously it is. There’s no ulterior motive to that. I crossed my arms and my tail flicked in annoyance.

Right, but I guess you can come, as long as you don’t do anything weird again.

I didn’t do anything weird yesterday! I complained, and he clearly didn’t believe me. Whatever! We can take my cloud. I summoned my cloud and pulled him up with my tail. He wrapped his arms around my waist and stayed low like the first time.

Alright, I’ll tell you where to go. Mirth was rich in his tone. I could have easily just used my gold vision to see where they were, but I’d probably make Macaque mad again if I did that, so I followed his instructions, and we were there in no time flat.

Macaque’s P.O.V.

I was in the middle of showing Mei how to swing while Bai He rested with the boys on the sidelines when the door to my dojo was roughly thrown open by Wukong with an amused and exasperated Mk. I groaned at the sight of them and rubbed my eyes.

What, did you invite them while my back was turned or something? I asked without taking my hand away from my face.

Nope, just that video of you guys. She says as she ran up to greet her friend in a tackle of a hug. I put my hands on my hips and glared at Wukong.

Then what are you guys doing here? My right eye twitched. He put his hands up defensively.

Hey it was Mk’s idea to come! He threw him under the bus and Mk made a noise of protest. I just felt like tagging along. He admitted, much quieter, not like that changed anything for me. Mei dragged both of them further inside the room and started ranting about the things I’m sure they already knew from the video she showed them. Throughout most of the explanation, Wukong kept sneaking glances at me that irritated me more after every time he did it.

Once she was done, she pulled out her phone to put on a playlist full of swing and jazz music. She grabbed ahold of me and insisted that I resume teaching her new moves. I mulled it over for a half second before making a clone take my place and appearing by Bai He’s side. I asked her if she wanted to learn now too. I figured if she did, then I’d want to teach her myself. She agreed to it, and I offered to teach Mk too if he wanted and he also accepted, so I made another clone to dance with him. I only offer Wukong, so the others don’t question it. I knew he would never say yes to that offer. He never even did me the honor of dancing with me when things were good between us. I highly doubted it would ever happen now. I was honestly surprised by how sad that thought still made me.

Nah, I’m fine with watching over here. He moved to sit with the boys, taking Bai He’s previous spot. Castor immediately climbed all over him and Pollux sat a respectable distance away from him.

Aw come on, don’t be a party pooper. Mei egged him, and he shook his head in further refusal.

Why not? Mk asked more innocently. When he takes too long to answer that question, I answered for him.

Drop it, he’s never gonna say yes. We never even danced together when we were friends. I tried to sound more annoyed than upset, but from the slightly pained look I got from Wukong, I knew he must have seen through it. I didn’t understand why he’d be upset though. It’s not like I didn’t offer back then, and I knew it wasn’t because of his stage fright because I’d even ask when it was just the two of us.

That’s kind of sad. Mei comments and my brow twitches. Mk and I dance with each other all the time. I rolled my eyes.

It’s not like I’ve never danced with friends before. I’ve just never danced with him before. Bai He gives me a skeptical look that I choose to ignore until later. I knew if I asked, she could say literally anything, and I didn’t want Mk or Mei around to hear it. Before any of them comment further I dove straight into teaching them.

Mk, Mei, and Bai He chatted between my instructions, mostly filling her in on what they’d been up to with me. They thankfully left out the fact that I was working on my apologies to everyone with them. That would have made things pretty awkward and kind of put me on the spot.

Mei was getting the hang of it faster than the others, but I shouldn’t be that surprised. This seemed right up her alley and she already seemed to be a quick learner. She’d learn how to control the Samadhi Fire in no time, so I’m sure she could handle a few dance moves. The thought made my mind wander to when I’d taught a young Red Son how to dance. He’d asked me to teach him because he wanted to impress his mother, since she always seemed to like it when I performed for them. I thought it’d been sweet, and also a little sad all things considered, but I was happy to teach him. He was an attentive student, but I already knew that from his fire training. Unfortunately, I hadn’t expected his powers to do something very similar to my smoke, but I really should have. His fire powers were linked to his emotions and expressions, and he was so excited about learning that fire puffed out of him. It nearly gave me a heart attack the first time it happened, since I’d been so close to him and we had to take a short break to reevaluate how to teach him, and because I needed to calm down. After I mentally prepared myself, things went pretty okay. He did step on my feet and stumble sometimes and he’d singed some of my fur, but he got it eventually. Tieshan had loved watching us perform together and his eyes practically sparked at the small amount of praise he’d gotten for it from her. I really hoped she’d been giving him more positive reinforcement these days, since there wasn’t as much need for her to put up such a tough, cold front. I retold most of this to everyone, leaving out Tieshan’s questionable parenting and some of my fears about getting burned. I mostly only told them because I worried something similar might happen with Mei since she had the Samadhi Fire now and low in behold wisps of flames came off of her. Since she didn’t have the same training as Red Son, those flames weren’t soft and only warm to the touch but burning. Thankfully, she was able to put it out quickly enough and we decided now was a good time to stop.

Mei offered to take us out for brunch and the others happily accepted, but I told them I’d stay behind and clean up the dojo. When they offered to help, I insisted they went ahead and that I’d be fine. They tried to push the issue, which ended with Wukong volunteering to stay behind with me so they wouldn’t have to feel bad leaving me on my own. Even though I was sure they were only offering to be polite and not because they actually wanted to. They took the boys with them, and I had to stop them before they left so I could change their glamours, so they’d look like small human children instead in matching overalls with Castor wearing a blue long-sleeved shirt underneath and Pollux in yellow to match their eyes. They all fawned over them and when Mei got too close Pollux hissed at her. I’d already asked her not to take any pictures of them and not to get too close too soon, but I guess the transformation made her forget that second half. The twins held Bai He’s hands and I told them to stay close to her and Mk, so they don’t get lost, and they both nodded in understanding and after a bit more cooing at them they left. As soon as they were gone Wukong spoke.

Polly has your grumpy face. I frowned at him, and he pointed at me. That’s the one. You’ve cursed him. I tell myself not to laugh at that and put my face in my hand.

That’s hardly my fault. I don’t say it, but I think that Castor had his smile. Why did you even come here? I sighed out and walked over to my storage closet to grab a broom.

I already told you. It was Mk’s idea. I threw a broom at him, which he fumbled with.

Yeah, but why are you here? You didn’t have to go with him, and you sure didn’t have to stay. I complained as I searched for a rag.

Uh… I could hear him fidgeting with the broom handle as he searched for an answer. I’d already found the rag and wondered if I should grab a mop instead. When he still didn’t respond, I decided that the mop was at least a better idea than the broom for him. By the time I’d found it and handed it to him, he still didn’t say anything. He looked weirdly embarrassed with a bit of something else I couldn’t place mixed it. I wanted to see you dance. He murmured in admittance and his face was a light shade of pink. Though I’m sure my face was much worse. I coughed to try and rid myself of the light feelings his words filled me with.

You’ll always watch, but never join huh? I teased, to cover up how I really felt. I took the broom from him and portalled it back to the closet.

It’s not that I never wanted to. His blush deepened, and I scoffed.

Oh please, you always refused or came up with some excuse not to. You don’t have to keep lying to me. I wonder if I had another mop?

Hey! You know how I get when I’m being watched! He loudly complained in defense of himself.

Even when we were alone you never wanted to. Besides, you didn’t have any problems being watched during the ‘FMDK incident’. I growled out. That had been so embarrassing.

That was completely different, and you know it! He growled, and his fur bristled. Was he seriously still mad at her over that?

How!? Because you were being weirdly possessive over me? We weren’t even together!

No, but we still kissed like all the time!

You didn’t even know that was supposed to be romantic! It doesn’t count! We were both bright red at this point. Even my ears were burning.

I know now!

You’re impossible! We both groaned, already exhausted from this conversation. There was a pause where we were both lightly panting from the yelling.

I really did want to dance with you. I just…I didn’t wanna mess it up. I stared at him and felt my blush get worse, but at least his did the same. My ears wanted to flutter at his quiet confession, but I was able to keep them in place.

You wouldn’t have. He couldn’t have. I would have been happy, even if he stepped on my toes with those lead feet of his. Even if we just swayed together. I listened to his heart race from my words, and I could tell he was building himself up for something.

Wanna test that? My own heart skipped a beat, and my tail betrayed me once again by wagging. A part of me hated how excited I was at the proposal, but the rest of me squashed that hatred into the back of my brain. The idea of finally getting to dance with him seemed to out weigh all the usual reasons I’d get mad for indulging in my old feelings.

Are you serious? I asked, barely above a whisper and he gave a quick nod. I tossed the rag in my hand somewhere, that truly did not matter right now. If this was my only chance to dance with him then by the gods, I was taking it. He tossed the mop aside and there was an awkward moment where neither of us knew where to put our hands.

I don’t, how, do you? Wukong sputtered during our fumbling.

I’ll lead. I say, so we can get past the awkwardness already. I put one hand on his waist and took one of his hands in mine. He placed his hand on my shoulder. I had a clone play some music for slow dancing so we wouldn’t be dancing in silence. My whole body was trembling from excitement and nerves, and I tightened my grip on Wukong to compensate. I couldn’t do anything about my fluttering ears at this point though. They were even glowing bright enough that it could be seen from under my glamour.

You’re shaking. He whispered, making my shaking worse. He massaged my shoulder in an attempt to soothe me.

S-sorry. I-if we’re being honest, I’ve wanted to do this with you for so long that, now I’m the one who’s nervous about f*cking it up. I laugh nervously. I can’t even move my feet right now. He squeezed my shoulder before taking it off to grab the hand I had on his waist to move it to his shoulder, placed his hand on my hip and pulled me closer. I chirped in surprise, and he softly chuckled at me. The sound sent shivers down my spine.

You couldn’t. I held back a whine and the want to hide my face in his shoulder. This was so pathetic, but I was too happy to care right now. Later I’m sure I’ll beat myself up over this, but that didn’t matter at the moment. He led me in a slow dance around the room and I felt some of the nerves ebb out of me, bit by bit. The longer the dance went on, I couldn’t stop myself from wondering.

Where did you learn how to dance? I felt him tense and heard his already racing heart beat faster.

Oh you know, I’m a natural. I am the Monkey King, Great Sage Equal to Heaven after all. He nervously boasted. I, however, was unconvinced.

Psh, liar. What really happened? He averted his eyes, and I realized how odd it was to be eye level with him for this. Anytime I’d pictured this, he was his original height. Having his face this close to mine felt far too intimate for our current relationship.

It’s embarrassing. I laughed lightheartedly at him.

Is it any more embarrassing than any of this or bathing with you yesterday? His blush spread to his ears now. He let out a deep sigh.

No, I guess not. It does feel kind of sad though.

If you tell me, I’ll tell you about this place that sells peach flavored ice cream. I bribed him in a singsong tone. I could see him considering it and when he literally shakes the idea from his head.

No way. You’re just gonna laugh at me. I hummed.

Yeah, you’re probably right. I would. Despite my comment, we smiled at each other. I summoned some clones to clean up for me so we could keep dancing together without having to worry about getting that done before the others got back.

You know, I can’t believe you agreed to do this.

I can’t believe you asked after all this time. I figured it was an impossibility by now.

Yeah well, I didn’t think there’d be a better time to ask at this point. We shared a soft laugh. Maybe it’s because I was lulled into the comfortable atmosphere between us or maybe it was because I was feeling especially indulgent, but I let myself lean my head against his shoulder. He tensed, but quickly relaxed and his hand migrated to the small of my back. We stopped moving around and just swayed in place.

We changed our holds on each other so my hands both rested on his shoulders and his hands were joined behind my back. I felt a purr trying to creep out of me, but this time I heard him purr first. It seemed to surprise the both of us, but he doesn’t try to stop it or pull away like I would have. In fact, he held me closer. I knew he was never ashamed whenever he purred, unlike me, but I still wasn’t expecting him to be so open about it. When I felt his tail intertwine with mine, I let my own purr rumble out of me and wrapped my arms over his shoulder. It felt so warm to be held in his arms again and listen to his heartbeat. I knew indulging like this was only going to hurt later, and that this only gave me more things I’d have to discuss, but I could be okay with that. I could only hope that Tieshan doesn’t somehow find out about this or else she’d chew me out for even giving him the time of day again after all the whining I did over him.

Eventually, when I heard the others making their way back over here, we pulled away. Although Wukong did put up a bit of a fight when I tried to get out of his grasp. I teased him for suddenly being super clingy and he pouted. We had just enough time to compose ourselves before they returned, and we both silently agreed not to talk about it.

Bai He told me all about the breakfast restaurant Mei had brought them to, accompanied by chirps and the occasional few words from Castor. Pollux on the other hand immediately climbed onto me and wrapped his arms around my neck. I moved to cradle him in my arms, and he nestled into me instantly. I guess he’d reached his social limit for the day on their excursion and wanted some comfort.

You can tell me more when we get home. I think Pollux wants to get back now. I kissed the top of his head and he only nestled into me further. Castor nodded and waved goodbye to everyone before climbing me as well and resting on my shoulder so he could look over his brother. I opened a portal so we could get back as soon as possible.

See you guys at Pigsy’s! Bai He said her goodbyes which Mei and Mk returned in kind. I only waved as my goodbye and stepped through the portal, closing it as soon as Bai He stepped through. I found the blanket Bai He had gotten the boys so I could wrap Pollux in it. I rocked him in my arms like a baby and lulled him to sleep. Once I’m sure he’s out, I tucked him into bed and placed another kiss on his forehead. I closed the door to the room so he could rest in peace. That’s when I cued Bai He and Castor to speak again, but quietly. As they spoke, I got started on cooking for tomorrow. It was a nice distraction from everything that’d just happened between Wukong and I. I didn’t want to unpack any of that before visiting Chang’e. She still hadn’t gotten back to me, but I knew she was probably busy with her show and business, so I didn’t take it to heart. That being said, I desperately needed to talk about the Wukong situation sooner rather than later because my heart was still pounding in my chest and the distracting scent of peaches that was clinging to my clothes was driving me crazy. If I don’t get these feelings out of me soon, I’m gonna scream.

Wukong’s P.O.V.

So how’d it go? Mk asked me with the biggest grin on his face and for some reason, Mei had a matching grin.

Fine…Why are you looking at me like that? They exchanged a look with each other then looked down.

Your tail is wagging. Mei pointed out and I snatched it without even having to look back and wrapped it around my waist.

That doesn’t mean anything. I fought down my blush and crossed my arm. They giggled amongst themselves.

I’m just happy you guys are getting along. Even if you were just ‘supervising’. I took a deep breath in through my nose and let out a heavy sigh from my mouth.

Don’t make this weird Mk. Mei came over to me and threw her arm over my shoulders.

Oh relax, we’re just teasing you. We would have done the same to Macaque if he’d stuck around longer. That just makes me glad he didn’t. “I do have to wonder though.” She plucked something off of me. Whose fur is this? She brought a black and white strand of fur in front of my face. My face burned and I ducked out of her hold.

I have no idea! I made a b-line for the exit. I didn’t want to talk about this with them. I’ll see you for training later, okay BYE!The moment I was out the door and away from their giggles, I made my cloud and planned to go back to the mountain but made an executive decision to go to my shame temple instead.

I bursted through the doors and harshly shut them and placed a seal over the door so no one could disturb me. I let my tail wag freely and hugged myself tightly. I replayed the memory of dancing with Macaque over and over again until I had the perfect play-by-play of what happened and plucked a hair from my head. I blew on it and made a D.V.D. of my memory on it. I went to the room with my D.V.D. player and T.V. inside. There were pictures hung up on the walls I’d made from my memories of other monkeys and old friends long gone inside. I hesitantly replaced my previous D.V.D. memory with the new one and pushed the couch I had in there closer to the screen. I turned on the T.V. and hovered over the play button on the remote for what felt like forever. This always happened when I came here for this kind of thing. It made me feel so dirty for obsessing over old or new memories like this, but in the end, I always indulged, telling myself that this was what I came here for. What I made this place for. So I could have a secluded place all to myself to stew on what once was. What could have still been. I cast a side-eyed glance at a picture of a memory with Macaque hung up on the wall. We’d been watching the sunset together in his favorite spot after a long day of horsing around with all the other monkeys. The colors of the fading lights reflected beautifully in his pure white fur. I’d had my arm around him, and we were leaning heavily against one another. He’d felt so warm pressed up against my side and when he looked at me with that loving and soft expression that he had in the picture, I knew there was no place I’d rather be in that moment. I really was such a foolish monkey back then, not to fully understand my own feelings for him and time hasn’t made things much easier.

I refocused on the T.V. and pressed play on the remote and was greeted with the adorably flustered Macaque that I was privy to not an hour ago. It was still the same monkey, but he was different now. Older, more worldly, a father, annoying, scarred, even more teasing, stupidly pretty, yet unfairly cute, so, so unfair and despite everything that’s happened between to him and between us, he still managed to be so endearing by acting so nervous over a dance. Not that I was doing much better on the inside. I’m sure if he wasn’t so distracted, he would have commented on my heart sounding like it was going to explode. I could still feel a tingly sensation in my hands and all over my body from where we touch.

Gods above the hug and grooming were bad enough for my psyche. What the hell was I supposed to do now that I’ve cursed myself with this?

Despite that thought, I sat there replaying that memory for three hours before I managed to pull myself away from my shame temple. Before leaving I attempted to purge any thought of the memory from my mind, but with zero results. I sighed in defeat and resigned myself to my fate of being plagued with the mental image of him.

Oh well, I guess there were worse things to get stuck in my mind.

Chapter 11: Dinner Time

Chapter Text

The next day I’d gotten up extra early to finish cooking DBK’s meal. It was massive so it took a lot longer to prep and cook than the rest of the food I was preparing. I’d already scrounge around for the container I’d transport his food in last night and it was most just a matter of waiting.

In that time I laid out an outfit to change into after I was done. It was something Tieshan had gifted to me the last time I was over. A red hanfu that was accented in gold and black that had the emblem of the Demon Bull Clan on the back. I hung it up on my closet door and set out some silver and white gold jewelry on my dresser. There were a number of necklaces, bracelets, and clip-on chain earrings. I planned on letting Bai He borrow some for today. I knew Tieshan would probably wanna see her in something barring their family crest, so I planned on offering her the white gold necklace I used to wear all the time back in the day. It’d been an unexpected gift from them after their wedding to not only show that I was always welcome, but to send a message to other demons not to mess with me. I usually only wore it for special occasions nowadays, but most high-profile demons would recognize it as mine. I wasn’t planning on telling Bai He that, but I was going to make it her choice if she wanted to wear it or not. Then I set out to find the matching outfits she’d sent me for Pollux and Castor.

I hung up their clothes beside mine as well as an outfit Bai He and I bought yesterday for her for the occasion. She’d been very excited to pick out a matching outfit for whatever reason and was even happier to get a red bandana and neckerchief. She said that the two of us could match all the time this way, which was just adorable so I couldn’t refuse or be contradictory. Though from her words, I knew Tieshan was really gonna lay into me about just accepting her as my child already. I could only hope that she refrained from doing so in front of her. I wouldn’t have the heart to deny anything if Bai He was the one asking if she was my kid now.

As I was thinking, there was an unexpected knock at the door. I strained my ears to see if I could tell who was there. I didn’t fully believe what I heard and cautiously approached the door to peer through the peephole. Sure enough, my ears weren’t messing with me. I threw on a quick glamour, and I opened the door for them.

Mei. I knew she was supposed to come over later and she didn’t strike me as a morning person, so I wasn’t expecting her this early. Once she’d heard Bai He and I were going to visit the Demon Bull Family she’d practically invited herself along and I figured it’d just be easier to just accept her presence and work with it instead of against it, which is how we agreed to make the trip together.

Macaque. She responded in a playful tone as she let herself in.

What are you doing here so early? I asked as I closed and relocked the door behind her. She flopped down on the couch and made herself comfortable.

Oh you know, I couldn’t sleep and thought, hey! Why don’t I just go bug Macaque? So here I am. She grinned at me, and I sighed through my nose. I could tell there was something off about what she’d said, but I didn’t feel like prying.

Whatever, just keep it down. Bai He’s still sleeping. I grumbled as I walked into the kitchen to check on DBK’s food.

Okay! She says, far too loud and I shoot her a look. Okay, sorry. She whispered. I sighed and took out the dessert I’d made for DBK. Is that a giant pie? She whisper shouted, and I held in a groan.

Yes. I bit out and portalled in the giant container I had to get for the various things I had to prepare for him. Even with the size of it, I’m sure it’d be like having a normal slice for him.

Can I have some? She was already rising from her spot to marvel at it.

No, I made a normal sized pie for us to share later. I batted her hand away when she tried to touch it.

You’re no fun. She briefly pouts, before her face breaks into a smile. It smells really good though. She took out her phone to get a picture of it.

Thank you. It was a pain in the ass to make and I still have to make dumplings. I complained, and she snickered. Thankfully yesterday hadn’t been so bad since I prepared most of the ingredients with Bai He and the boys. Regardless of the massive mess I had to clean up after from things that overflowed or poofed out of the bowls we used, it was nice having them help.

Ooo, are those gonna be giant too? She asked jokingly.

Three of them will be, which is gonna suck. I could probably summon a clone to help me though, but I was still mad at my usual clone.

Really? She excitedly asked, still managing to whisper.

Yep, what did you think I was buying all those ingredients for yesterday? She had tagged along with Mk to drop off Bai He and I’d just been coming back with the rest of the groceries I needed. I started laying out all the things I’d already prepared. The kids had really enjoyed chopping and shredding all the vegetables and mushrooms for the fillings.

Hey I don’t know how much you all eat. For all I know you go through all of that in a week. She quipped, and I rolled my eyes. I know that Wukong liked to stuff his face, so maybe the rest of them were gluttons as well. That, or I’m not a good judge of how much people are supposed to eat. I know I started eating more regularly when I started taking care of Castor and Pollux. Pollux used to either wait for me to eat or offer me food when he noticed I didn’t eat with me. Once Bai He came along, I had to make bigger meals and I was pretty sure she’d definitely notice and say something if I didn’t eat with them.

Even if I ate big meals three times a day, this is too much. I gestured to the growing mountain of bowls full of filling ingredients. I didn’t feel like actually sharing any of my bad eating habits with her.

Eh, I’m sure you could do it between the four of you.

Tsh, maybe if the kids were bigger, especially Pollux and Castor. They’re practically babies still. I got out my steamer so I could prepare my dough in it. Hm, I wonder if their appetites will be more like mine or if they’ll have bottomless stomachs like Wukong?

How old are they, in like, monkey years? She fiddled with the edge of one of the plastic coverings I had over my bowl of minced mushrooms.

Well ‘monkey years’ are the same as human years and they’re three. They’d be considered toddlers, but I mean, they’re obviously not on the same level developmentally as a human toddler. They’re more like small children I guess. I lined my steamer with lettuce and the first giant dumpling wrapping.

That makes sense. They were super cute yesterday. I never pictured you as papa Macaque. They look just like you! She gestured wildly to all of me. I’m surprised that she still managed to keep her voice down during all of this. She seemed like the more excitable one between Mk and her, but maybe I was wrong.

Please don’t call me that. She snickered at my reaction.

Aw, what's wrong with being Papa Macaque? You had Polly cradled in your arms like a little baby and you gave him little kisses too, it was soo cute. I rolled my eyes at her light teasing and just started adding the vegetable fillings.

It’d be one thing if they said it, it’s entirely different when you say it. I don’t even bother looking at her while we talked.

Does that mean they are your kids? She doesn’t sound as teasing this time. Just plain curious.

Why does everyone care so much about this? I say it mostly to myself, but in an empty, quiet room it might as well have been to everyone.

Well from all the terrible things you’ve done, seeing you as a loving father is pretty jarring. She says it boredly and like it was the most obvious thing in the world. I knew there was a lot of truth to that, but it still stung to hear.

Fair point… I can’t imagine someone like the Lady Bone Demon being a caring mother after everything she’d put me through. I threatened Mei and all of her friends in front of her and stuck her with having to live with the Samadhi Fire for the rest of her life just so I could save my own pathetic hide. It was terrifying to witness her being engulfed in flames like that and I could do more than just imagine what that felt like. Even now I could smell my own singed fur and burning flesh. My ears had been ringing from the screams of the other monkeys on the mountain.

Macaque? Their voice was warbly, and I gripped the counter in an attempt to ground myself. I take slow, deep breaths and try to think of anything else but that. “Hey, are you okay?” I’m vaguely aware of Mei getting up and slowly approaching me. I think about Bai He and the boys, about all the things I have to do today, about dancing with Wukong, dancing with Bai He…

I’m okay. I sighed out. I strained my ears to hear the noises outside my apartment. People making their commute to work, people just getting home, people walking their animals and getting their kids ready for school…I seriously have to talk to Bai He about her school situation. I’m okay, that just brought up some bad memories. My eye refocused onto the here and now and I could see Mei in front of me with clear concern written all over her face. Sorry about that. I rubbed my eyes and groaned. When I take my hand away to lean heavily against the counter, I’m surprised to see that she still hovered close by, tense with worry. I sigh and make a decision in that moment. Hey, look, I’m sorry about what happened with Mk and the Lady Bone Demon and the Samadhi Fire. I-I had an idea of what might have happened, but I had no idea that you, that you’d… I trailed off a little to collect myself and she patiently waited for me to continue. I know what it’s like to have your whole body set ablaze. The pain of being scorched and burned alive. How terrifying it is and I’ve only got some idea of the intense heat of the Samadhi Fire, but I know I would never wish that feeling of pain, fear, and anguish onto anyone and I’m sorry that I put that onto you. My ears folded down, my tail had tucked itself between my legs, and I was biting my lip and subconsciously bowing my head in apology. There was another silence where she waited to make sure I was done. Once she knew I was indeed finished, she roughly patted my head twice before quickly coming around the counter to throw an arm over my shoulders and ruffle my fur.

Aw, you do care. She leaves her arm over my shoulders. Ya know Mk was talking about how you wanted to make amends with everyone, but I didn’t think you’d actually apologize. I kinda thought you’d try and pretend like nothing happened. I mean I knew you apologized to Mk, but still! I felt thoroughly jarred by her hyper reaction. I didn’t think it was a fully genuine response, but it was nice to get the feeling off my chest. Plus, it was nice to be able to move past the awkwardness as soon as humanly possible. Though I had a feeling she also didn’t want either of us to linger on the memories, which I appreciated.

Yeah, well I didn’t expect it from me either, but I gotta set a good example for the boys. And make things a little easier for Bai He.

Aw such a good dad. She jostles me a bit more before relaxing her hold on me to have her arm hang loosely around my shoulders. But you know what would really go a long way? Making me a giant food too. She grins at me, and I roll my eyes, affectionately this time. I gently took her hand off of me so I could get back to filling the first dumpling.

I’ll think about it, but something like this takes a lot of prep so I’m gonna need you to tell me what you want first.

Ooo really? Her eyes gleamed with excitement. I snickered and she really reminded me of Bai He right now. I wonder if she’s awake yet?

Sure, why not? Don’t expect it anytime soon though. Once the first dumpling was full, I started making the pleats. I was going to make them all into the shape of a half moon.

Yesss ugh, but so many possibilities. I shook my head and my ears flicked when I heard stirring in the room. I made a clone to take my place so I could walk into the room to check on them. I still wasn’t using my main clone since I was still mad at him, so it was just a purple clone.

I peeked into the room and Mei followed close behind. She quietly awed at the sight of Bai He curled up with Castor and Pollux and the ladybug blankie that Pollux cuddled more than rested under. Pollux’s ears perked up at the sound of Mei’s cooing and his eyes opened just enough to glare at her. I told her to stay in the doorway as I went into the room. I crouched beside the bed and scratched behind his ear. He purred and his eyes slowly slid shut again. He rolled over and climbed up my arm to rest on my shoulder and nuzzle into my neck. Both Bai He and Castor were disturbed by his absence and slowly roused to semi consciousness. I subtly glamoured her cheek as I gently brushed some hair out of her face.

Mr. Macaque? She groggily opened one eye.

Mornin’ Tiny. I softly whispered to her, and her eye closed again.

My body hurts. She complained, and I chuckled at her.

Yeah, well lucky for you, there’s no training today. I moved to sit on the side of the bed. Her face scrunched up before her eyes shot open and her face split into a wide smile. She quickly sat to beam up at me, much to Castor’s displeasure.

We're meeting the Princess Iron Fan today! She excitedly jumped out of bed to get ready and upon hearing that name Castor also sprung up, knowing he was going to see Tieshan again. He leapt onto me and excitedly chirped to his brother about what they were gonna do today. Pollux nodded along with his brother and occasionally chirped back with his own thoughts.

You guys are cute. Mei’s comment startles Bai He and Castor into jumping in place and I chuckled at them both.

Mei! You’re here! She smiled at her then a mild panic entered her eyes. Wait, what time is it? She looked around the room for a clock.

Relax, it’s still early. You’ve got time. She breathed a sigh of relief. But put on some clothes you don’t mind getting a little dirty cause I’m still cooking. I got up to ruffle her hair.

Okay! She raced to her suitcase to rummage around in her suitcase for something to wear in the meantime.

If I help, can I sneak some food ahead of time?

Hmm, if you do a good job, then maybe. I walked out of the room and closed the door behind me to give Bai He her privacy.

I dismissed my clone and made Mei, Castor, and Pollux all wash their hands before they could actually start helping me and when Bai He eventually joined us, I had her do the same. Together we filled and closed up the other two giant dumplings and set them aside for when the first one was done. Then we worked on the normal sized dumplings and desserts I planned on making for everyone else to enjoy.

As we cooked, Mei and Bai He talked about Red Son and the whole Demon Bull family. Mei mostly talked about fire training and how fun it was to tease Red Son, to which I agreed, while Bai He told her about the stories, she’d heard about them from me. When Castor tried to mimic some of the words, they used to describe Tieshan, the girls started to teach him more phrases and Mei tried to teach him how to say her name. He was eager to learn new words and was far more attentive here than he was during training. That was okay though. There wasn’t any rush for him to get his powers under control and it was nice to see him learning about things he enjoyed.

Besides, Pollux and Bai He were the two I was really worried about in that respect. From what I’ve seen from all of them is that Bai He struggles to manifest her powers on purpose, Pollux’s strength is always on, but Castor’s powers have a more natural flow to it. I suspect that he might be able to use his powers freely, but chooses not to, or at least not while I’m around. Only time could tell, but I don’t think Castor is in any danger of hurting others or himself. Pollux on the other hand was an odd case. I think he knows how strong he’s becoming because he's been showing clear signs of restraint around the house, but less so when we’re in the dojo. Then there was the matter of Bai He. I could sense her powers and it feels like her biggest problem is that she’s afraid of her own powers, but I want a second opinion. I can’t physically see what her powers look like, like Wukong or even Mk could so maybe I’ll ask them what the internal problem looks like later. Even with the possible hindrance, she’s been getting stronger, and I can’t wait to tell Tieshan about all of this.

When we’re almost done cooking, I told Bai He to go get cleaned up while Mei and I finished cooking and putting things in containers so she could get dressed in her fancy clothes. I let Mei and the boys sneak one dumpling each for all their hard work and when Bai He was out of the shower, I let her have one too. When she got dressed in her hanfu and red bandana, I showed her all the jewelry I set out earlier. Her eyes gleamed and she went straight for the necklace.

It’s so pretty, and the little bull has six ears! Her reaction made me smile.

Let me see! Mei peered over her to inspect the emblem.

I’m gonna give Castor and Pollux a quick bath. You can choose whatever you like, or none of it, whatever you’re comfortable with.

Okay! The two of them were already experimenting with the jewelry and Mei was complimenting her on all of it.

The bath didn’t take too long, and I had to bathe with them to save time. I summoned a few clones to help dry us all off quickly and when they were done, we all looked very fluffy. The clones groomed our fur, and I ran through a mental checklist to see if there was anything I was forgetting. Food? Check. Clothes? Check. Accessories? Check. Hmm, was there anything I needed to do? Mentally prepare Bai He for seeing DBK? Nah, isn’t that kind of implied if we’re going to see Tieshan? Maybe, but it couldn’t hurt going over. I suppose…Makeup? That might be a bit much for dinner. Good point. I’ll hold off then.

I got the boys and I dressed, and I helped Bai He with her hair. I tied it back into a braided bun and stuck two golden hair sticks with red and yellow flowers on the ends into her hair. I passively noticed as I was doing her hair that she did end up choosing my necklace in the end. Once I was finished with her hair, I put on my clip on my chain earrings and a few bracelets.

Man, I feel underdressed next to you guys. Mei mused, not sounding at all worried about her looks.

Eh, it’s just a formality since this is the first time, she’s meeting Bai He so it’s kind of like a sign of respect. That being said, we are not doing this for Jin and Yin tomorrow. I summoned a mirror to hand to Bai He and she gasped.

I’m so pretty!

The prettiest. She giggled at my compliment.

Pretty Bai He! Castor exclaimed, throwing up his arms and making her giggle even more. She opened her arms and he jumped to her to hug her.

Aw thanks Cassy, I think you both look adorable. He chittered, and his tail lightly wagged as he nuzzled into her.

Ugh, why are you guys so cute I’m gonna die! Why won't you let me take pictures, you monster? Mei loudly complained, and I scoffed.

I told you; I don’t want you putting their faces everywhere. I try very hard to keep their existence a secret, Mei. She pouted and rolled my eyes.

Hey, I can keep a secret! I gave her a look. Please? She gives me puppy dog eyes and it makes me want to laugh again.

No. I summoned a few clones to help carry DBK’s food and opened a portal. Now remember Bai He, you’re not just meeting Princess Iron Fan, you’re also meeting DBK, and I know you’ve technically already met Red Son, but he’ll obviously be there too. This goes for you two too. I pointed at Castor and Pollux. They were almost in the same position since they’ve only gotten to meet Tieshan before. I wasn’t too concerned about them meeting DBK, but I was a little worried about Red Son and his temperament. I trusted him not to go up in flames around them, but it didn’t erase my concern.

I know. I can’t wait too. They all seem so cool! Mei and I both barely stifle a laugh at that.

I’m sure they’ll be happy to hear you say that. I start gently nudging her toward the portal. Castor was still clinging to her and wrapped his legs around her when she stood up.

Yeah, I’m sure Red Boy will be real happy about it. He’ll probably be so flustered his hair will do the WHOOSHING thing it does. Mei and I snickered together while Bai He became even more excited. We joked around with each other about just how easy it was to fluster Red Son as we finally left for the Demon Bull family’s home.

We arrived just outside their home to find the doors already opened with Tieshan directing the clones to the kitchen. Red Son stood beside her, trying to look serious and put together. That image was almost immediately torn down by Mei manhandling him into a side hug. Tieshan gave them a side-eyed look at Red Son’s squawking, but she was quick to brush it aside once she’d heard Castor’s excited chirping as he leaped out of Bai He’s arms to run over to her. She offered a hand to them, which he jumped onto so he could climb up her arm to sit on her shoulder.

I see the clothes fit nicely. She commented as she gave him chin scritches, making him purr and his tail wag. Pollux slowly crawled down my body, not to go over to Tieshan like Castor, but to stand beside Bai He and hold her hand. That’s when I realize that Bai He has tensed up now that she’s actually in Tieshan’s presence. I put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, and she leaned against my side.

They’d better, you did have them tailor made after all. I mused, and I watched the way her eyes traveled down to Bai He before looking back to me expectantly. I cleared my throat and gestured to her with my free hand. Right so, Tieshan, this is Bai He, Bai He this is Princess Iron Fan. Bai He shyly waved to her and in return she received a small smile from her.

Ah, so this is the niece you’ve been hiding from me. Wind swirled around the three of us, making us float a little and bringing us closer to her. She gently puts us back down and I see Bai He’s eyes were shimmering.

Niece? She asked her, looking between us.

Of course. You’re under Macaque’s care so you’re a part of this family, despite anything he might say to argue that point. Tieshan bent over a little to inspect Bai He. She reached for their necklace and hummed. Though this should be proof enough of what he thinks. She casts a judging look up at me.

What does that mean? Bai He looks up to me for answers. Tieshan responded before I could even react.

Only good things. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Macaque has spoken quite fondly of you. She stood back up to her full height to turn and walked back into their home, expecting us to follow. I gently nudged Bai He so she would move her feet so we could follow her. Mei’d already dragged Red Son away to somewhere else. From the sounds of it, they were on their way to his workspace.

He talks a lot about you too. Bai He says and Tieshan gives me a scrutinizing look as a result.

Does he now? She asked like she didn’t already know I worked at a theater telling stories from my last visit.

Only good things. Bai He reassures her.

They’d better be. Her eyes narrowed.

Is that a threat? I asked her, going along with whatever she’s doing.

Only if it needs to be. I know she’s joking, but her general tone makes it hard to tell for people who don’t know her.

I’m sure I’ll be fine then. Where’s DBK? She looks ahead straight again.

I sent him out to get some fresh meat for later. He should be back soon. In the meantime, Bai He, you’ve been under Macaque’s care for some time now. Why don’t you tell me about yourself? I heard that you were being trained by him. How has that been going? Bai He looked to me for guidance, and I smiled softly at her.

You can tell her whatever you want. She can keep a secret. I whispered to her, and she nodded as she mulled over my words.

Okay, um well, it’s been really hard, but I’ve gotten pretty used to waking up early and I like not having to go through it alone. Mr. Macaque is really patient with me, and he started teaching me how to dance too. It was really annoying at first though since he made it really hard for me yesterday! I couldn’t help snickering at her frustration.

I do hope you aren’t torturing the poor girl Macaque.

Hey, in my defense she deserved it. She’s got three weeks of grueling training as punishment.

It wasn’t that bad. All I did was-

Bup, bup, bup, lets maybe not talk about this in front of her, okay? They both eyed me suspiciously. I could already tell Bai He was committing to another week or more of pain as her suspicion morphed into a villainous smirk.

She knows, doesn’t she?

Bai He… I say in warning and her smirk only grew. I started resigning myself to my fate, thinking that it’d be better to get this over with now rather than wait till later. I had a pretty good feeling that she’d just ask when I wasn’t around, and it’d probably be better if I was around for the inevitable so I could defend myself.

Princess Iron Fan, did Mr. Macaque and Wukong use to date? Tieshan gave me a disapproving glare before scoffing.

Are you really still hung up on that ape? Her tone was anything, but humorous.

It’s not like that. She stopped walking and turned around to give me an unimpressed look and without breaking eye contact she asked.

Now Bai He, why would you ask such a question?

Oh there’s a lot of reasons. Actually, on second thought.

You know I barely got to see my sweet little nephew. I’m gonna see how he’s doing. I tried to run away by ducking into a portal, but wind swirled around me and swept me off the ground, separating me from Bai He.

In what world do you believe that this will be any less incriminating for you if you run away? I made myself float instead of being held aloft by her so I could sit comfortably with my arms crossed in a nonexistent chair in the air.

No, but I’m willing to take my chances. I leaned forward, turning myself upside down so I could face Bai He and Pollux. Have fun with your gossiping and keep an eye on each other. With that I dissipated into shadows, and reform far enough away that I could easily make a portal and step through it to get to Red Son’s workshop.

When I did portal over, I stayed in the shadows of the walls both so I could observe him and so the sound of him working wouldn’t be as jarring to my ears. I know it’s the right call when I see Mei and him working on a car together. It looked similar to the one he used in that street race. I hadn’t really gotten to watch because I skipped town that day, but I did watch it briefly on my phone. Only checking it when things got interesting and to see when it was okay for me to head home.

Even from what little I saw then; I could still see the differences that were definitely Mei inspired. Whether it be from the somewhat sleeker design or the accents of electric green along with the usual red and purple. It was nice to see him having someone he could work with on something he cared so much about. He’d always enjoyed tinkering and creating, but Tieshan and I couldn’t enjoy it the same way he did. Sure, I’d try to encourage him whenever I was around, but I’d always wished I could have done more for him. Seeing him working on a project with someone with shared interest warmed my heart. I could even hear how elated he sounded when they bounced ideas off of each other.

I let myself enjoy the scene for a little longer and only decide to pop my head out when there’s a lull in conversation. I did sneak a picture of the genuine smile on his face before making my presence known to the two of them first though.

Red Nephew! Good to see ya kiddo! I smirked when he jumped and stumbled back. Then he was flustered when he registered the nicknames he pretended to hate, and Mei and I giggled at him for it.

Uncle. He says as he dusts himself off in an attempt to compose himself.

Macaque. Mei cheekily adds.

Mei. I nodded to her. Whatcha workin on? I stayed halfway in the wall.

Well if you must know, it’s a race car. It’s going to replace the cars someone wrecked. He glared at Mei, and she gave him a toothy smile while I snorted.

Oh yeah? I wonder who that could have possibly been? I finally fully emerged from the wall, hopping down so I could walk around the vehicle. It was pretty impressive, but so was everything he made in my opinion. How long have you been working on this for?

It’s been a little over a month, right? Mei asked Red Son and his eyebrows rose in surprise. He rubbed his chin as he thought it over.

Has it really been that long already? He mumbled in disbelief.

Time flies when you’re having fun I suppose. I lightly teased him.

Hardly. He huffed.

Aw, don't deny it. You should have seen his face when we started talking about doing this together. His eyes practically lit up, it was adorable. He squawked indignantly, and a light blush dusted his cheeks. His heart even skipped a beat at being called adorable. Interesting… I went over to him so I could obnoxiously lean against.

DAWW, that’s cute. I’m so glad you made a little friend. I pinched his cheek and he flailed to get me off of him.

I did no such thing! He backed up only to bump into Mei, who’d come around to join in on the teasing, but something about the look in her eyes told me that I wouldn’t be safe from it.

He totally did, but don’t worry Red Boy, from what I hear Macaque’s pretty embarrassing too. Despite how concerning that sentence is to me, I was wildly curious to hear what could possibly come out of her mouth.

Oh? I asked, challenging her, making her smirk grow.

Mhm, breakfast was very enlightening yesterday. There was a certain gleam in her eyes.

What are you- Mei put a finger to Red Son’s lips to gently shush him.

Just wait kiddo. I looked at him as I spoke, but quickly reestablished eye contact with Mei.

I heard you and Monkey King were getting pretty chummy with each other the other day. She pumped her eyebrows, implying something more. I scoffed and crossed my arms.

As if, he’s such a pain in the ass, but you too seem to have gotten pretty chummy yourselves. Her eyes squinted and wrapped her arms around Red Son, much to his false displeasure, but very real embarrassment.

What’s happening here? He questions, pulling enough away from Mei’s hold to look at her.

We’re trying to see who breaks first. I answered him.

And I plan on winning. She finishes. Also, I’m officially taking the title of Red Son’s new bestie. She shook him, and he complained.

Good to hear it. I have no plans on reclaiming my old title with a certain, idiotic monkey. It didn’t have as much bite as I wanted to, but I still meant what I said. Even if we somehow managed to make amends, I couldn’t see us having anything close to the relationship we used to have, and I don’t think I want that kind of relationship either. He was basically my only friend and while he was a little possessive at time, I think my…feelings for him became obsession after he ‘disappeared’ the first time. It wasn’t the best in hindsight, and I never want to become so dependent on him ever again. Not that I think that could happen since I have more friends that I can rely on and a family now, but a part of me is still hesitant when I’m around him.

Why not? I don’t think it’d be that hard. I don’t think you’ll have a lot of competition. She says it without the teasing, playful tone she’d had this whole time.

I feel like Mk might argue with you on that one.

Hmm, maybe, but I don’t think he’s as thrilled about being his successor.

What did the hype finally wear off?

I think so?

Good. Red Son and I said at the same time, and she didn't argue.

I don’t know how you were ever friends with him in the first place. I didn’t think you’d want to be around some so…so…

Him? I offered.

I suppose that’s as good of a way to put it as any. He grumbled, and I shrugged despite feeling a little defensive.

Your dad used to be sworn brothers with him so it shouldn't surprise you that much. Besides, it’s not like we were instant friends. He was a lot more…let’s say lackadaisical, than he tries to be now, but he was really fun to mess with which I guess was endearing to me since he put up with it. It was slow going, but he was nicer to me than a lot of other people I’d met at that point in my life and- And he liked my ears. That made me stick around long enough to want to stay. I subconsciously fiddle with the fur by my ears. Red Son’s face softened as I described Wukong and I’s past relationship while Mei hummed with clear amusem*nt.

If you talk about him like that all the time, I can see why Bai He thinks you two dated. Her accusations are inescapable. I brought a hand up to massage my eyes and groaned.

They didn’t. Red Son stated, and I groaned even more.

It doesn’t matter. The point was that it wasn’t that weird that I was friends with a guy like him geez. I felt my fur bristle.

I think I won. I heard her whisper to Red Son, and I growled.

I can hear you. She giggled.

Eheh, you know I’m pretty sure he’d be open to being friends again. Mk said he really liked seeing you dance again. Red Son and I perked up at that, even though I already knew that. It was just nice hearing it again.

Oh right, mother saw that video you sent me of him. We didn’t realize you were dancing again. I’m gonna have to ask her how many people she shared the video with.

I was always still dancing, just not like that. I mumbled.

We’re happy for you either way, Uncle. That made my ears flap under their glamour, and I blushed a little bit. Not that they could tell under my mask.

Thanks, but it was mostly just for Bai He’s training. My ears flick at the sound of the door opening.

Hm, I’m sure that’s why you were showing off so much. For training. I’m surprised to find there isn’t any judgment in Tieshan’s tone, just mild amusem*nt. Though from what I’d heard from her conversation with Bai He, there’d been plenty of it before. Speaking of.

Where’re the kids? Even Castor wasn’t with her.

They’re getting acquainted with their Uncle. Bai He wanted to speak with him about something in private. I folded my ears back to dampen my hearing to aid in giving her, her privacy. I’m only here to steal you away. I wanted to have a word with you before dinner. That can’t be anything good.

Sorry dear nephew, I guess we’ll pick this up another time. I’ll see you at dinner. I give it a half second of thought before I go up to him to give him a quick kiss on his forehead, flustering him and amusing Mei immensely. I turned to leave, but Mei called out to me.

What no kisses for me? She chuckled, and I rolled my eyes, but went back to give her a kiss on the forehead too.

You want any forehead kisses too? I offered Tieshan, and she rolled her eyes affectionately.

No, just the talk will be fine, thank you. We shared a smile and her wind swirled around us, bringing us to her and DBK’s room and onto their couch. A bull clone had set out tea for us and stood aside in case either of us wanted anything from them. The atmosphere around us shifted into something more serious and Tieshan levels me a deep cutting look.

Uh…

Now tell me something, Mihou. Do you really still have feelings for that ape? I’m not surprised that she asked after everything I heard Bai He told her. I am surprised that she managed to sound mostly neutral when she asked. I hadn’t really planned on talking about this yet. I wasn’t even sure what there was to talk about yet. We only recently started talking again and we haven’t even apologized to each other for anything we’ve done yet, but despite that I-I really liked just being around him again.

I leaned my elbows onto my knees and put my head in my hands. I let out a shaky sigh and tried to gather myself. I wasn’t ready to talk about this, but I didn’t want to have these feelings inside of me either. I curled into a ball and pathetically hiccupped my response.

I-I don’t know.

Chapter 12: Console

Chapter Text

DBK’s P.O.V. Slightly earlier in the evening

WhenI returned home, I delivered the beast meat to the kitchen for Red Son’sbullbots to prepare. No one greeted me upon my return, and I could hear faintchatter in the halls. I could only assume that Mihou and his family must havearrived already. I recognized the sound of Tieshan’s voice in the chatter andfollowed it. The closer I got, the clearer their voices became, and I couldmake out that there was only one other person with her, but I also heardchittering…odd. They spoke excitedly about Mihou and I gathered that it was thechild he adopted that Tieshan was telling me about. From the way they spoke, itwas clear to me that she’d spent a great deal of time with the simian, bothfrom all the things she said about him and the manner in which she said them.It became even more apparent when they came into view. I could see she hadsimilar mannerisms to him. It was endearing to see, but I didn’t linger toolong on that thought since the two small monkey cubs drew my attention. I knewfrom his last visit with Tieshan that they were a recent development, buthadn’t gotten the chance to actually meet them because of the New Year'sincident. Red Son and I didn’t get the chance to hide what happened from hersince Mihou had not only told her, but gave her periodic updates about what washappening. While it was embarrassing in the moment, it was done out of concernfor our beings so it was a forgivable offense. Especially as now I could getacquainted with the new niece and nephews.

Tieshanwas first to address me and was quick to introduce me to the young ones, BaiHe, Castor, and Pollux. I vaguely remembered her telling me those names before,but this was a good excuse to have a refresher. I do have to wonder why I’meven surprised that Macaque would name his children after stars of all things.Had he even realized he’d done it or was it intentional I wonder? Perhaps I’llask him later. For now, there were three starry eyed children to entertain infront of me. It was honestly quite cute and reminded me a little bit of RedSon.

Apleasure to meet you. I told them. I watched the girl’s hold on themonkey cub’s hand tighten and the other monkey that rested on Tieshan went toher side, as if sensing her sudden nerves. They held their other hand andnuzzled their cheek into her.

N-niceto meet you too! Mr. Macaque’s told me a lot about you guys. Tieshanput her hand on the middle of her back.

There’sno need to be so nervous, Bai He. She spoke softly to her in anattempt to ease her nerves to some degree of success. She took a deep breath inthen slowly let it out. I’ve really been looking forward to meetingyou. Um, I was actually wondering if I could talk to you aboutsomething. She put on a brave face that faltered toward the end ofher sentence. I looked to Tieshan for any indication of what this could beabout, but she just shrugged, not knowing anything more than I did.

Ofcourse. I crouched down to be closer to her level. She casts a glanceat Tieshan.

Iwas actually hoping to talk to you more, one on one. It’s, uh, not reallysomething I like talking about a lot. That was cause for concern.Tieshan and I shared a look and quickly came to an understanding.

Alright,I’ll leave you two be. I wanted to speak with Macaque a few things anyways thatI don’t think he’d want you to hear. I’ll see you at dinner. Withthat wind swirled around her, encompassing her and when it dissipated she wasgone, leaving me with the children. I carefully picked all of them up, makingthe cubs chitter in complaint and surprise. Even Bai He made a similar sound tothe little ones. I placed them onto my shoulder and one of the cubs immediatelymoved to grab, hang and swing from my horn. I believe that one was Castor. Itold them it was alright for him to do so before either could worry abouthim.

Come,there’s a place I like to spend my quiet time in. She looked at mebefore giving a quick nod and held on tightly to the furs I’ve taken to wearingover my shoulders.

Itook her to a treasure we had in the castle that contained many old mementoesfrom my past that Tieshan had thankfully taken care of while I was sealed away.There were trinkets, furs, and portraits, many of which were covered up, offriends and family. Most of the other, less painful portraits, were hung upoutside as decoration in the halls and dining room. It wasn’t a place I came tooften, but sometimes it was nice to reminisce over the old days, despitewhatever pain that might bring.

Isat down in the massive arm chair I had in the corner by the back right cornerof the room. The action lightly jostled the kids, but not enough for any ofthem to fall off. I brought her, and Pollux by extension, down off my shoulderand placed them on the end of my left arm rest. She sat sideways on it andPollux sat beside her, still holding her hand.

Now,what did you wish to speak with me about? I asked as delicately as Icould manage. Even so she still hesitated and fiddled with the skirt of herdress. It took her a while to muster up the courage to speak her mind.

Whatwas it like? She asked and I raised a brow at her, waiting for her tocontinue. You were kind of possessed by her too, right? I-I know itwasn’t exactly the same, but I wanna know. What was it like? Shetightly gripped her skirt and kept her head hung low. Out of all the things Ithought she’d say, that was far from what I expected. Thinking about it though,it shouldn’t have been so shocking. I was made aware that she was her hostafter she failed to fully possess me and I couldn’t help feeling some amount ofguilt for that. It was a mistake that I became far more cataclysmic than Icould have ever imagined.

Itwas…disorienting. It was like I was in a haze, but it didn’t happen all at once.My mind became foggier and foggier the longer I was around her tomb. She slowlyseeped into my mind, clouded my judgment and convinced me of things I wouldnever have believed if I were in my right mind. It was as if I’d lost myself.The things I did were me, but I wasn’t myself.It was a disgrace. I have been continuously frustrated with myself for lettingmyself be blinded and misled by the spirit witch.The pain I caused my family is something I cannot forgive myself for. I can onlyimagine the pain my actions caused you as well, and for that I’msorry. She attentively took in everything I had to say and I had toadmit, even though it was difficult to think about, it was nice to get that offmy chest. Once I was finished she carefully stood up to walk up the length ofthe armrest to hug my arm, not even getting halfway around my bicep. The littlemonkey that had been holding her hand patted my arm instead of mimicking BaiHe.

Thatsounds like it was really scary. I could see why Mihou spoke sofondly of this child now. She’d been through so much because of the witch, yetstayed strong despite her age. It was truly an impressive feat. I’d missedthese younger years with Red Son due to my imprisonment which saddens me deeply.Even when I was freed I wasted more time I could have spent with him by tryingto regain my former glory. Now that things have calmed down, I hope to make upfor that lost time and ill treatment. I can even get to know the new additionsto the bull clan as well.

Yes,it was. I’m thankful that the Monkie Kid was there to help keep me from hurtingmy family. Not that I’m pleased to admit it. Needing a product ofWukong’s help was shameful to say the least, yet I’m grateful nonetheless.

Ilike Mk. It was really scary being with her. I didn’t think I’d ever be meagain, but there was one time, when I first met him, where I was hopefulsomeone could save me. I-I know she was tricking him, but the moment where Ireally believed he could help me was when he doubted her and escaped her. Ithought that since someone knew she was there other than himthat I would be okay one day. I hated how she used me to tormenteveryone. Her hands fisted into the bits of fur that had grown backsince my renewed freedom and I could feel a bit of wetness on my arm. Themonkey that had been hanging from my horn, Castor, dropped down to my shoulderand climbed down my arm to hug Bai He from behind. I couldn’t doanything, and people keep reminding me of what she did while she had myface. She started to openly weep and the other little monkey held herleg. One time when Mk was walking me home, kids from my old fosterhome started calling me out and I-I just- She couldn’t finish whatevershe was going to say and kept crying. I…had no idea what to do with this. Theonly experience I had with crying children was Red Son and he’d been a babythen so I didn’t think the same thing I did for him would work for her, but itwas the only thing I knew so…

Ipicked them all up carefully and held them in my arms, gently cradling them.She didn’t question it and rolled so she could weep against my chest. The cubscurl up around her, doing her best to comfort her. It took her some time to calmdown enough to speak again. She wiped her eyes with the back of her sleeve and hiccuppeda few times.

Evenwhen she’s not around, she’s still making me hurt people. She lookeddown at her trembling hands. I didn’t mean too and then I made Mkworried and then it inadvertently mademe mess up hiding that I live with Mr. Macaque because of that worry. I know hemust have been mad and now because he’s helping me, Mei and Monkey King knowand I can’t even control this curse she’sleft me with. I don’t wanna be a burden on Mr. Macaque, but I don’t wanna leaveeither. I like living with him and having him tuck me in at night and tellingme stories a-and finally having a family! I-I just don’t know if he wants mearound or if he’s just being nice to me. She curled up in a ball,tears steadily flowing down her cheeks. My heart broke for her and hersituation. It was clear to me, despite the amount of time that had passed, thatMihou would never think that way and the least I could do was reassure thispoor child.

BaiHe, there is no need for such concerns. I’d known Macaque for many years and Ican certainly tell you that he’s always had a soft spot for kids. He’d alwayshoped to have a family of his own one day. Though I’m positive hepictured it a little differently in his head. I’m sure he cares aboutyou a great deal. If he didn’t, I highly doubt he’d go out of his way tointroduce you dressed as a member of his and our family. She hiccuppedagain, trying and failing to stop her tears. The golden eyed monkey held one ofher hands in both of his and rested their forehead against it.

LoveBai He. They spoke softly and quietly, in a way that reminded me ofMihou when he spoke fondly about that dumb simian. It was obvious that hisspeaking had a deeper effect on both the other two because Bai He startedcrying harder.

LoveBai He, we love Bai He! Castor exclaimed, making her worse and shehugged both of them tightly.

Ilove you too. She loudly sobbed. Castor was quick to wrap their armsaround her, while Pollux briefly chirped in complaint before doing the same. Itwas bittersweet to watch and reminded me again of the behavior of two othermonkeys from days long past. It made me wonder about the origins of these cubs,given their odd nature. Tieshan told me that Mihou wasn’t comfortable talkingabout it, something that was suspicious in and of itself, and adding theireerily familiar traits on top of it only made things more curious.

Notthat it mattered much at the moment. No now I was a bystander to his childbreaking down in my arms, desperately seeking comfort from all of us. I did mybest to console her, rocking her in my arms and giving her time to calm down. Icould only hope she’d be okay before dinner or else I’m sure Tieshan and Mihouwould yell at me.

Sigh… I hope they’re having a happier time.

Macaque’sP.O.V.

I-Idon’t know. Is there something wrong with me? I’ve tried so hard to get overhim for centuries, yet here I am, still gettingbutterflies when I’m around him! I feel like such an idiot!I vented through tears of frustration. Right when I finally convincedmyself I was done with him after everything with herI spend just a bit of time with him and I start falling back into old habits.Gods, what is wrong with me? I threw my headback to yell at the ceiling. It made me so angry with myself, but it’s like Ican’t help it. I’ve got no excuse for grooming him and dancing with himhad done terrible things to my heart.

I’vewondered that since the day you told me about your feelings for thatimbecile. She said it with a bored and indifferent tone. I had tohold back from defending him by saying he wasn’t stupid and just glared at herinstead. She put up one hand in apology and bowed her head slightly.Apologies, force of habit. While I still think there are plenty ofmore appealing suitors I could choose for you out there, I can’t really faultyou for still holding a tender spot for him in your heart. You and I both knowthat my fool of a husband was the last person anyone expected me to marry, self-included.Oh I remember the day everyone found out about their union. They caused quite thestir in every realm after that one. What a sh*tshow that was.

Yeah,I remember. I found it somewhere in myself to chuckle and I wiped myface with the back of my hand and my wrist. I’m still shocked by howwell your wedding went after that. Seriously, it’s only by somemiracle that a fight didn’t break out between anyone that day, especially sinceit was after our falling out.

Ohplease, if it didn’t there would have been hell to pay. The way shesaid it left no room for argument or doubt. I’m confident that if anything wentwrong because someone decided they wanted to be an asshole, they would havepromptly and unceremoniously disappeared from this plain of being.

Areyou disappointed in me?

Yes,but I’m not exactly surprised. When I heard you were fraternizing with hislittle protege, I’d already assumed it was only a matter of time before youstarted making goo goo eyes at him again. She inspected her nailsuninterestedly as she delivered her scathing comment. I don’t know what hurtmore. How little she thought of me or the fact that she was right.

Thisis why I don’t talk to you about him. I hid my face in my knees andshe sighed.

I’msorry I can’t hide my disdain for your taste in men. Though admit I preferredwhen you had a crush on Yin to this. It’s unfortunate you didn’t stay marriedto him. My face burned at the memory.

Itwas a faux marriage and you know it! Besides, I'm not gonna stay married to aguy that doesn’t even wanna be in any relationship to begin with. Shegives me a look. What I had with Wukong was different! Shemaintained the look and crossed her arms. It was and we’re not talkingabout this again! I groaned.

YesI’d hate to hear you try to explain that mess again. You were both terrible soI can only presume that he’s going through something similar rightnow. I…hadn’t thought of that, but there was no way, right?

Asif. After everything that’s happened between us and Mk an- OW! Sheflicked me between my eyebrows.

Aftereverything he’s done to you and your companions, it’s shocking that youstill have any feelings for him other than disdain. She rubbed hertemples.

I don’t want to! I don’t know why this is so hard. Maybe, maybe it’sbecause she’s not around anymore? I gotdefensive, but stumbled upon that other thought. Maybe it is because she’s notaround anymore.

Whatdo you mean? She asked it slowly, cautiously. I guess I never talkedto her about this before huh.

Well,back when the Lady Bone Demon was around, I could always hear her voice in mymind. Antagonizing me, making me doubt everything I’ve ever done, everydecision, every friendship I’ve ever made. I couldn’t trust my own judgmentanymore, not after everything that happened with Wukong. It’d get worsewhenever I got too comfortable in one place. It didn’t matter how much I wantedto believe that someone cared about me, she’d always convince me that nobodywould ever truly want to bother with me. I hated being tormented by her day inand day out that it made my resentment for him worsen. It was exhausting, evenwhen I adjusted to having her echo my own doubts back to me, it still had an effecton the choices I made. Even now, there’s doubts that still linger now thatshe’s gone. Tieshan sighed and gestured for me to get closer with onehand and used the other to pat her lap.

Comehere. Her tone finally softened and I hesitantly uncurled to crawlover to her. I curled up on top of her lap and she started petting my head tosoothe me. She gently scratched by my ears, helping me relax further.Of course we care about you. You’re a part of this family and a memberof the Gold and Silver Demon’s commune. You’ll always have a place for you inour homes. More tears streamed down my face. I knew she meant it, andI believed it more than I used to, but there’s still a part of me that wants todoubt her. To not get complacent in my station or else I’ll face moredisappointment and heartache. Not just with her, but with everyone in my life rightnow, especially now that he’s back in my life.

Ijust…the worst part is, sometimes I wish she was still in my head to remind mewhy I shouldn’t let myself trust him again. Sometimes it feels like it would beeasier that way a-and I know, I knowthat’s not good, but I hatefeeling like I’m the same idiot I was back then. I could feel agentle breeze that reminded me of a nice day in spring swirling aroundus.

...That’salright. She sighed out and I looked at her, confused. Don’tmisunderstand, I still don’t like the idea of you and him together, but I willsupport you and your feelings. I don’t want you spiraling or making yourselfsuffer over how you think you should feel.You heard me out when I told you about my love for my husband and howconflicted it made me. The least I can do is be here for you when you’restruggling. I sat up, hiccupping from my crying getting worse and inshock from her words. I pulled her into a tight embrace and I cried even harderwhen she hugged me back. I hadn’t expected to receive her support and semiapproval over this situation, but knowing that I had it made me feeloverwhelmed by emotions to the point where all I could do was cry. It was embarrassing,but it felt good to let it all out.

Sherubbed circles into my back and cradled the back of my head as I sobbed andbabbled almost incoherently about everything I’d gone through while I was underher thumb. How miserable she made me, how sorry I was for not trusting myfriends, my family because of her, how much I regrettedall the things I did when she was freed, and how even with her around I alreadyknew I still cared about that old fool and Mk. It felt like I was half alivefor centuries because of her and now that I’m getting better, everything is somuch scarier now that it makes me miss it. I hated the scars she’d left on myvery being and it makes me feel like I don’t know how to be or what I should benow that she’s gone. I cried and vented all my frustrations and woes until Ihad nothing left in me and I was just shaking and quietly weeping against hershoulder, completely curled around her. She waited until my breathing stayedand my trembling subsided before breaking the silence that fell upon us.

Mihou,I want you to live the life that will make you happy. Not a past version ofyou, or the version of you, you think you should be, or the version of you thatanyone else thinks you should be, but the you that you are now. I’ve seen youwhen you were at some of your lowest points in life and when we spoke on thephone about your new family you sounded the happiest I’d ever heard you. It’sokay if you want to change or slow down and have a simpler life and it’s okay ifthat life includes Monkey King and his little troop, so long as that’s what youwant we’ll support you. I whimpered and held her tighter.

Th-thankyou. I’m sorry. I still felt pathetic, but I felt so safe in herarms.

Shh,shh, shh, it’s okay. You don’t have anything to apologize for. Just relax, I’vegot you. I nuzzled into her neck and let myself be lulled into acomfortable state of semi lucid consciousness until dinner.

DBK’sP.O.V.

Areyou alright? I asked once she’d stopped crying. She nodded and wipedher eyes.

MhmI’m sorry about that. Um, thank you for talking with me. I’m sorry that youwent through that, but I really liked hearing what you had to say. It makes mefeel a little less alone. Despite everything, she smiled at me. Itwas small and weak, but a smile nonetheless.

It’sokay. Have you spoken with Macaque about this before? I heard that Sun Wukongwent through something similar to you as well. The way she scrunchedup her face said it all.

No.I don’t really wanna talk to Wukong about anything related to herand I already know how horribly she treated Mr. Macaque and I didn’t want tomake him uncomfortable talking about it. Oh uh! Sorry, I hope I didn’t make youuncomfortable with this! I know it’s probably not the easiest thing to talkabout for you either. She fidgeted nervously.

It’salright, it felt good to talk about it. She smiled a littlebrighter.

Ithink so too. You know I want to talk to Mr. Macaque about it, butI’m still scared about how he’d react. She confided in me.

I’msure that if he didn’t want to talk about it, he would tell you and if he knewthat it would help you, he’d find it in him to talk about it later if hecouldn’t in the moment. I could see her thinking it over before sheultimately decided against it.

Hm,even if he does, I don’t think he’d tell me everything. Maybe I’ll ask himabout it one day, but I think it’s still a little too fresh. Shewiped her face again and grumbled. Um, do you have a bathroom I canwash my face in? I stood up, making all the little ones in my arm bracefrom the sudden movement.

Ofcourse. The castle is dangerous, so I’ll walk you there.

Okay.I was amused by her and the cubs' jarred expressions.

Iwalked her to the nearest bathroom in relative silence. The only sound being myfootsteps echoing off the walls and the chirps and chitters of the smallmonkeys made that would occasionally get Bai He to giggle. I doubted sheunderstood any of what they were saying, but she was still enjoying theirantics regardless.

Oncewe arrived at the bathroom, we ran into Tieshan and a rough looking Mihouholding her hand and trailing behind her. When Mihou and Bai He noticed eachother, Bai He hid her face and Mihou reflexively glamoured his red eyes andpuffy face away. I looked to Tieshan, silently asking what happened and shewaved it off as a way of saying we’d talk about it later.

Isee, so they’ve both been crying…great.

Macaque’sP.O.V.

Whatwas Bai He doing here? Why did her face look red? What the hell did I miss? Ishot a look up at DBK and he put one hand up to wordlessly tell me it wasn’this fault. I glared harder at him for a second before floating up, landed onhis arm and crouched down by her.

What’swrong? I asked her, but she turned her back to me and used her handsto cover her face further.

Nothing!I’m fine, I just got something in my eye. An obvious lie. I looked toCastor and Pollux for answers. They immediately piped up in chirps that she’dbeen crying, which was already clear to me, but they don’t elaborate on why shewas crying. I sighed and placed my hand on her shoulder.

It’sokay Tiny, I got something in my eye too. That got her attention. Idropped the quick glamour I put over my face as she turned her head to peekbetween her fingers to look at me. She slowly lowered her hands so I could seeher tear stained face and red eyes.

Areyou okay? She asked me. It’s sweet that she was worried about me,despite also having been or being upset. I softly smiled at her as Iresponded.

Alittle better now actually. Are youokay? I gently moved a stray hair of her’s back into place. Shesmiled and leaned into my hand.

Yeah,I’m okay. I think I feel a little better too now.

That’sgood to hear. Now why don’t we get cleaned up before dinner huh? Shenodded in agreement and I scooped her up into my arms. The boys automaticallyclimbed up my arms when I went to pick her up and when they were all secure, Ihopped off of DBK’s arm to float back down to the floor. We shouldn’ttake too long. I told DBK and Tieshan.

Takeyour time, there’s no rush. She assured us.

Eh,all the same. I told her before walking into the room.

Thebathroom was pristine and it was clear to me that it was a shared bathroom fromthere being a larger version and normal sized version of all the utilities. Itwas honestly pretty comical to think about them using it together or using thefacilities that were obviously for the other person. It would only be funnierif they had a third, even bigger version of everything for when he wanted to beseveral stories tall for whatever reason. I kept the thought to myself and setBai He down so I could open the cupboard I saw inside that contained extra,neatly folded, rags and towels. I grabbed two rags and wet one of them withlukewarm water, then rang out the excess.

Comehere. I beckoned Bai He over so I could wipe her face for her. Shecomplained about it being cold and that she could do it herself. I justchuckled at her cute, slightly squished face and kept cleaning her face forher. When I was done I kissed her forehead, then lightly tossed the dampwashcloth at her neck to make her jump.

Hey!She grabbed the cloth and tossed it back at me. I let it hit my chest and fallto the floor. It only made me laugh more and she pouted at me. I could tell shewasn’t actually upset since I could see her trying to fight back a smile.

Iused the other rag to clean my own face then put both rags in a laundry bin Isaw in the room that I could only assume was only ever emptied by one of thebull clones. Once I was done I took the time to fix any hair I saw that was outof place on Bai He’s head.

Sorry,couldn’t help myself. Uh, look, I don’t know…’what got in your eye,’ but if youever want to talk about it, I’d be happy to listen. I flicked my earsfor emphasis and she giggled.

Iknow. I’ll think about it and um, if you wanna talk about ‘what got in youreye’ I’d listen to you too. I patted her head in a way that doesn’tmess up her hair before putting my arm over her shoulders.

I’llthink about it. Now how about we finally have something to eat. I’m starving.I exaggerate the word and it makes her giggle again.

Okay.

Whenwe rejoined Tieshan and DBK it was clear that they’d been talking about us. Ikept my ears folded down while we were in the bathroom because I didn’t want toaccidentally overhear anything DBK and her had talked about. I wanted topreserve her privacy, even if I knew they were talking about what we went through inprivate. I don’t call them on it and just tell them that now would be a goodtime to serve dinner to everyone, to which they agreed. Tieshan transportedherself to the kitchen to tell the bull clones to prepare everything and taskedus with getting Mei and Red Son. As we walked, Bai He thought it would be funto lighten the mood by asking DBK a few questions.

So,how did you and Mr. Macaque meet? I know he talks about Auntie Iron Fan a lot,but he doesn’t talk about you as much. DBK and I shared a look.

Ah,I was closer to the Sun Wukong, back then and it’s not a time I enjoy lookingback on often. Besides, I don’t think Macaque has fond memories of thatday. The amusem*nt in his tone doesn’t go by unnoticed by either of us.Bai He looked between us visibly confused.

It’skind of an embarrassing story. I tell her and her eyes sparkle.

Tell me!She giddily asked and I groaned, shooting a glare DBK’s way that made himsmirk.

Ithought it was funny. He says and I immediately becomeindignant.

Ididn’t! They both laughed at me.

Itcouldn’t have been that bad right? She asked me and the memory of theFDMK Incident flashed through my mind, making alight blush dust my cheeks. You haveto tell me. She was grinning from ear to ear.

Icould tell you. I glared even harder at DBK for that.

Don’tyou dare! Don’t forget I was around when you were just as terrible as Iwas. I threatened vaguely enough for Bai He not to get it, butspecific enough for him to understand. I could see him weighing his options,seriously considering if it was worth it to embarrass me. He hummed, stillgrinning as he made his choice.

Ican live with that. It’s a challenge.

DBK.I said slowly in warning.

SixEared Macaque. We stared each other down for a tense moment. Well,tense for me at least. He appeared to be completely at ease right now. Honestlythis was so childish, but my pride was on the line here. You know, I’mshocked by how much you still care about that little ’incident’given how much time has passed. He mused and my brow twitched.

That’snot the point, it’s the principle of the matter and it’s just soincriminating. While I started off shouting, my voice tapered off andmy face burned.

Justtell me! She shook my arm.

You’reaware that whatever she’s thinking is likely worse right? I’m soready to get into a fight with this man right now I swear.

That’swhat I’m saying! I wanna bash my head against a wall.

Ugh,why are you like this? I massaged my eyes. Pollux nuzzled my cheek inworry and patted his head to assure him I was fine.

Isit Wukong related?

Yes.

Stop!They both laugh at me again. I did not come here to beharassed. I pouted and Bai He hugged my side.

Aw,it’s okay Mr. Macaque. I wouldn’t tell anyone. My brow twitched againand I gave her a look.

Uhhuh, right and you totally didn’t say anything to PIF. Herface froze for a second.

Um,you can’t prove anything.

What?!We all bickered back and forth over whether or not the story could be that badand them trying to convince me that it would be fine to share the tale. Thiscontinued even after we got Mei and Red Son for dinner. Mei was just as eagerto learn about what we were talking about as Bai He was unfortunately. She wasfar more willing to act obnoxious about it than Bai He was. At least Red Sonhelped to keep her from literally prodding at me.

Bythe time we got to the dining room it had become a full on debate and Tieshanjust rolled her eyes at the whole affair. Thankfully when she told them toleave me alone they actually listened to her and dropped it. We ended uptalking amongst ourselves in groups. Bai He sat next to Red Son so she couldask him a million and one things about his powers and what he was working on.When he saw the excited twinkle in her eyes, he was doomed and happily told heranything she wanted to know with an air of boastful pride. It was cute seeingthem get along like that. When she called him cool, he practically lit up. Thatkid was not good at hiding how he felt, but I don’t fault him for thatwhatsoever. It was adorable.

Tieshanand DBK were talking about the new additions to their family and already makingmore plans for me to come over and getting Bai He a tailored outfit that would matchwith all of us so we could have a new family portrait done. I remembered thelast one we all did together. It was back when Red Son was just born and thingswere complicated with him and Wukong so he wasn’t inthe portrait with us. They hadn’t even told me why I was invited over that day.They just got me dressed up in clothes and jewelry they’d gotten specificallyfrom me. I didn’t know what was going on until the demon painter was there andsetting up his tools. I was shocked that they wanted to include me, honoredeven, but still tried to argue that I shouldn’t have been there, only for themto dismiss my claim, telling me that I was always welcomed as a member of theirclan. I didn’t have the heart to argue then, so I stayed, and what a beautifulpicture it had been. I’d love to have an updated portrait done now that Red Son’sall grown up and I’ve started my own family. We’d have to talk about when we’reall available to have it done.

Withall of them talking, that just left Mei, Castor, Pollux and I. Although Castorand Pollux chittered and chirped amongst themselves for the most part so it wasreally just Mei and I. She’d scooted her chair over so it’d be right next tomine and I could sense she was up to something. She took a moment betweenmouthfuls of food to speak without looking at me.

Hey,um, thanks for apologizing earlier. My fur stood up a little and myears flicked. I’ve been thinking about it and I’m glad you’re actuallytrying to turn over a new leaf. I talked about it with Red Son, and he soundedhappy about it too so I’m willing to forgive you. Maybe not entirely right now,but I think I’ll be able to eventually. She finally turned to look atme with a tired smile. I smiled back and my eyes stung a little again, but Ididn’t cry.

I,thank you Mei. I’m really happy that Red Son has a friend like you, and Mk forthat matter. We both smiled a little brighter and she bumpedshoulders with me.

I’mhappy I have friends like them too.I bumped shoulders with her back.After that we enjoyed our dinners in relative, comfortable silence, leaningagainst each other. My tail gently swayed behind me as I basked in the warmfeeling the atmosphere gave me. I sighed internally at myself and told myselfthat there was a time where I wouldn’t have been allowed such a comfort becauseof her. Now that she’s gone, truly gone, Icould have these moments again and I know I couldn’t be happier. Even if I’vegot conflicting feelings about Wukong, I’d have to learn how to cope with themnow that I don’t have to constantly linger on all our mistakes. I wonder ifwe’ll ever actually be friends or if there’s always going to be a weird tensionbetween us? I let my eyes drift over to DBK and Tieshan and I thought about howthey got to finally be happy after so much strife. It got me thinking thatmaybe, no matter what happens between us, everything would be okay. Eitherway, only time would tell and I was prepared to wait.

Chapter 13: Dinner Aftermath

Chapter Text

When dinner was over, I had to gather all my sleepy children into my arms to head home. I was grateful to have Mei’s help carrying Bai He while I took care of the boys. I suppose whatever crying she’d done must have tuckered her out. I knew I felt more drained than I expected to be from everything that happened today. I hadn’t planned on talking about Wukong or the Lady Bone Demon today and it’s really taken a lot out of me. I couldn’t wait to get home and just crash after a nice long shower.

Ourgoodbyes were brief and contained Tieshan threatening me that if I didn’t atleast call more often than she’d be showing up unannounced at my home moreoften than not. It’s something I would have hated far more if I was stillliving alone, but with the kids? I didn’t mind as much, not that I’d tell anyof them that. It’d still definitely get on my nerves to have her come overunannounced. I’d feel pressured to always have my home be in perfect shape,lest she critique everything that was out of place. Ugh, I can’t tell whatwould be worse in that situation, her silent judgment or her actively tellingme what she had a problem with…actually, I knowher silent judgment would absolutely be worse. It made my skin crawl to bewordlessly scrutinized, and I’d immediately get defensive, which rarely evermade things better for me. Of course, I knew I could avoid all of that with asimple phone call every so often so I was already planning out a schedule in myhead for when would be the best times for me to do just that.

Onour way out we talked about when we should visit next and Tieshan promisedshe’d get some clothes made and sent to my house for Bai He, Castor, andPollux, along with some accessories. I knew it was pointless to argue or tellher it was unnecessary, I just told her not to overdo it, which I worry mighthave just encouraged her. Oh well, I’ll just have to make space somewhere.Maybe I could put the clothes that are out of season in my storage unit andmake space for the rest at home? Yeah, that might work. But where the hell, was I gonna put Castor andPollux’s clothes? Man,at this rate I’m gonna need a bigger house. Even if Bai He doesn’t stick aroundI’ll still have two other kids to worry about and, even thinking just in theshort term, if they keep getting spoiled with gifts, I’m gonna run out of roomin my tiny apartment. I have no idea what I’m gonna do when they’re both grown.Uh, one problem at a time Macaque.

Ihad a few clones collect my empty Tupperware and thanked the demon bull familyfor having us over on such short notice, though Tieshan assured me that wecould drop by anytime. I opened a portal for all of us to leave through and bidthem all goodnight. Red Son seemed upset to have to say goodbye to his newlittle buddy and Mei so already so I decided to get rid of his sadness byreplacing it with embarrassment by giving him another forehead kiss and tellinghim not to worry since we’ll probably see him soon. It made him balk, fieryhair flaring up, and I could swear I heard a chuckle out of his father at thesight. I gave DBK a knowing smirk and he averted his eyes, but I saw the waythe corner of his lip twitched upward. There was no doubt of Mei’s amusem*ntsince she started teasing him about it. I only let it go on for a few minutesbefore dragging her away through the portal, reiterating my goodnights as Ileft with her.

Whenwe returned home I put the boys down on the couch and asked Mei to do the samewith Bai He. I set my clones to get busy washing the Tupperware and instructedBai He to get ready for bed. She complained very unconvincingly about not beingtired, only to yawn right after. I ‘compromised’ by telling her she at leastneeded to change into her pajamas so her dress didn’t get all wrinkled in hersleep, knowing damn well she’d be asleep in no time afterward, and shebegrudgingly agreed.

Istill can’t get over seeing you being a dad. Mei commented once BaiHe got up and went into my room. I rolled my eyes along with my head foremphasis without looking directly at her.

Wellyou’ve got plenty of time to get used to it since these kids aren’t goinganywhere anytime soon. I told her while I worked on getting Castorout of his fancy clothes.

Guessthat means you aren’t either then huh? I looked at her, raising abrow and tilting my head to the side, making her chuckle. I didn’texpect you to actually live in the city like this or live in an apartment ofall things. She flopped down onto the couch, rattling the boys alittle and making Pollux hiss at her to show his displeasure.Sorry. She apologized to him and he just grumbled thencurled up like a cat next to his brother. Unfortunately, I had to disturb himalmost immediately since I’d finished undressing Castor and needed to move onto him. He whined a little, but he cooperated, albeit begrudgingly. I’mjust surprised you’d want to stick around without causing trouble. Iscoffed.

Despitewhat some of you might think, my life doesn’t revolve around messing with youguys. I was living here long before I met any of you jokers. I toldher. Once I got Pollux out of his clothes I started folding both their outfitsso I could put them away. Pollux curled up again with his brother as soon as hewas free from being disturbed.

Yeahwell I know that now. You’ve got a job, kids, friends,shockingly.

Hey!Hurtful. I pouted at her dig, not actually caring about what shethought of me in this instance. She giggled and reached over to pat my head,but I swatted her hand away.

Don’ttake it to heart. You’ve clearly got somefriends. I hate this. I think what I’m really confused aboutis why you decided to hang around us if you could have just hung out with themand skip the awkwardness of having to apologize to any of us let alone all of us.I…suppose she had a bit of a point there. If I really wanted to, I could havejust left or distanced myself from their group all together and be done withthem. Sigh, but then I wouldn’t bein the place I am now without having stuck around first.

Tobe honest, I hadn’t really planned on hanging around here for much longer, butsh*t happens so I guess you’re all stuck with me now. Figured apologizing mightmake things easier on all of us too. It’s a response full of vaguenessand half-truths, I know, but it was also the best she was gonna get out of meright now. I was already exhausted from being emotionally vulnerable earlierand I didn’t feel like having another heart conversation tonight. Thankfully,the response was either enough to sate Mei’s curiosity for now, or she knew Iwasn’t planning on elaborating, and she dropped it.

Well,for what it’s worth, I’m glad ‘sh*t happened. She flashed me atoothy, cheeky grin and I sighed, rolling my eyes with a smile on myface.

Yeah?Well, me too. I think…I think I’ve been a lot better off because ofit. My smile stayed on my face as I carefully sat on the couch so asnot to disturb the snoozing cubs…My snoozing cubs. They’d been an unexpectedoccurrence too. It’d been difficult to adjust to having dependents, but I’dmanaged it so having another one wasn’t too hard to get used to. Plus she wasmore independent than the others and she doesn’t mind what I look likeunglamoured so I didn’t have to waste the energy covering up at home. I wouldhave gone unglamoured today, but I didn’t feel comfortable enough to let myguard down around Mei. At least not yet anyways. Apologizing has mademe feel a little better and Bai He’s helped me a lot with reaching out to myold friends. I might have reached the point of talking to themregularly again without her in my head, but I highly doubt that itwould have been this fast without her and I was really thankful for that.

Thatmean you and the old Monkey King are gonna bepalling around again? She playfully nudged me with her elbow andpumped her eyebrows. I grimaced at her face and pushed her away by hershoulder.

Ialready told you, I’ve got no plans on touching that hot mess. It’sat this point Bai He comes back out in her pajamas, saving me from thisconversation going on any longer. She slowly made her way over to us andinstead of sitting between any of us, she climbed into my lap and curled into aball. I reflexively wrapped my arms around her to keep her from falling and sherested her head against my chest. You okay? I asked her withamusem*nt in my voice and shifted my hold on her so I could use one hand totake out her hair sticks and undo her braid.

Mhm.She nodded and curled further into me.

Tired?She hummed in response and I softly chuckled at her. Okay kiddo, timefor bed.

Iguess I should probably head out then huh? Mei stood, dusting,possibly real dust from being in a workshop most of the evening, off of her andonto my floor.

Iguess so. Thanks for helping out this morning. I secured Bai He inboth my arms before standing to walk her to the door.

Noproblem, you still owe me some giant food to call us even. She spokequieter, to keep from disturbing all the children between consciousness andunconsciousness.

Iknow, I know. Just text me what you want when you think of it. Get home safe,goodnight Mei. I opened the door for her and she stood in theentrance.

GoodnightMacaque, night Bai He, Cas, Polly. Bai He gave a slurred goodnightand Pollux lifted his head to grumble at her before putting it right back down.We both chuckled at the sight.

Wesaid our goodbyes and I closed and locked the door behind her. My clones hadalready finished doing the dishes for me so I had one of them help me with thekids. I had them carefully carry Pollux and Castor to the bedroom with me andhelp me tuck all the kiddos into bed, giving them their forehead kisses. Oncethey looked nice and cozy, I went about doing all the other things I needed toattend to before going to bed. I put away Castor and Pollux’s clothes, hung upBai He’s dress in the closet, and portalled my Tupperware back to my storageunit. Then I went into the bathroom with a pair of pajamas and a hanger tochange.

AfterI changed and hung up my clothes, I climbed into bed and felt all of myexhaustion hit me at once. I felt myself sinking into the mattress and sleeptook hold of me much faster than I would have expected.

Thenext morning I woke up feeling groggy with all of the little ones snuggled upto my chest. I stayed in bed for a few more minutes before I started feelingsleepy again and made myself get out of bed. I replaced myself with a clone soas not to disturb them and got ready for today.

Iwent through my usual morning routine and got dressed casually for the day. Iwanted to keep a low profile and, since we were going to have a picnic, Ididn’t want to get my nice clothes dirty. Then I got to preparing breakfast andlunch. I made a variety of different sandwiches, along with a few salads, somesausages and chicken dishes, as well as two pies for dessert. One mango and oneblueberry. After that I made some teas to put into thermal containers and plainbottled water. I separated out what was for lunch from what would be for thekids for breakfast. I did all of this with the help of another clone. I hadthem finish up while I popped back into the room to check on Bai He and theboys.

Theywere still exactly as I left them. Curled up against my clone and sleepingpeacefully. Even my clone was fast asleep. It almost made me want to take himout of timeout for how he acted around Wukong before. Almost.

Islowly approached them and delicately fixed some of her wild bed head whilesoftly calling her name to wake her up. After a few seconds her eyes lazilyopened out of sync and it took her a moment for her eyes to focus on me.

Heysleepy head. Breakfast is ready. She slowly sat up and rubbed hereyes. While she did, I woke Pollux and Castor in the same manner. Once theywoke up, they climbed up my body to rest in their usual spot on my head and shoulders.Bai He held out her arms to me making grabby hands with her eyes closed. Shereally must have been dead tired yesterday huh? I picked her up like shesilently asked me to do and walked out of the room with her in my arms. I letmy clone sleep, thinking that once they woke up I could talk to him about hisbehavior and see if he’s learned his lesson.

Itook them to the kitchen and set Bai He down in her stool. My clone had alreadyset and served up plates for all of them and the moment Castor and Pollux wereoff of me they practically thrusted a plate into my open hands. It waspractically loaded with food and I gave them a confused look. They simplysmiled at me and pointed at the plate while mouthing, all of it, before going back to tending to thepicnic food. I huffed and sat down in the other stool with my plate. I knew mymain clone had their worries about me, but sometimes I forget that my otherclones were just the same. Though they were all getting a little bolder when itcomes to acting out lately and I wasn’t what exactly set them off. I didn’tmind it too much, since a lot of it so far has been to entertain the kids. Theworst was with Wukong for sure, but I didn’t really appreciate this either. Ifelt obligated to finish my food now, even though I usually eat much less thanthis. Pollux would be very upset at the idea of wasting food and I know Ialways want them to finish their plates since I only serve them what they couldreasonably eat. Of course my clone knew that and they knew that I wouldn’t justtake the easy way out by putting back some of my portion or bringing theleftovers to the picnic, so I was stuck having to eat everything.

Aswe ate, my clone kept giving me cheeky looks as I struggled with eating somuch. It wasn’t even really that much if I’m being honest. It’s probably abouthow much I should be eating in any given meal, but I wasn’t used to it. You’dthink after experiencing long periods of my life not being assured of when mynext meal would be, I’d have more of an appetite, but somehow I, without somekind of prompting, just won't eat sometimes. If it weren’t for having kids, I’mpretty sure I’d forget to eat altogether sometimes. Whenever I ate the mostregularly was when I was living or even traveling with someone else. It wasreally frustrating since I don’t remember having this problem before I died,but I couldn’t tell if that was because of the experiences I went through afterthat or because I was semi dead for years.

Isighed internally. It was just another thing I’d have to figure out now that Iwas fully alive again. Just like how I have to deal with my white fur returningand accepting that she’s truly gone. It’s an adjustment, but it’s not theworst thing to live with, I guess.

Hey,Mr. Macaque? Bai He cuts through my inner thoughts and I give her myfull attention, happy for the distraction.

YeahBai He?

Doyou think they liked me? She poked at her food with her brows knittedtogether.

Who,Tieshan and everyone? Of course! Trust me, Tieshan is very transparent aboutwho she doesn’t like. Red Son definitely enjoyed having someone listen to himwho thinks he’s cool, and DBK looked like he was worried about you so he mustcare. I’m sure they all loved you, just like Jin and Yin are gonna love meetingyou. She hummed, still staring at her food.

Ihope so.

WellI know so. That gets a small laugh out of her.

Ifyou say so. She tiredly smiled at me and I patted her back.

Ido, now finish your breakfast so you can get dressed.

Okay.

Afterbreakfast and while Bai He was getting cleaned up, I went back into the roomand found my clone still asleep. I shook him away without any of the gentlenessI used on the kids and they were startled into consciousness. They looked backat me with annoyance and I was tempted to shake them again.

Hey.They grumbled at me. Have you learned your lesson yet or do you stillneed to be in timeout? I asked and crossed my arms while tapping myfoot to accentuate my disappointment in him. They groaned and rolled to layflat on their back with an unamused look on their face.

Depends. Are you gonna talk to him honestly? I glared at him.

Idon’t even know what honest is with him right now! I shouted athim.

Yeah right, as if you don’t already know deep down. I growled at him before dismissing him altogether.

Lookyou can come out when we talk to Chang’e and no sooner, got it? Isaid, knowing they could still hear me. I heard them laughing at me, I can’t wait. Littlebastard. I moved onand returned to the living room, plopped down on the couch, summoned a handmirror, and put up my human disguise glamour. I don’t really look at myselflike this too often and when I do I’m normally not dressed down like this so itlooked a little weird to me. Though maybe that’s because of how wild my hairwas starting to look in this form. It’s gotten so long that I could easily pullit back into a ponytail. Hm, I should probably do that actually. It’ll look alot nicer than this mess.

Isummoned a brush and a hair tie and had my other clone hold the mirror for me.When I started brushing out my hair, Bai He came out of the bathroom dressed intan capri pants and a pale pink short sleeved t-shirt with a black cat paw inthe middle of it. She stared at me for a bit, which made me stop, worried thatsomething was up.

Everythingokay? She makes that odd sound again that I feel like I should justcall a chirp at this point and fidgets with her fingers.

Mhm…CanI brush your hair? Now I chirped, more in response to her own chirpthan surprise. You know since you always do my hair. She addedon, much quieter, more self-conscious. I wanted to ease her nerves as soon aspossible and I beckoned her over.

Ofcourse you can. Think you can handle giving me a ponytail too? Sheperked up and excitedly dashed over.

Yes!She said with renewed confidence. I handed her the brush and my hair tie beforesliding off the couch to sit on the floor to make things easier for her. Shesat behind me and I had my clone do her hair for her with a differentbrush.

Shewas very careful when she brushed my hair and whenever she found a knot I wassurprised that she’d put the brush aside to detangle it with her fingers. Icould tell she was trying to mimic the way I’d shown her to groom fur by hand.I hadn’t had my fur properly groomed by another person in so long that I’dforgotten just how relaxing it could be. It made me wish she’d scratch myscalp, but I kept that thought to myself. I didn’t need any more catallegations from her, especially if it made me so relaxed I’d purr. Though thismade me think about when I’d done Wukong’s fur and how he’d melted into mytouch. He probably hasn’t had anyone groom him in a long time either, otherthan the little ones of course, so I really can’t blame him for how he reacted.It almost made me want to ask him if he’d groom my fur in return, but I don’tthink we're at that stage where I can just ask for that. Sigh…why does that upset me so much? The clone doing Bai He’s hairchuckled to themself and I knew that they were actually laughing at me. Iactively chose not to read into why since I was also pretty sure I already hadthe answer to that too.

Ipushed it to the back of my mind, a task that was made easier by Bai Hefinishing up my hair and pulling it back into a ponytail. It felt a littleloose, but it was pretty good for her first attempt. I was handed the handmirror to get a better look. There were a few loose strains, but that was lessher fault and more because they werejust tooshort.

OooBai He, you made me look so pretty! I praised her and shegiggled.

Stop!She said through her giggles.

Why?It’s true, you did such a good job for your first try.

Really?I was happy she sounded hopeful instead of doubtful or self-conscious.

Ofcourse. You should do my hair all the time. Then maybe you’ll get to be as goodas me one day, maybe even better! I could see her wide smile in thereflection of the mirror and I felt my heart melt again for her. I’ve got noregrets in taking her in. The uncomfortableness of having to deal with Mk’sgroup was worth it, especially when this kid helped me reconnect with myfriends…my family, hm. Hey Bai He, can I ask you something?I turned my head to look up at her. She tilted her head in confusion, but shedidn’t look worried in any way so that was good.

Uh,sure, what’s up?

Howdid you want me to introduce you to Jin and Yin? She chirped againand I could see a sparkle in her eyes that the question brought on. Even whenshe tried to reel in her enthusiasm, her happiness was barely contained.

Um,I don’t know, why do you ask? She was failing at trying to play itcool. I stood up and sat beside her on the couch, her eyes were glued to myevery move.

Well,you seemed really happy when Tieshan called you her niece so I was wondering ifyou wanted me to introduce you as their new niece too. Totally fine if youdon’t I-

Iwanna be their niece! She excitedly exclaimed, flapping her arms andhands a little. It looked so cute, my poor heart!

Thenyou will be. I told her softly and went to pat her head, but shequickly went in for a hug before I could react. I hugged her back and cradledthe back of her head as she squished her face against my chest with a big smileon her face. Woah! Didn’t think I’d get that kind of reaction. Youalright?

Mhm!She nodded against my chest. It was so sweet it could have brought a tear to myeye, nearly did too! My eyes felt a little watery and my heart a little fuller.I could tell she felt the same since her eyes looked a little glassy too.

Westayed like that for a while. So long in fact that Castor and Pollux came overto join the embrace. They wiggled their way in between us to hug Bai He andcurled their tails around her, which intertwined behind her back. I kissed herforehead and she hummed, content. I felt so at ease like this and this time, Ifreely let the purr rumbling in my chest out of me. She giggled and soon thepurring tripled because of the boys and her giggles became moreuncontrollable. Soon the boys were chittering and I was giggling too. Theonly thing that made us separate was the knock on the door. I could tell it wasJin and Yin from them chatting amongst themselves just outside. I slowlyloosened my hold on her so I could look at her.

Readyto meet your new uncles? She somehow managed to brighten evenfurther.

Yes!

Wellokay then. I stood up with no warning, making all my little onessquawk and flail before latching on to me. I laughed at the angry pout she gaveme, then nuzzled her face, bringing her giggles back. Castor and Pollux were alittle less amused and I cooed at them to soothe their agitation at beingrustled. I walked with them in my arms to the door and dismissed my spectatingclone. Let’s go meet your uncles.

Chapter 14: Nezha

Chapter Text

Wukong’s P.O.V. The Previous Day

I…havenot been able to get Macaque out of my head. It’s like he’s invaded every partof my mind and it’s killingme. The grooming,their hug, their dance, it all just kept replaying in my brain. Sure I alsoliterally rewatched some of those memories in my shame temple, but that wasdifferent. When I was in the shame temple it was my choiceto dwell on things, but I’d even seen him in my dreams! Sigh,and what a nice dream it had been. All it was, was the two of us curled uptogether basking in the afternoon sun. He could feel the warmth and pressure ofMacaque resting on top of him and the rumble of their joint purrs helping tosoothe them both further. None of the little monkeys were around, so they wereall alone together, making the moment more intimate. The only reason I’d wokenup from that sweet dream was Macaque had risen from his spot on my chest tolean in and….I closed my eyes and pressed my fingers to my lips. I let out ashuddering sigh at the memory. I really need to get out of the house.

Ipulled myself up out of bed and wandered through my house. I knew Macaque wouldbe out with PIF and her family so it gave me the perfect excuse to not gobothering him. Though it was pretty tempting anyways. I was curious to knowwhat they’d be up to, but I felt like I was getting obsessive and that couldn’tbe good for either of us.

Notwanting to be needy I tried to think up other ways to occupy my day, but mythoughts just kept drifting back to him and those kids. He’d looked so softtaking care of his cubs and I still can’t believe I didn’t find out about themsooner. I mean what would have happened to them if he hadn’t gone looking forthem or if something happened to Macaque? What had they been through while hewas out chasing them down for the Lady Bone Demon? Did he check in on them ordid they go hungry and why the hell didn’t Nezha tell him at any point whenthey were around each other…actually that gives me a great idea.

Iheaded out of my home and summoned my cloud so I could pay Nezha a littlevisit. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind too much when I tell him why I’m there and hey,he wasn’t mad when we all celebrated together. Plus, I think my reasoning wasvalid enough to warrant the unannounced visit so what’s the worst that couldhappen?

WhenI arrived in the celestial realm, I had enough sense to sneak around by shrinkingmyself down instead of walking out in the open. Not just because of the amountof people who don’t like me, but also because I didn’t want to be bothered byany of the celestials up here, good, or bad. It was too much of a hassle. Ididn’t wanna get wrapped up in any weird, dumb, politics up here. It was all sopretentious and pointless and I couldn’t be bothered.

Iflitted across heaven in search of the Third Lotus Prince and just as Ithought, there were numerous officials up here doing absolutely nothing yetstill complained about the mortals’ behavior. Such a headache.

Evenwhen I did find Nezha, he was surrounded by a bunch of other high rankingofficials so I had to sneakily tail him until he was by himself. It washonestly mind numbing having to listen to all the meetings and talks he wasinvolved in throughout the day and it felt like hours before he finally brokeaway from everyone to have a moment of peace. I observed him for a few secondsto ensure that no one else would come by before revealing myself to him. Ibarely got a breath after returning to the size I usually present myself withbefore he started shouting at me.

SUNWUKONG! You’d better have a good reason for showing your face here after allthe damage you caused! Ah, so he’s still mad I see. Didn’t even getthe chance to say hi.

Shhkeep it down would ya? I’m trying to keep a low profile right now. Iwhisper shouted at him and he glared at me even harder.

Explain yourself. He, thankfully, whisper shouted back, pointingthe tip of his weapon at me.

Iactually wanted to ask you something, in private. I wanted to respect Macaque’s wishes aboutkeeping the boys a secret from heaven, especially since it was probably for thebest. I didn’t want anyone up here who might have it out for either of us doinganything to hurt them. I already failed enough monkeys. I don’t need that listto grow any longer.

Goon. He sighed, lowering his weapon.

Aboutthat, I’m gonna need to take you with me.

Wha-WUKONG! I rushed him, throwing him over my shoulder as he shouted atme. I summoned my cloud and zipped out the celestial realm as fast as I could,while managing the very angry prince. I had to admit it waspretty fun seeing how mad he got even if I was getting an ear full.

Ireturned to the mountain in seconds and quickly entered the waterfall cave toget out of the prying eyes of heaven. I didn’t let him down just yet thoughsince I was pretty sure it would end in a fight, but that didn’t matter toomuch since once I’d stopped he used his Armillary Sash to pull my feet out fromunder me, making me fall over and drop him. We were both quick to recover so Iwas able to dodge his spear when he attacked me. I put up my hands in defenseas I tried to explain myself.

Woah,woah, hold on now bud, let me explain. I dodged again as this time hechucked his spear at me.

Youcouldn’t have done that before you kidnapped me? He shouts and Iducked as he called his spear back to his hand and came at me again.

Wellno, someone could have overheard us then Mac would have been pissed at me. I say under my breath, butof course he heard me.

Macaque?What does he have to do with this? When he lunged at me this time, Igrabbed his spear and slammed him into the ground then summoned a bunch of hairclones to pin him.

Iwas getting to that! I told him while I dusted myself off.Why didn’t you tell me someone tried to clone the two of us?I lightly scolded him, but I was seriously upset over this. I know I was‘missing,’ but surely someone up in heaven would have at least thought to lookfor me in my own home if he’d asked for help finding me.

Oh,so that’s what this is about. He sighed out, the fight leaving him.At least he had the decency to look like he felt bad about it. Let meup first, then I’ll tell you about thatmess. He sighed again and I figured that it was fine to leave himunrestrained for this. I dismissed my clones and he got up, dusting andplucking off the hair that landed on him from it. What did you want toknow exactly and did you speak to Macaque about this? He didn’tbother hiding his exasperation over the whole situation, but I don’t exactlyblame him. I’d be pretty mad if I’d just gotten kidnapped just to beinterrogated over something that happened over two years ago.

Everything.Why didn't you come to me, why you went to Macaqueof all people, why you didn’t say anything when we fought or after the wholeLady Bone Demon fiasco, how you even found out about them just,everything. I said it all in almost one breath and felt a littlelightheaded by the end. This whole thing had been stressing me out more thanI’d thought and I don’t know if it was fortunate or unfortunate that Nezhaseemed to notice that fact since his shoulders drooped and his grip on hisweapon relaxed. And uh, I, I did talk to Macaque about them. I meanit’s how I even found out about them in the first place. That wasmostly true since I’d first seen them after Ispied on him first, but I learned everything else about them after talking withhim during our impromptu grooming session.

Alright,it’s a bit of a long story, but I can tell you all that I know.

Ihad us move to my living room so we could sit down on my bench of a couch so wecould settle in for this conversation. I offered him some fruit or peach chips,but he declined. Also fair, I didn’t really feel hungry either right now, but Iwanted to have something to do with my hands and to keep myself frominterrupting him so I munched on peach chips while he explained.

I’dinitially found out because I’d heard rumors spreading about some demon thathad stalked the Six Eared Macaque in the past was collecting DNA for someexperiment he was supposedly working on. I’d dismissed it at first, thinking itwas just idle gossip, but it persisted and started to get more detailed so Istarted to investigate in my free time. When I caught wind that there was somevalidity to the rumors I tried to find you, but weren’t anywhere I looked so Isearched for the next best thing. There were a few celestials that have takenan interest in watching Macaque so it was easy to find him. Though I wasn’texpecting him to listen going into it, he was willing to hear me out when Itold him it involved him, that demon, and the possible cubs. Hepaused in his explanation to message his temples. He went off on hisown after that and I only heard what came of it about a month after when heshowed up out of nowhere to drag me away from my post to fill me in about whatwent down. We haven’t talked since. The last time I even saw him was wheneverything with the Lady Bone Demon happened and I didn’t tell youbecause we were either fighting and there was never a good time to bring itup. He groaned. That and Macaque didn’t exactly want youinvolved…Did something happen to them? He asked with an almostaccusing concern, as if to imply I’d donesomething to them when we both know I would never.

No,they’re alright. They should be spending time with DBK’s family rightnow. I wonder how that’s going? Were they having a good time withtheir aunt and uncle, oh and their cousin too! Would they be intimidated bythem or fascinated by them? I hope they’re okay.

Good…sowhy did you kidnap me for this? Some irritation creeped back into histone.

Well,when I talked to Macaque about it, he really didn’t wanna talk about them outin the open since they’re clones and all and doesn’t want anyone to have it outfor them. I told him and he nodded with some understanding.

Isee. So does this mean you’re going to be involved in their lives now?I tensed at that and what that could entail.

Ohuh, I mean, I want to, but things are kind, weird with Macaque right now. Youknow how it is. I waved him off and he gave me this unimpressedlook.

Wukong…

What?You and I know Macaque isn’t exactly a fan of me right now so I don’t thinkhe’d want me around that often anyways. Nezha’s eyes narrowed as hesized me up.

Yethe told you about those pups at all? Even if I haven’t seen him, I know he caresabout them deeply from what he told me after he took them in. He wouldn’t justtell you if he wasn’t willing to have you around at least to someextent. He spoke carefully, but firmly with me. I rolled my eyes andshrugged it off again, even though I knew he might be onto something. Macaquewasn’t nearly as hostile with me as I thought he’d be. I’m still a little inshock by how relatively well things have been going with him. Sure we stillargue, but we haven’t gotten into fist fights together, so that’s good. He’sbeen on good behavior since everything that happened too. Bonding with Mk andthe others, enjoying his plays and other friends, just living his life.

Look,I don’t know what to make of our relationship right now okay? It's all sofragile right now and I'm pretty sure me butting into his life again would justmake things more complicated for both of us. I tried to reason withhim and myself. Making excuses not to engage while still making excuses to bearound him. Isn't that assbackwards.

Youcould try talking to him about it. You used to be close and maybe you two couldsort things out peacefully for once. Besides, I'd rather not be a part of yourcrises any more than I already am, thank you. This way you could make boundariesfor each other instead of leaving everything to guess work. Headvised while also scolding me. I knew in my head that he was probably right,but what if he was just putting up with me? What if he tells me to f*ck off andleave him alone forever? What if I just make things worse? I know that we’dtechnically already talked some things over, but I still have some doubts. Iwant to believe we’re making progress toward some kind of amicable relationshipagain. That he cared enough about me, despite everything, to still want mearound.

That’sthe thing. We kinda already did and I still don’t really know what to do withthat. Plus I still wanted more answers about those kids and he’s busy right nowand we haven’t followed through on some plans yet. As I went on myvoice got quieter and I trailed off my words.

WellI’ve already told you everything I know, so it would seem that your only optionis to speak with Macaque further. He stood up, ready to leave and Iinstinctively stood up with him.

Wait,but I’ve got more questions! I really just didn’t want to be left tostew over things on my own.

Thenask Macaque, I have other obligations to attend to that you so rudely draggedme away from.

Ohcome on Nezha, you weren’t doing anything! Even in all those meetings you werein you were mostly just standing there. I argued and it was like Icould see a vein bulge against his forehead.

That’snot the point Wukong. He spoke through his teeth.

Comeon just a little longer? Do you know if anyone in heaven would actually beafter those cubs because of who they’re clones of and for that matter do youeven know for sure who they’re clones of? From what Macaque said before,he didn’t have any idea that they were made with ourDNA. Ugh just thinking about what that means gives me a headache. Nezhagroaned.

Alright.From what I know, there are those who still aren’t so fond of the Six EaredMacaque, but it’s more complicated than that. He’s worried about them beingharmed for vengeance or kidnapped as leverage from celestials and demons alike.I don’t blame him for being cautious either, given the nature of how they evencame into existence combined with some aspects of demon culture when it comesto kidnapping and courting.

Uh,what are you talking about?

Whatdo you mean?

I’mnot super familiar with demon courting tactics other than some of the stuff DBKdid. What do the kids have to do with this?

Typically,if a demon has a child, it’s possible that another demon interested in courtingthem will kidnap them if kidnapping the parent or guardian is too difficult anduse them as leverage in the courting process. It’s an older practice these daysso it’s rare, but with an older immortal like Macaque, the likelihood of ithappening is fractionally higher. Even more so since he’s considered powerfuland has never been in many courtships. I could feel my blood boilingat the prospect of Macaque having to go through any of this. Having toconstantly watch his own back from fear of being kidnapped and possibly forcedinto a courtship he wanted nothing to do with. That the man who cloned them wasstalking him with such malicious intent. That, knowing him, he likely put offhaving any children of his own out of fear of them being harmed and usedagainst him. How all of his cubs would be at risk just for being considered hischildren. It was all so infuriating and I can’t help blaming myself for so muchof it. I told myself that it was my fault he was alone. That it was my faultfor him being considered a demon now and more susceptible to these things. Thatit was my fault that those boys had to be hidden from the world. I felt liketearing through any demon that even dared to lay a finger on any of them. OnCastor, on Pollux, on Macaque, and on Bai He too.

Atthe same time, hearing that made me worry. Worry about their safety. Worry thatthey could be in danger in the same way I worry about Mk being in danger. Icould only imagine what would happen if people found out those kids are minetoo, weird as that is for me to acknowledge. I have to wonder if anyone elseknows about them and if anyone actually has tried to kidnap him or the boys inthe past. Did he ever tell Bai He that was a possibility that could happen toany of them? WHY AM I ONLY THINKING ABOUT THIS NOW!? I know he talked about alittle in the show I saw, but I didn’t really think too deeply about theimplications or how far it could go before ARGH!

Asfor the identity of whatever monkey the other source of DNA came from, Macaquesaid any notes he found were inconclusive and didn’t disclose anything abouttheir identity. It took me a second to register what he’d said aftermy thoughts derailed a bit, but when I did, I felt a bit of relief. If hedidn’t know then hopefully that meant no one but Macaque and I knew they werealso mine. Gods that would really add a whole other layer to things wouldn’tit?

Ah,I see. That’s unfortunate to hear. I lied through my teeth.Could you tell me anything else you know about demon courtship thatmight endanger them? I tried to ask as if I wasn’t too concerned, butfrom the oddly soft smile Nezha gave me, it didn’t work.

Look,I don’t know a lot of specifics about demon culture. In fact most of what I doknow is either hearsay or from occasionally keeping an eye out for Red Sonwhile the Demon Bull King was sealed away. If you want to know more I, again,suggest you ask someone else. Now I really must go, Wukong. People will startto worry if I'm away for too long without any warning. I thought overwhat he’d said and another, probably bad, idea struck me. I could follow hisadvice in my own, somewhat roundabout, way.

Alright,alright, but uh, maybe keep this whole conversation between us okay? Wouldn’twant anyone finding out all this. I whispered conspiratorially to himand he rolled his eyes with some fondness.

Thatwas already a given. Even prior to everything we’ve shared, I’d rather everyonenot know about how I was dragged out of heaven by you. I’ve already heardenough talk about how you defeated me twicea few months back. He sighed in defeat and I patted him on theback.

Yeah,sorry about that. I did mean it when I said you were getting better though! I’mimpressed. I told him, genuinely and he shrugged off thecompliment.

It’shard to believe that after the way you took me out in one swift punch while youwere possessed.

Thathardly counts!

Ofcourse it counts, you were obviously holding back before!

Istand by what I said! We argued back and forth for a minute aboutwhether or not my personal intent mattered in deciding the fate of a battlebefore we both agreed to disagree on the matter as I walked him out. We stoppedjust outside of the waterfall and before he went off he turned to me with asmall smile.

Youknow Wukong, I really do hope the two of you are able to properly reconcilewith one another and I’m glad you two aren’t at each other’s throats anymore.

Yeahwell, if we’re being honest, me too. I gave him an equally smallsmile in return.

Good.I’ll be off then. Oh and tell Mk I said hello for me would you?

Surething! He’ll be happy to hear that. Later Nezha and don’t be astranger!

I’llthink about it. Don’t do anything stupid please.

Eh,I’ll think about it. I gave him a big cheeky, toothy grin and hesighed good naturedly, but I got the sense that he was absolutely positive thatI was, in fact, going to do something stupid. Regardless of that fact, he flewoff without another word and I waved him off until he was out of sight. I keptwatching the spot where he’d disappeared until I was certain he was gone beforeformulating a loose idea of my plan.

Insteadof walking back inside the cave, I chose to wander the mountain as I thought.It was late afternoon so it meant that the heat wasn’t too overbearing, but italso meant that Macaque was either still at DBK’s or just getting home so Idecided to leave enacting my idea until tomorrow. I knew even tomorrow he’dhave plans, but what were the odds of him hanging out with the gold and silverdemons all day long right? I’d just have to wait until he wasn’t busy and then wecould talk. Since I didn’t exactly have another way of contacting him andbecause I didn’t want to get Mk involved, I’d have to either follow him orastral project myself to him to find a good time. I know he said we needed timeand space, but it wasn’t like I was trying to rush things with him.I just wanted to know more about his situation and if I should be concerned orif that was weird or too much for whatever we were right now.

Apart of my brain was telling me that what I was doing was a tad…irrational, but this was starting to stress me out more thanquestioning the state of our relationship. This felt like a marginally betteralternative to that since in a way, it felt more familiar and comforting toworry about them. To want them to be safe and to want to keep an eye out forthem. Plus, if I said my worry was more about the cubs than him, then maybe wewouldn’t get into an argument over my concern being too little too late.

Thewords he’d said the night he groomed my fur still played in my head from timeto time, though it wasn’t really that long ago. He’d looked like he was in somuch pain too. Like he’d felt the same ache and bittersweet feelings that I hadin that moment. I still wish I’d said more, but we both knew I was never thatgreat with my words. Even still, I did want to speak with him again about,well, everything. About wanting things to get better. About what we’d donewhile we were apart. About how he’s doing now. He felt like he was within arm’sreach, but like he was so far away from me at the same time. Hopefully, withthese baby steps into his life again. He wouldn’t feel so distant. Thatwe wouldn’t feel so impossible. Even if we ended up as just friends, I’d behappy for us to be by each other's sides again.

Isighed internally.

Only time will tell.

Chapter 15: Flower Garden

Chapter Text

Macaque’s P.O.V.

WhenI opened the door, I had to wonder why I was even surprised by the sight on theother side. Jin and Yin’s disguises consisted of fake mustaches and sunglasses,as if that would hide anything about their identities. I did note that they hadat least decided to wear something that wasn’t their typical, eye catching,leather armor. They had instead swapped them out for pastel colored versions oftheir own hues spring wear. Thin flannels worn like jackets with white teesunderneath and soft colored blue jeans that clung to their legs. I’d say theylook nice if it weren’t for the fact that I was annoyed by their lack of actualdisguises. I practically dragged them into the apartment, quickly closing thedoor and spinning around to glare at them.

Whathappened to low profile? I whisper shouted as if anyone who wasn’tsupposed to hear would be eavesdropping. The two of them put up their handsdefensively and smiled at me.

Relax,Lulu. Jin said.

Yeah,don’t worry. We had on our real disguises right until you opened thedoor. Yin assured me. They looked at each other and nodded before,with a flourish, they disguised themselves as humans with big cheeky grins ontheir faces. I sighed in relief, now only a little irritated from being messedwith.

Youguys suck. I said through a laugh full of fondness.

Sooo, you gonna introduce us? Yin slid into my personalspace with the smuggest look on his face. The bastard. I pushed him back by hisface and I chuckled at his squawking.

Alright,alright. I readjusted the children in my arms so they could facethem. Yin, Jin, this is Bai He, the kid I told you about. Bai He theseare your new uncles. Sorry about that. Bai He giggled at my apologyand Jin and Yin’s subsequent offense over it.

Hey!Jin exclaimed.

Rude.Yin muttered.

Don’tbe sorry. I’m really excited to meet you both. She bowed her head andgrinned from ear to ear. Her eyes looked so bright as she looked at themwithout the worries she’d had when we met the Demon Bull family yesterday. Maybeit was because she’d had the experience of meeting someone considered family.Maybe it was because of the far more casual nature of this meeting. Maybe itwas because Jin and Yin had opened with messing with me that eased her worries.Whatever the reason, it warmed my heart to see her so happy.

Aww.They cooed at her.

We’rehappy to meet you too, Bai He. Yin extended a hand to her, which sheshook and Castor used their temporarily linked hands to crawl up Yin’s arm andinvestigate his new look.

Yeahand you’re so adorable. Jin reached over to pinchher cheek, but Pollux nipped at his hand before he could even touch her. Yin,Bai He, and I chuckled at the way he pouted after that.

Thecutest right? I told them while nuzzling her cheek and Bai He giggledmore, kicking her legs back and forth from giddiness.

Stopehehe. She pushed my face away with both her hands and Pollux whinedover being in the middle of all the jostling, moving to cling to my backinstead, finding it more stable. I cooed my apologies to him and he nuzzled myneck in forgiveness. I gently set Bai He down so I could gather all our thingsfor the picnic while she got to chat with her new uncles.

Ilistened to them talk about their trip over and how Lin wanted to come, butsomething came up with their finances she had to handle so she was busy andScorpion Queen and the Tudi were nice enough to accompany her. Bai He gaspedand asked if that meant she’d have even more aunts and uncles she had to meet.The two excitedly agreed with her sentiment and I was starting to wonder if shewas trying to outdo Mk when it came to collecting father figures. Not that Iminded at all. I thought it was sweet and I was happy that Jin and Yin wereencouraging this behavior. She was integrating herself into my life and myfriends lives with a title that latched her to all of us and it was making mylife a little brighter.

OnceI had all our things together, I glamoured the boys into their human forms andinstructed them not to just hang off of me since they were still very young andit wouldn’t make me look like a very good parent in mortal eyes. It would alsodraw more attention than having a larger group already would. I told them thatthey could be carried in someone’s arms and told them to hold someone’s handsif they were going to walk. They just needed to look secure and safe instead ofhanging off ‘dangerously’ in front of mortal humans. They complained butcomplied. Pollux climbed off of me so they could hold Bai He’s hand and Castormade Yin carry him. They gloated about being the favorite uncle and Bai Hechose to add fuel to that fire by telling them whoever he learned and said thename of first would be his actual favorite. As soon as they heard they set towork trying to get him to say their names.

Theykept up their competition during our walk to the park. Since it was Castor, Iwasn’t too concerned with him getting overwhelmed by the attention. He’d donebetter with adjusting to new people than Pollux and his curiosity also justmade him more open to new influences. He also enjoyed getting attention ingeneral. Plus, Bai He and I were here in case he did get overwhelmed by saidattention.

Aswe walked we did get some attention from people who thought the kids wereadorable. Whenever that happened Pollux would glare at them and hide behind BaiHe, which only made them coo at him more. Bai He and I would distract them tokeep them from making Pollux uncomfortable and sometimes I’d get some unwantedattention of my own. Women, and even a few men, would attempt to flirt with meand sometimes Jin or Yin too. It was annoying to all of us, but our approachesto rejecting them were…different. I would try to be gentle, subtleeven, in the way I either directly let them down or played dumb to theirattempts at flirting or flattery, while Jin and Yin weren’t so tactful. Theywere very blunt about not being interested in them and would even act more,let's say unappealing, to weird them out into leaving. Of course I found itvery amusing to watch, and I knew this wasn’t even the worse they’d done toappear ‘unattractive’ to others. It was just one of those things I liked aboutthem. It would seem that it was something Pollux found amusing too since Icould hear him chittering to himself about it.

Weall had a good laugh about it and by the time we reached the park, Castor hadyet to say either of their names. Though I was pretty sure that was because hewas doing it on purpose since he’d already met them before and he’d learnedMei’s name quickly. Sure Mei was easy to say, but he’d still learned plenty ofother more difficult words in the past so this shouldn’t have been a problem forhim…Maybe he just liked the attention.

Therewas a moment on the way that I felt like we were being watched, but the feelingdidn’t stick. When I tried to find the source or listen out for anythingsuspicious I couldn’t find anything. I subtly asked if anyone else felt thatway too and when I did Jin and Yin told me they were used to that feeling, butwould keep an eye out. Bai He told me she wasn’t sure and, regardless if wewere being watched or not, I had her walk a little closer to me. I wanted tomake sure she was safe and even asked her if she’d rather do this at home, butshe assured me she’d be okay and if she wasn’t then she’d tell me so. I couldonly hope and trust that she actually would.

Theflower garden was gorgeous with the fields and patches of colorful flowers infull bloom left a pleasant fragrance in the air that could put one's mind atease. The weather was great, with the sun brightly beaming down on uspleasantly, but we found a nice spot in the shade of a large tree to keepanyone from accidentally overheating. Hopefully, if we weren’t actually beingwatched, it would help us relax, and if we were, well then wecould actively do something about it.

Iset up the blanket and food by myself so Bai He and the boys could enjoy theflower garden a bit before we were ready to eat and so Jin and Yin would befree to watch them for me. Castor chirped happily and practically dragged hisbrother into a bed of narcissuses, tulips and alliums along with Bai He. Shetold them to be careful and not to kill or pluck any of the flowers and tostick to the stepping stones if they wanted to walk through them.

Somuch for her not being your kid huh? Yin slid up beside me while Igot distracted watching them enjoy themselves. I fondly rolled my eyes andlightheartedly shoved him.

Shutup, don't act so smug.

Inyour dreams. It’s not every day I get to say I told you so.

Alrightalready I get it, geez. I chuckled, getting back to setting up.

It’scute though, seeing you as a dad. Your face looked all soft and relaxed when wecame over and seeing you being all protective of them is reallysweet. He flashed me a toothy grin and I smiled back at him.

SoI’ve heard. I have to admit, it has been really nice. I am worried about herthough. She’s talked about feeling like she’s being watched before, but Ihaven’t noticed anything other than Wukong, but considering how long she’s feltthat way it doesn’t line up with when he was watching us.

TheMonkey King was watching you?

Yeah,it’s a whole thing, but that’s not the point. I know it’s not impossible forsomeone to escape my detection so I’m asking you both to keep a lookoutokay?

Okay,okay, we will, I’ll tell Jin. Don’t think we aren’t gonna talk about the oldsage watching you.

I’lltell you all about it after we’re somewhere with a bit more privacyalright?

Deal.Now I’m gonna leave you to it and keep those kiddo’s out of trouble.As weird as that sentence was for me to hear from them of all people, I stilltrusted them to do just that. Even though they could be a little rambunctiousand troublemakers on their own, they were reliable when they needed to be and Iwas grateful for that.

WhenI finished setting up everything I took a moment to sit back and listen to oursurroundings, going into a shallow meditation so I could focus. I could heareverything. From the usually noisy busyness of the city to the steps of thesmallest insects. The idle chitter chatter of other park goers and the flowingof the nearby river. Castor’s awe at the little bugs they found and Bai Hefrantically urging him not to eat a bee. The cool breeze and the beat of thebutterfly wings that ride on it. Pollux smacking a butterfly between his littlemitts that complained in a suspiciously familiar tone of voice. Especially whenit started to bargain with my little cub in a hushed voice not to tattle on himand wiggled out of his grasp. I watched out of the corner of my eye as theyfluttered off somewhere else, but I knew exactly where they were at thispoint.

Icalled everyone back to eat and continued to listen out for his heartbeat so Iwouldn’t lose him. Once everyone settled in I subtly whispered to Bai He so hecouldn’t read my lips, asking her if she felt like she was being watched rightnow. She took a minute to respond and answered yes, then I told her that itcould be Wukong, but that I also wanted to try something. I had everyone actlike everything was everything and played along until I heard him blink in thedistance. I seamlessly replaced myself with a clone, dipping into the shadowsand making my way over to the flower he hid himself on to confront him. Again.

WukongP.O.V.

Thenext morning I woke up late from staying up too long mulling over my plan ofaction for today and if it was worth possibly pissing off Macaque again. Thenagain he’d probably be annoyed with me either way so I might as well get thisdone sooner rather than later for once. Everything about him has been killing me and I needed to get all of this out of myhead.

Igrabbed and ate a quick snack before heading out to his house to see if I couldfollow him before he went out today. I hopped onto my cloud and zoomed into thecity. Just like before I transformed when I got close, this time into my birdform as I swooped down to his window. I blinked and activated my gold visionfor a split second to see if he was in there, only to find that he was alreadygone. I tried to find them without having to use my gold vision again since Iknew he’d notice, but I didn’t know exactly where they were going and this citywas so big and convoluted that I wasn’t having any luck. Defeated, I activated mygold vision to scan the city and spotted him, Bai He, the boys and the gold andsilver demons all in disguise. I quickly deactivated my gold vision and flew intheir direction to follow them far enough behind that they wouldn’t suspect me.I transformed into a butterfly to make it harder for Macaque to track me downand watched them as they walked.

Icouldn’t tell if they were suspicious of me from what I could see and they wentabout their day like I was there. I watched various people come up to theirgroup and speak with them and I was able to get bits and pieces of what theywere saying by reading their lips. I could tell that some were flirting withthem and I had to admit, I enjoyed seeing him reject their advances and carryon like it never happened, even if it also made me feel a little guilty.

Ifollowed them into the flower garden they’d set out for and found the perfectcover to get close with my current form. I fluttered down to the field offlowers they’d settled near and I was able to get a better angle to see whatthey were talking about. It was cute to see the little cubs play together. Itkinda reminded me a little of when we were younger. Just messing around withouta care in the world. Then everything had to go and get all complicated. I wishI could go back to the days of running around the mountain with everyone else,basking in the hot sun on a day like this and munching on fruit. It all feelslike a distant memory now.

AsI was reminiscing, one of the little ones, Pollux I believe, had managed tosneak up on me and grabbed me and peered down at me with big, curious eyes. Hereally did look so much like Macaque. From the grumpy faces he’d pulled before,to the cute, bright-eyed interest he had right now.

Heythere bud. Pollux chirped and tilted his head once I whispered tohim. Their eyes sparked with recognition and I could tell he was about to callhis brother. Wait a minute. I try wiggling out of his hands.Man this kid’s got quitethe grip. Whydon’t we keep this between us? I don’t really want your dad getting mad atme? I managed to escape his grasp and landed on his nose.Now why don’t you go find your brother and smell theflowers. I patted his head a little with my little butterfly legbefore flying off a little further away.

Ifound a nice little tree that was amongst the field of flowers. I watched asthe cubs and the gold and silver demons, regrouped on their picnic blanket.They spoke amongst themselves, but I wasn’t able to see their mouths as if theywere doing it on purpose. I couldn’t tell if they were on to me or not, butthey went about their picnic, dishing out food from their baskets to enjoy. Itmade me wish I’d eaten more before I’d left or at least brought a snack with meor something. As I watched, I felt something shift, but everything still lookedto be in order. No one in their group batted an eye so maybe it was just myimagination. I haven’t exactly been in the best mental shape for, uh, for…

Whatchalookin’ at? I jumped and fluttered above the branch I’d previouslyperched myself on and looked down to find Macaque. He wasn’t in the shadow formI’d been expecting, but in the ladybug form of his that I hadn’t seen him usein who knows how long. He turned himself around in a little circle and I had tokeep myself from awing at his cute mischievous face he’d always have in thatform since I didn’t want to piss him off anymore that I probably already had.Well? What was so interesting hmm?He acted amused and I landed on the same branch a little further away so Iwouldn’t be right on top of him again.

Ohuh, nothing really. I was just in the area and I happened to see you guys,that's all.

Mhm,right. Now tell me, honestly, is that true? All the amusem*nt wasinstantly gone from his voice after that first sentence. Instead it wasreplaced with a dead serious tone and glare. I blinked at the sudden change,and debated how I should respond. He’d already called me out and I doubtedthings would get any better if I tried to lie to his face again.

...No.He groaned and put one of his legs to his face.

Howlong?

Sinceyou guys were walking. He sighed, but it almost sounded like it wasin relief.

Why?

Wellactually, I was sort of hoping to speak with you in private when you weren’tbusy and I didn’t have anything else to do until then, but I knew you were busyso I figured I’d just wait until you were alone and you know what saying it outmakes that sound really bad doesn’t it? He let out a long tiredsigh.

Look,as terrible of an idea that was, I’d be willing to listen toyou, but only if you help me test something. He offered and I gavehim a suspicious look.

Why?I repeated.

I’mjust worried about something and I’m hoping it’s nothing, but I’m gonna needyour help to test a theory of mine. All I need you to do is turn around andclose your eyes for good measure and I’ll be back once I’ve confirmed somethingwith Bai He. Ah, so it’s about them. That makes a bit more sense asto why he’s even asking to begin with. Then again it sounds like he’s justgonna bail if I do what he says.

What’sthat supposed to do? I asked him, more to gauge his reaction thananything.

Ipromise I’ll tell you after. He asked me with a soft sincerity Iwasn’t expecting. It did something funny to my heart that I wasn’t preparedfor. I turned myself around and closed my eyes, just like he asked, so Iwouldn’t have to look at him.

Fine,but you better not just run off while my back is turned. I actedannoyed to cover up the beating of my heart, hoping that he wouldn't hearit.

Thankyou. I’ll be right back. He said it with the same tone of voice, andit did nothing to help my heart.

Ilistened to him fly away and tried to calm myself down. Why is this evenaffecting me so much? What is wrong withme? Maybe I should get out more or maybe less to avoid him all together and gethim out of my head for a while. Out of sight out of mind. Maybe then I couldhear myself think, or it’ll make things worse. I did get here from not beingable to get him out of my head and needing answers after all. Should I findsomeone else to talk to about this? Mk did say I should get better atcommunicating with others about what’s going on with me. Especially aftereverything with the Lady Bone Demon since I lied about being on vacation when Icould have told him what was actually happening and when I didn’t share my planfor the samadhi fire and if I had then we could come up with a better onetogether. I’ll admit, those really backfired on me so the kid had a point, butit wasn’t exactly that easy. I mean if he saw what I was doing right now he’dprobably say that this wasn’t what he had in mind when he said that and scoldme…again.

Afew minutes passed and Macaque came back through a tiny portal. I was honestlystill half expecting him not to come back, but it was nice knowing he didn’tlie to me. It also made me slightly concerned as to why he’d asked for help.

Hey,I’m back. Did you stay like that the whole time I was gone? Theseriousness from before remained in his tone.

Yes.

Areyou sure? His voice came out quieter, with worry creeping into it. Itput me a little on edge since I had no idea why he’d be worried. Theconversation I had with Nezha replayed in my mind and I had to wonder ifsomeone was watching them…otherthan me.

Yes.They were quiet for a few beats and I could feel the tension that filled thesilence between us. They muttered a few curses under his breath before actuallyaddressing me again.

Okay,I need you to come with me now.

Huh?Why? Is this still a part of your test or something? I questionedhim, not turning around to face him yet.

Yes,there’s a bathroom nearby you can use to transform. I heard himflying off again before I could say anything. I turned to fly after him andcomplained about how vague he was being. He just said that he’d tell me after,since he'd be sure of whatever was going on and if he was stressed over nothingby then.

Weflew into the bathroom through a propped open window. There wasn’t anyoneinside at the moment so I was able to transform back into my normal formwithout anyone seeing me. Macaque didn’t transform back though and insteadlanded on my shoulder. They glamoured me to look like a human and told me to goback to where they’d been having their picnic, but to keep an eye out foranything weird or suspicious. That raised some alarm bells in my mind and Idecided that I’d go along with what he’s saying without question for the timebeing. I scanned the park as we walked, finding families, friends, couples, anda few lone park goers, but nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. Iwhispered as much to Macaque and he only hummed to show that he was listening.I hoped that we were both just being paranoid and that nothing was wrong, but Iknew, somewhere in the back of my mind, that Macaque was rarely wrong when itcame to his concerns.

Bythe time I got within a few feet of their set up I asked Macaque if it wasactually alright for me to join them. He told me his clone had already toldthem I’d be joining them so they knew I was coming. Even with that in mind, Iapproached cautiously and waved to them as I got closer. Little ladybug Macaqueflew off of my shoulder and landed in the shadow of his clone, sinking into itand seamlessly taking his clone's place. He patted the space beside him for meto sit at and I did as he directed while he whispered something to Bai He. Icould feel the gold and silver demons staring at me while they spoke to eachother, but I was distracted by Castor coming up to me, dragging Pollux withhim, so they could inspect me. I let them, leaning down so they could poke andtwist my face how they liked. I could feel the way Macaque tensed up next to meand I looked over to find that his face was pinched in deep thought.

Istared at him for a bit, waiting to see if anything would change or if he’dspeak, but his brow only furrowed deeper and his eyes flashed with some kind ofrealization that looked like a mix between panic and shock.

Lulu?The gold demon asked, leaning over to touch their knee, snapping them out oftheir train of thought. I noticed him lightly panting through his nose, thentaking a deep breath to calm himself before the kids could notice.

Sorry,I’m fine. Um, is it alright with you guys if Wukong sticks around forthis?

Huh?The gold and silver demons asked in unison and tilted their heads inconfusion.

Why?Bai He asked like she was grossed out by the idea. Well at least Castor seemedhappy with the idea. Macaque patted her head then gave her a side hug.

Ijust wanna make sure you’re okay. You said you felt like you were being watchedeven when Wukong wasn’t around and wasn’t looking at you. I know you said itwent away a little after he showed up, but that might mean whoever, if there issomeone watching us, that they got scared off by him. I know there are ways forpeople to hide from my detection, but the last time someone did thatwas… His free hand came up to touch his neck and I tensed with guilt.I felt like, for a moment, I was back atop the ritual space, dragging him outof the shadows by the neck. I could see the look of fear on his face and theway he’d flinched when I yelled at him and raised my fist. Seeing him likethat…it scared me, made me hesitate. I don’t think I would have hit him if Tanghadn’t said anything, but I was so mad at himthat I can’t be sure I wouldn’t have done something horrible all overagain.

Okay.Bai He’s dejected voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I looked away fromthem and back down to the glamoured cubs in my lap. Castor was crawling out tolay by Bai He, but Pollux had stayed, looking up at me with concern. Theycurled up against my stomach, loosely gripping my shirt. Even in this humanform, they were so cute and their attempt to comfort me warmed my heart,helping me calm down just a little. I patted his head and smiled down at thelittle guy. I chirped my thanks to him and gave him head scratches. Theynuzzled their cheek into me and purred at the scratches.

We’refine with it as long as you are. The silver demon told him and Icould feel both of their eyes on me for a second before they shifted to look atMacaque.

Yeah,alright, but we don’t plan on sharing with him! The gold demon jokedin what I could assume was a completely serious way, moving their paper platecloser to themself.

Ididn’t think you would. He can have some of my share. Macaque smiledappreciatively at the demon twins.

I‘mnot sharing either. Bai He pouted, and sent me a pointed look my way.I smiled awkwardly, not really knowing how else to respond to her and sherolled her eyes at me.

Youdon’t have to either. He kissed the top of her head then ruffled herhair. She protested at that and lightly swatted at his arm. Now go on,eat, I don’t want this to ruin our day out together. He put on abrighter smile to help bring up the mood and gave me a plate, telling me hemade extra anyway. It was odd seeing him like this, putting on a front likeeverything was fine. I could tell that the demon twins felt similarly from thelooks they gave each other. Even though I was worried about him, and it was thegold and silver demons, I was kind of happy to see that he had people lookingout for him. It didn’t fully put my mind at ease given the current situation,but it did help. I could let myself relax and hopefully, when this was over, Iwouldn’t have to stress so much over Macaque and the cubs' well beings.

So,why were you stalking good old Macaque? Yin asked, taking a bite of asandwich without looking at me and just like that I was regretting agreeing tothis.

Uh-

Becausehe’s a weirdo. Bai He stated like it was a fact, making the otheradults in the group snicker.

Ohwe knew that, but why exactly? Jin told her with amusem*nt, makingher chuckle. I’m being bullied.

Saysthe guy who walks around in useless, revealing armor all the time. Iargued in my defense.

Hey,we look great in it! Jin gasped in offense and reasoned back.

Atleast we don't go around with some guys' skin around our waists. Yinaccused. I’d say it’s not like I was wearing it right now, but they weren’twearing their outfits and it wouldn’t help my case if Idid.

What?!Bai He looked at me in disbelief.

Okay!Let’s maybe keep things civil alright and maybe not bring up oldnews. Macaque spoke through his teeth to show his annoyance at us. Itwas a warning that there’d be consequences the next time we argued. Thoughweirdly enough, it felt more directed at them than at me and I had to restrainmyself from rubbing it in their faces to ruin the small victory. I did givethem a cheeky grin that made them gasp in offense in a way that reminded me ofthe little monkeys on the mountain that would get in trouble for something theydidn’t do, but in those situations I had to play peacekeeper. Here, I was apart of the problem. I wouldn’t say the argument was allme, but I knew they weren’t wrong to question my behavior since I was actingthe exact kind of person I’m worried over for them.

Ican do that and I promise that the next time I want to talk to you, I’ll ask Mkfirst. He looked at me with a very unconvinced stare.

Noyou won't. At this rate I’d be better off just giving you my number because Idefinitely don’t want you astral projecting into my head or something. Don’t even think about it. He scolded me before Icould even do anything.

I wasn’t gonna! I probably was, but he didn’t have to call meout like that.

Ofcourse you weren’t. He pulled out his phone and made an expectantgrabby hand gesture toward me for mine. I almost handed my phone right to him,but thankfully remembered that the last thing I was looking at was that videoof him dancing and I’m sure swiping my phone back only made me look suspicious,that wasn’t important right now. I closed the application, just in case, andtold him I’d just tell him my number and we exchanged our numbers that way. Hegave me a confused look, brushed off, not wanting to know. Now this betterbe the end of you creeping on me and my kids.

Pleasedon’t say it like that.

That’swhat it was, accept that you socially inept doofus. I could see himfighting a smile and he bumped shoulders with me. I bumped him back, lettingmyself smile as his fight wavered.

Saysyou, people love me. I leaned my head on his shoulder to be obnoxiousand he rolled his eyes, but didn’t immediately push me away. Maybe he justdidn’t want to jostle Pollux, who made himself comfortable in my lap, decidingto eat there instead of on the blanket. I didn’t mind, I was used to havinglittle monkeys hanging off of me, so this was fine.

Doesn’tmake you not socially inept, dude. Even if it was true. He huffed alaugh.

Somean. I leaned a little harder against him before sitting up properlyand dropping it.

Ikept my mouth shut for the most part after that. I liked listening to them talkand enjoying their time together. I helped myself to the food, happy to eatsomething else for once. Peaches and takeout food are great, but it can be toomuch for me at times. Even though I wanted to relax completely, I couldn’t. Iwas too worried about the person that was potentially watching his family. I’dsubtly scan the area for anything suspicious and as I was doing it I noticedthe demon twins doing the same thing. There was a moment where we locked eyesand wordlessly agreed to a truce, at least until we were sure they were safe oruntil Macaque and the cubs weren’t around. After that all bets were off, butuntil then, we’d be a security blanket for the day, letting them all enjoy thepleasantness the day was supposed to bring.

Chapter 16: Flower Crowns

Chapter Text

Macaque P.O.V.

Despitethe hiccup of having not only a very possible stalker and a very real creeperof Sun Wukong intruding on my family time, being at the flower garden was nice.It was still a nice warm day outside and Bai He didn’t look too bothereddespite being the one to notice someone was watching her. Though I myselfcouldn’t fully relax, having Jin, Yin, and even Wukong here helped ease some ofthe tension out of my mind and body. It was nice seeing Pollux be comfortablearound other people, even if that person was Wukong because of course it justhad to be, and I was glad that Bai He was still having fun with her new unclesin the face of potential danger and Castor liked getting the enjoy the sunshineand stuffing his cheeks with food. Seeing their happy faces filled me with theurge to protect them at all costs.

Icould only bring myself to nibble on the food we prepared, having lost myappetite a long time ago, and I’d assumed that having Wukong here would help mehide my undereating from Pollux, but it would seem that Pollux was stillvigilant in spite of his laxed state. When he noticed how little I was eatinghe offered his own food to me that I was quick to gently decline. He insisted,sweet child that he was, but I declined again, now feeling everyone’s eyes onme. I avoided making eye contact with all of them and I promised Pollux that Iwould eat my own food, picking up a half a chicken sandwich and taking a biteto prove it to him. He kept watching me after I finished eating it, seeminglynot satisfied with the small amount. As sweet as it was for him to be worriedabout me, I was silently swearing about being put on the spot, especially whenI started to hear snickering and giggling at my expense.

BeforeI could look up to glare at them for it, Wukong slung an arm over my shoulders,pulling me closer to his side and offering up a sausage link that’d been cutinto the shape of an octopus on the end of a toothpick.

Heyyou should have some of these next, they were really good and so cutetoo. He poked it against my lips, goading me to take a bite with themost annoying smug grin on his face that was far too close to my own. I openedmy mouth to argue but, almost predictably, he shoved the octodog into my mouth.I glared at him.

Goodright? He asked as his shoulders shook with barely containedgiggles.

Ihate you. I grumbled, but I was quickly distracted by the other halfof my chicken sandwich getting shoved against my cheek by Jin. Oh so now they can get along! I angrily thought to myself as Iturned my glare over to their cheeky grin.

Here,gotta finish what you started right? I’m gonna kill all of them. Icould see Yin making a salad bowl for me with Castor helping him while Bai Hewas cutting out a slice of mango pie for me. All of them except my kids. At least Pollux went back to eating hisown food, but he kept his eyes on me as he ate.

Isnatched the sandwich from Jin’s hand, and he had no reservations about laughingat my anger and suffering as I grumbled through eating my sandwich. I’ll haveto have a talk with Pollux later about not following their behavior of pushingfood onto people before he thinks this is an appropriate thing to do, not justto me, but anyone in the future too…I should probably have that talk withCastor and Bai He too while I’m at it, just to be safe.

BeforeI’m even done with my sandwich, the salad bowl and pie are presented to me, andI let out a groan of frustration at them. I could hear a chittering laughcoming from Pollux among the choir of other laughs surrounding it. I sighed indefeat and patted Pollux's head, making him coo at the gentle affection andnuzzle into my hand. It brought a small smile to my face despite the irritationI felt at the situation and when I lifted my head, I was met with anunexpectedly soft look from Wukong who had apparently been staring at me withthat dopey expression for who knows how long. There was something bittersweetin it again, but it made my face feel warm and my stomach flip. It felt like alump formed in my throat in that brief moment and I felt frozen in place.Wukong blinked and his face changed. His eyes filled with awareness at beingcaught and his own face turned a light shade of pink before we both snapped outof whatever that was and pulled away from each other.

NowI was grateful for the food that’d been presented to me so I could stuff myface and occupy my mind and hands with something else that wasn’t that.Unfortunately, present company was not willing to overlook that exchange and Icould feel it coming already. Bai He leaned into my side, and I pointedlydidn't look at her.

You’resuch a dork. She says instead of what I thought she would, but it hada similar effect to it except it was more insulting.

Hey!The slight crack in my voice gave away how embarrassed I was and instantlyregretted speaking at all.

Awit’s okay Lulu, you’re our dork. Jin teased me.

Westill love you. Yin followed up. My face was burning as I scowled indisgust at them. My only solace is that theyweren’t going to touch on my feelings for him in public or in front of him, butBai He absolutely would, but he already knew that.

Ican’t believe you’re the ones calling mea dork. You’re the ones that’ll play air guitar like it’s cool as ataunt. I chose to focus my anger on the two adult loons in front ofme instead of Bai He, already knowing how that would end. The colorful twinsgasped in what I assumed was a mix of mock offense and real offense.

Ofcourse we do it, because it is cool! Jin defended.

Yeah,don’t pretend like you don’t think so. Yin chuckled and got between Wukongand I to invade my personal space only to back off again and join his brotherso they could stand back-to-back and give an example of them playing air guitartogether. I rolled my eyes at the display and tried my hardest not to smile atit because honestly, I do find it funny when they do it, but I wasn’t about togive them that satisfaction. Besides, they were already getting their amusedattention from Bai He and Castor. They didn’t need any more from me.

Ihave no idea what you’re talking about. All I see are a couple of dweebslooking foolish. I turned up my nose and crossed my arms toexaggerate my faux disapproval.

Saysthe theater kid nerd. Jin prodded.

HA!You think that’ll get under my skin? I know what I am! I know what I’mabout! I proudly proclaimed, now getting laughter from our tinyaudience and the horned twins themselves.

Areyou sure about that? PapiMacaque. Yinteased, and I felt my eyebrow twitch.

You’rereally gonna milk this one, aren’t you? My eyes narrowed athim.

Till the last drop. Yin toothily grinned at me.I groaned a heavy sigh and gingerly moved some things out of the way.

Iguess that means we’ll just have to tussle then. I shruggednonchalantly. The two horned demons' faces morphed into looks of confusion thenjust as swiftly into ones of realization and surprise when I pounced on them,sending us all tumbling and rolling backwards the slight incline as we went.

Itwasn’t real fighting, and they knew that well enough. It’s why our ‘tussling’only involved us rolling around in the grass, trying to avoid the flower beds,to see who would come out on top. We laughed together as we flipped and rolledaround, getting dirt and grass stains in our clothes and skin. It felt good tojust laugh and finally unwind with them in the wonderful springtime sun whilefeeling assured that someone was watching the kids without us. Even if Wukongand I were…awkward? Yeah, that sounds like a good word for it, right now, Iknew he wouldn’t let anything happen to the kids while I wasn’t actively payingattention. I was vaguely aware of them chatting at the picnic spot, so I knewthey were fine anyways.

Aftera few minutes of wrestling each other, I ended up sandwiched between the two ofthem, but I believe I’ve won. I was straddling Yin while Jin had his armswrapped around my neck, but it did nothing to keep me down. We were allcatching our breaths, and I’m not sure who started it, but we ended up in apile of giggles, laying on top of and beside each other. Tension ebbed out ofme with every bubbling laugh, and I curled closer to them in the grass. It tooka bit for our giggles to subside and when they did, I breathed out the last onmy tension in a content sigh.

Iwas supposed to do a show tonight, but I don’t know if I wanna go innow. I told them. I knew we weren’t being watched currently but hadbeen where it happened, and I’d been ambushed by that bastard. I was worriedthat history might repeat itself even with everyone else here. Mk’s grouphadn’t been that far gone when I returned for mylantern last time and they didn’t notice anything. Not that I called for helpor did anything to get them to come back, but I was still worried.

Youalright? Yin asked, and I sighed again.

Yeah,no, maybe. I’m still a little on edge I guess from everything, and that placewould only put me on high alert. I half confessed to them. I didn’treally want to get into the details of my own pitiful blunder there.

We’vegot your back if anything happens, whatever you decide. Jin offered,and I’m reminded once again of how grateful I am for them and knowing that theymean it.

Iknow, thank you. I’ll have to talk to Bai He about it. I’m pretty sure she’sthe one being followed, and I don’t want to disappoint her. Imurmured as I sat up and started dusting myself off. Ugh, these stains were not gonna come out easy. The twins followed my lead, and wegot up together to rejoin the others.

Icouldn’t help my smile or the way my heart melted a little, even if it made meannoyed at myself, at the sight of the boys happily playing with Wukong. Castorhad taken it upon himself to accessories Wukong look with some flowers, onesthat he definitely shouldn’t have plucked, and stuck them into his hair. He hadto bend down so they could place them comfortably without having to climb himto do it. Pollux and Bai He on the other hand were being taught how to weaveflower crowns. Pollux was having a more hands-on experience as Wukong was guidinghis hands to keep him from accidentally ripping the flowers. Bai He seemed tobe doing pretty well on her own, but I could see some hesitance in her eyes aswe approached. It might have been because she knew that the flowers shouldn’thave been picked, but it was already too late now. She did look prettyentertained when Castor tugged Wukong’s hair so he could place the flowerswhere he wanted.

Evenso, he was all smiles as they used him for their entertainment. We caught eachother's eyes and this time he was the one to catch mestaring. It wasn’t as embarrassing since there was considerable distancebetween us. Instead of shying away I felt my smile broaden and I huffed a laughunder my breath and his own smile turned bashful as a blush graced his cheeks.I could hear the way his heart rate sped up and I chose to ignore that fact. Itfelt good to see him happy with the little ones and gods I have gone soft! It’s not my fault he’s looked likesuch a depressed tired bastard all the time since like forever at this point!It had really shown in the distressing state of his fur before with how messedup it was even past the singed parts. I wonder how it looks now. Was he takingcare of it or was he back to neglecting it like everything else about him?Why do I even care!... I sighed internally knowing that Iknew the exact reason why I cared so much about that foolish man…and maybe thatwas okay, for now anyways. My feelings for the guy were a mess, but we wereworking on repairing the cordial side of things so it’s okay to feel some kindof warmth for him. Trying to fight the fact that I care about him at allwouldn’t get us anywhere and maybe, maybe he actually cares a little bit aboutme too.

What,you finished eating and you decided to make Wukong’s hair all pretty? Before me?I’m hurt. I put my hand to my chest and pretended to feel faint bythrowing my other arm over my forehead. Now wasn’t the time to start having acrisis over my feelings again. I’d rather focus on my kids having a goodtime.

Castorchittered at my theatrics, being used to it by this point and knowing I wasn’tactually hurt. Wukong seemed to go red from my words and avoided eye contactwith me. Seriously, he'sthe real doofus here.

Awyou think he’s pretty? Bai He asked with that mischievous little grinof hers. I rolled my eyes at her and the cooing from Jin and Yin thataccompanied her over it. Wukong’s face got even brighter, and I decided to playalong a little to see if I could tease him.

Hmm,only if I get to be prettier than him. I told them as I reclaimed myspot between Wukong and Bai He while Jin and Yin helped Castor in possiblygetting us banned or kicked out of the park by picking more flowers for myhair. I crowded into his space and looked over the flowers in his hair.

Ohso you must think he’s pretty then since it’s not that hard to look better thanhim.

Wha?Hey! I’ll have you know I’m the great and handsome mon-hrck! I stophim from continuing his declaration by getting him back by shoving an octodoginto his mouth.

Whatdid having your ego hurt make you forget what low profile means? Iwhisper shouted at him. I seemed like he’d momentarily forgotten his previousembarrassment in light of getting insulted by a child of all things. At leasthe had the decency to look bashful about being called out and forgettinghimself. His shoulders hunched and he looked like a kicked puppy. I grabbed hisface in one hand, squishing his cheeks a little between my thumb, middle, andpointer fingers. Don’t be so pouty, you still get to be secondplace.

You’rejust jealous of my dashing good looks. His voice was muffled by hissquished cheeks and lips. It made me chuckle at how goofy he looked and for a momentI was brought back to a simpler time. One where it was just us and he’d havehis cute, almost innocent excitement as he’d recount his stories to me over thesmallest things. A time where it wasn’t all grand adventures or pissing of somehigher power or another. Just him, me, the other monkeys of the mountain,feasting on fruit and doing whatever we wanted in the summer sun all day.

LikeI’d ever be jealous of a blockhead like you. I said with too muchfondness and shoved him back by his face, only for him to lean back in androughly bump shoulders with me, knocking me back enough to jostle Bai He.

Watchit! She pushed back with her own shoulder while carefully protectingher flower crown and giggling. I exaggerated how strong the shove actually wasand pushed back into Wukong. Pollux chirped his complaints at all the movementand managed to draw Wukong’s attention back to him so he could go back tohelping him with his own flower crown.

Sooowhich one of you started this? I asked Bai He while pressing my sideagainst Wukong’s.

Well,it started with Castor saying how pretty all the flowers were and then Wukongwas talking about the flowers on the mountain and how they’d weaveflowers into the other monkey’s fur sometimes then Pollux sounded interested inthat, so then Castor wanted to learnabout it with him and it all kind of went from there. Bai Heexplained matter of factly while still focusing on her own flower crown.

Whyam I not surprised this was on you? I shot Wukong a look without anyreal anger or annoyance behind it. I remember doing that with him and how he’dsecretly weaved flowers into my fur while he was grooming it the first time,I’d let it grow out. I’d been a little annoyed at first, but let it slide.After that it became a bit of a game between us to see if either of us wouldnotice the other doing it. At least I can say he knows what he’s doingfor once.

Iget it already, it was a bad plan! He, not so much defended, so muchas he frustratedly complained about it being brought up. He’d sounded soexhausted too when he said it.

What?It was a compliment. I played innocent and he scowled at me from thecorner of his eye.

Yeah,a backhanded one. The pout he had while grumbling his complaints mademe want to squish his face again. I blame Bai He for that one, she’s too fun to mess with when she’spouty. Instead Ipatted him on the back and I would have ruffled his hair like I do hers all thetime, but I didn’t want to ruin Castor’s hard work. I did poke him in the cheekthough, making him swat my hand away like she does, though he had more forcebehind it.

Ah,but a compliment all the same.

Idon’t know if that counts. Bai He chuckled out and I could see thebeginnings of an idea forming in her brain from the tiny, mischievous grin thatformed on her face. Before I could worry myself over whatever she was planningI still had to ask her about later.

Whocan say. Oh, but ah there was something I wanted to ask you. I gotquieter and leaned closer to her level.

What’swrong?

Nothing,well nothing as far as I know. I was just wondering if we should still go tothe theater today. I know I’m not the one being watched, but it is where you know what happened and I’m a little worried about it. Idon’t want to put a damper on the day by being paranoid, but- I wascut off by Bai He gently putting her hand over mine, then hugging my arm.

It’sokay if you’re scared Mr. Macaque. We don’t have to go if you don’t want to. Ihave a pretty good idea of what happened because of you know who. It’s okay. I fought back the little bit ofmistiness I felt in my eyes and pulled her in for a proper hug. I knew she wasaware of a lot of things that happened to me while I was under herthumb, and that there were still times where she blamed herself for it, but asmall, despicable part of me was glad to have someone who knew about it.

Okay,I’m sorry. I felt my ears droop under my glamourapologetically.

It’sokay. We can go next time. She patted my back, and I felt a tug on mypants leg. I looked up expecting to see Pollux’s hand, but it was too big. Ifollowed it up on reflex, despite already knowing what the source would be anddespite knowing that I was still surprised to see the sheer amount of concernand thinly veiled anger that raged behind his eyes. That, combined with Polluxhaving the exact same expression on his face left me floored with emotions I’mstill not completely ready to accept or name. Thankfully the moment he opened hismouth to speak, the others came back, and I had the perfect excuse not to dealwith that right now.

WhenJin and Yin returned with Castor and a handful of flowers, I used my powers tomake it appear like the flowers they’d picked weren’t missing from the bedsthey’d gotten them from until we left to keep anyone from suspecting anything,not that any of them noticed me do it. Castor happily placed a few in my hair,being gentler with me than he was with Wukong because he knew better and Bai Heshowed Jin and Yin what Wukong taught her and helped them make flower crowns oftheir own. I didn’t join them in their crafts because Pollux hadn’t let itslide that I didn’t eat my entire potion of food yet and I had to finish whateveryone gave me first to ease one of his worries. I could tell that he andWukong were still concerned about what had happened to me, but I had nointentions of talking about it with them or anyone who didn’t already know thatI was forced to work for that witch. I wasfine with apologizing for what I did to everyone, but I couldn’t handle anypotential pity it could bring.

AsI ate, I was tempted to help Bai He and the others with a bit of guidance butseeing that this was possibly the first time I’ve seen Bai He cooperate withWukong without having an attitude or hesitance, I kept my mouth shut. I thoughtit was good for them and I didn’t want to get in the way of that. Plus, theboys seemed to like him being around and it would be better if all the kidswere okay in his presence if he wanted to keep barging into my life likethis.

Atone point I think my eyes grew too fond of watching Wukong help everyone maketheir own flower crowns because Jin and Yin gave me looks that went fromconfusion to realization to knowing eyes that held a teasing light to them. Ipointedly ignored them and excused myself to make a phone call to my boss atthe theater to tell her I wouldn’t be able to perform tonight. Thankfully, shedidn’t sound too upset with me, but I had to promise to help out with someprops and paperwork for the theater later on. It was like a slap on the wristto me since this wasn’t the first time, I’d done work like that for her.Repairing the stage after coming back from everything with herwas a major pain in the ass, but it was my fault anyways, so I didn’t make toomuch of a fuss.

WhenI returned it was to Pollux excitedly showing off the flower crown he’d madethat had apparently been for me and my heart melted at how adorably sweet thatwas. I picked him up so he could put it on me himself and adjust it the way hewanted. It was a little sloppy, even with Wukong’s help, but it was no less beautiful,and I found it had its own charm because of it.

PrettyMama! Castor exclaimed, making Jin and Yin erupt into a fit oflaughter. I wanted to smother them both, but I wasn’t about to let them ruinthe moment.

Verypretty if I do say so myself, thanks to you boys, come here! Iscooped them both up into my arms, nuzzling their cheeks and giving themexaggerated kisses. They complained at first but giggled when they gotcomfortable. Just as I was about to set them back down, Yin and Jin squeezed inon either side of me and squished their cheeks against mine and hugged me. Ichirped in complaint along with my cubs at the sudden attack hug, but theycalmed down as soon as I did and Bai He joined the hug while Wukong sat off tothe side with this bittersweet look in his eyes as I was getting squeezed inthe multi person hug.

Ihad enough when I felt a purr wanting to rumble out of me and had them give mesome breathing room. I was a little flustered, but having the space again letme calm down faster. As soon as I shook my slightly frazzled state, I toldeveryone that after they finished up here that we could go back to my house andhang out for a little longer and just relax together there instead of out inthe open, which they were quick to agree to since, claiming that they stillneeded to know who the favorite uncle was.

Bythe time we’d gotten back, we were all littered with flowers. I’d even weaved afew into Bai He’s hair for her and I promised that I’d show her how to do thesame some other time. When we got to the apartment, I was reminded of themischief Bai He had shown earlier when she stopped us from entering. Shepointed at Wukong and I with a grin while Jin and Yin looked oncuriously.

Notso fast, if you want to come in, you have to say something nice about eachother first.

Thatwasn’t a one-time thing? I tried to reason, but she stood firm,shaking her head no.

Doesthat mean I have to drop my glamours? Wukong anxiously whispered tome. I had to think about that for all of a half second.

No.I whispered back. I wasn’t ready to drop all of my own glamours in front of Jinand Yin yet. I know they’ve already seen me at what was possibly my worst, butI was still having my own issues with my look. That being said. ...Butmaybe just a few. I’d wanted to do that while I saw them the firsttime around, but I was worried about Lin, Scorpion Queen and the Tudi seeing melike that.

Onlyif I get to pick which ones. He argued, and I was okay with thatcompromise.

That’sfine.

Enoughstalling! Bai He proclaimed, still grinning broadly with Jin and Yinsuppressing laughter behind her.

Ipractically called him pretty earlier. Does that not count? I didn’tactually have a real issue with this anymore, but I figured I’d play into thereaction she probably expected from me. Plus, I was stalling to come up withsomething to say.

Noway! Jin denied me.

That’sthe easy way out. Yin backed him up.

Youheard them, new compliments! Was her verdict. I rolled my eyes withan exaggerated sigh.

FineI guess I can muster up a way to compliment him. The smile on my facegave away my true amusem*nt toward the situation and my smile remained when Iturned to fully face Wukong. I pretended to think for a moment, stroking mychin and humming.

GeezI didn’t think it’d be that hard for you to think of something nice to sayabout me. He huffed, but I could tell that he was really just gettingantsy. I choose to take pity on him in lieu of drawing things out.

Ohrelax, just thought I’d mess with you a little. I think you did a really goodjob handling and looking after the boys today, even if I’m pretty sure youbroke some rules of the garden while you were doing it. I told himgenuinely, visibly, to me, stumping him for a second. He recovered fast enoughthat the others didn’t notice.

Oh,thanks uh, thanks for not being pissed with me for spying on you again. It wasreally nice hanging out with you. I just wish circ*mstances werebetter. The honesty and softness he’d said that with surprised memore than whatever I expected him to say.

See,was that so hard? Bai He asked and snorted a laugh.

Quietyou. I told her fondly and opened the front door for them.

Ehehe.She scampered into our home with the boys, and I signaled for Jin and Yin to goinside so I could speak with Wukong for a moment. I got the sense that he wasstill anxious about coming inside again and I also wanted to ask himsomething.

Yougood?

Yeah,yeah, I’m fine just…trying to figure out what glamours I’m gonnadrop. He chuckled nervously, and I could tell that was a half-truth.I crossed my arms and waited expectantly for him to share what was actually onhis mind. After a few beats of silence, he quietly sighed and that look ofconcern returned, but it lacked the initial anger it held before. Whathappened to you with you know, her.I sighed through my nose and before I could verbally respond he quickly added.If you don’t mind me asking, obviously. I head back sighingagain and avoided his eyes as I held myself tighter.

Look,I don’t really want to talk about it and it’s not like itmatters-

Yesit does. He cut in and I managed to shoot him a look that screamedit shouldn’t to you.

But,if you’re really that worried…It would make me feel better if you stayed overtonight and before yougo making it weird,I’m gonna ask Jin and Yin too. I’m still kind of on edge from earlier, buthaving you around seemed to scare whoever or whatever was watching Bai He offand I just want to make sure she’s safe. The more I tried to reasonthat it wasn’t because I felt safer with specifically him around the more itfelt like it was exactly because of that and I hated it. Thankfully Wukongstopped me before I went into rambling.

I’dlove to, but on one condition. He had this stupid, small, amusedsmile on his face that did terrible things to my heart and stomach.

Whatis it? I asked, trying to bury my feelings.

Iget to groom your fur this time. Only for them to reignite even strongerthan before.

Psh,sure Wukong, whatever you say, dork. I said, doing my best not to lethim know how much I liked that idea. He was the only one who’d ever groomed myfur in a way that I liked and he was always so careful with me.

Hey!We quietly laughed together and finally we joined everyone else inside of myapartment, where I could finally feel at ease, and more importantly, safe, andcomfortable, like I was home.

Chapter 17: My Turn

Chapter Text

Once we were inside, Wukong dropped the glamour over his eyes, fur, and shrank down to his actual height while I dropped the ones that were over my ears, scars, and my eyes. I had Bai He wash up first and told her to wash her hair to get any dirt from the flowers out of it. She complained about it at first and we compromised by having her help with getting flowers out of the boys’ hair first so she could keep the ones in her hair there for a little longer, but then I was taking them out and she was going in the shower. The next problem child was Pollux, much to my surprise. He didn’t want to take the flowers out of his hair yet either and pouted when I tried to tell him that he couldn’t go in the bath with them in his fur without ruining the flowers.

Relax,just let him go last. I think he just wants to keep looking pretty.Pollux nodded in agreement with Wukong. I sighed.

Youwin this round little man, but only for a little while. I kissed hisforehead and he chirped happily at the affection. Castor chittered and pointedto their own forehead, wanting kisses himself which I affectionately rolled myeyes at, but did anyway.

Wesat at the counter, with Bai He in her usual spot and I occupied the otherstool. Castor sat on the counter while she gently removed any of the flowers hehad in his fur and put them aside on the countertop. There was a bit of anargument between the adults in the room about who would help who. Apparently,it was very important to them who would get to do my hair. It was kind offlattering and really dumb, but it was entertaining to watch them argue oversomething so unimportant. I was tempted to just ask Pollux to do it for me tostop the debate and to see them all pout about it, but I had another compromise.Since Wukong would be helping me wash and groom my fur later, Jin and Yin couldhelp me with the flowers now, I would help Wukong with his fur, and if Polluxwanted to, he could help Jin or Yin with their hair. Wukong pouted about it,but begrudgingly agreed and Jin, Yin, and Bai He gave me a look when I toldthem Wukong would be washing my fur with me. A look that I would activelyignore.

Wemoved to the couch so Wukong could sit on the ground between my legs while Jinand Yin stood behind the couch and worked together to sift through my fur.Pollux ended up just curling up beside me on the couch and used my leg as apillow. Whenever Pollux readjusted, I would give him little head scratches thatmade him coo. While I was carefully freeing the flowers from Wukong’s head Iasked Jin and Yin if they were willing to spend the night and thankfully, theywere happy to spend more time together with us. It put my mind a little more atease knowing that they’d stick around for sure, and I was able to let myselfget absorbed in my task.

Hisfur still looked and felt nice under my touch, so I knew he was at leastattempting to take care of it without me, but there were a few knots that I hadto get out while I was removing the flowers. I was aware of the possibilitythat the knots were present because of the aforementioned flowers and the boysplaying with his fur, but I still had my suspicions anyway. Ones that could beconfirmed or refuted later in the shower.

AsI was getting close to finishing up, my phone vibrated in my pocket, disturbingthe dozing little cub that was resting against my leg. I gave him more headscratches and cooed to him, effectively lulling him back into comfortable semilucidity before checking my phone. I got a bit of heckling in the form of Jinand Yin awing in my ears, and I waved them away. I felt my heart hammer in my chest,and I had to suppress a surprised chittering at seeing who messaged me.

Chang’e:Hey! Sorry it took me so long to respond to this. What’s up boo? Is everythingalright? You haven’t had a feelings emergency in a while.

Chang’e:*GASP* Do you have a new crush? Or maybe anold one? Tell me! Tell me! Tell me!

Chang’e:Oh yeah, I prepared a couple of episodes in advance, so I’ll be free for a fewdays, whenever you’re ready.

Chang’e:And don’t forget to bring the wine! Hehe.

Islowly relaxed as I read through her messages and could clearly picture her excitedface and her barely contained energy making her practically vibrate. I hummedand subconsciously leaned forward, curling up a little, when I responded.

Me:It’s something like that and boy is it a doozy this time. I’ll see if I canswing by tomorrow or maybe the next day. I gotta find someone who can watch mykids first.

Who’sthat? Jin questioned, leaning over my shoulder to catch a peek of myscreen. I tensed and moved my phone away from their line of sight, only for Yinto lean in on my other side.

Ooo,is that Chang’e? Are you two gonna gossip without us? They teased me,and I rolled my eyes at them and put my phone face down in my lap.

Wouldn’tyou like to know. I stuck my tongue out at them and they returned thegesture. I could hear a thumping sound that I could even feel through thecouch. I looked down at Wukong and realized that I was unintentionallysqueezing his head between my legs. His fur had fluffed up and I could see thathe was blushing by his ears and of course the thumping sound was his tailhitting the couch. Whatthe hell? His heart is pounding right now. I relaxed my legs from around his head and watched hisbody sag and try to lean against me. I jostled him a little with the leg Polluxwasn’t resting on and he jumped with a startled intake of breath. Yougood? I asked him, and he chirped, turning toward me with a frazzledexpression and a smile too big to be natural.

Yeah,yeah, I’m fine, just started to doze off a bit. That is a terrible lie.

You’relooking a little flustered there, kingy. Yin teased since you didn’texactly need super hearing or gold vision to see past that one.

Yeah,are you sure you’re fine? Jin backed him up.

Justpeachy. His blush lessened to a light dusting, and he spoke throughgritted teeth. My phone buzzed again, and I was torn between what to give myimmediate attention first. I didn’t want Jin or Yin to see what Chang’e and Iwere talking about since I’m positive if they had any more information thanthey already had, they’d know exactly what I was going to talk to her about,but I also really wanted to mess with Wukong.

Theyget weird when they’re around each other. Bai He commented,unknowingly helping me make my choice. I shooed Jin and Yin away from Wukongand I, so they’d stop leaning over the back of the couch and giving me thesmallest amount of privacy.

Layoff him, if he wants to lie about being fine, I think we can let this slide atleast one time. Next time though, I’m not helping you. I told them asI picked my phone back up.

Ahcome on we’re just having fun Lulu.

Besides,he’s earned it.

ThenI’m sure he could find another way to deserve it soon enough, but you’ll haveto wait until next time still. I told them in a singsong voice andchecked my messages.

Chang’e:YOU HAVE KIDS?!

Chang’e:SINCE WHEN AND WHERE THE HECK WAS I?!

Oh…Iguess I never got around to telling her about them huh? She’s gonna be pissedwhen she finds out how long I’ve had Pollux and Castor for, but damn has itreally been that long since I’ve gone up there to visit her? I’ve got to catchher up on if that’s the case. I’m gonna need to bring more wine.

Me:Yeah, it’s a whole thing but I’ve got 3 little ones now. I’ll tell you allabout it later.

Chang’e:Excuse me. THREE!

Chang’e:I’ve got three nieces and or nephews and you’re only telling me thisnow!?

Chang’e:And here I thought we were friends. :<

Isnorted at the little frowny face and pictured her pouting at thisbetrayal.

Ohnow I know it’s Chang’e! There’s no way PIF is making you laugh likethat. Jin complained, and I snickered.

Idon’t know, she can be pretty funny when she wants to be.

Me:Oh did I not tell you that? Sorry, but at least I’m telling you now, but keepit a secret, would you? Not a lot of people even know two of them exist and I’dlike to keep it that way.

Chang’e:Fine, but I demand answers when you get here! >:)

All of my friends are dorks. I think as I put my phone back in mypocket and get back to tending to Wukong’s still flower riddled hair.

Yeahmaybe, when she’s insulting someone. Jin said, and I didn’t need tosee him to know he was pouting.

Thatmay be true, but you know that’s not the only times she’s funny. I mean Red Sonhad to get his antics and mannerisms from somewhere. Besides, she actually hadnice things to say about you guys while I was there. Kind of.I think it still counts if the two of them are seen as a better option thanWukong, but none of them needed to know that part.

Yeahright.

It’strue! You know she’s got a secret soft spot for you guys. I smiled, rememberingsome of the times where she’d speak fondly of them even if she puts up thefront of annoyance in public. Though admittedly there are plenty of times wherethat annoyance is very much real.

Iwent back to tending to Wukong’s fur once more and Jin and Yin and I talkedover whether or not Tieshan was all that kind with Wukong sharing stories ofher fighting in the celestial realm. She was and still is a fearsome opponentthat even demons were hesitant to challenge. Even in the face of DBK’s imprisonment,she stayed strong and fended off any opportunistic demons with power andintimidation alone. It was truly an impressive feat to behold, but it wasclearly exhausting and lonely to the few people she let see her with her guarddown. It broke my heart more often than not and it was a part of why I visitedher more often, but also to help with Red Son and to keep him company when hewas still a kid. Sometimes Jin and Yin would babysit him too and it would giveme the chance to talk one on one with her when she needed a break. I know sheappreciated it and them, but when you’re a traitorous celestial with a son thathad been damn near all powerful as a baby, you were in the spotlight and anykindness could have been seen as some form of weakness. She’d been there for mewhen I was in a similar position, so it was the most obvious choice to be therefor her when she needed help but was too proud to ask.

SureRed Son got some more of his goofy behaviors from Jin and Yin from their babysitting, but all his unhinged feral energy was definitely from his mother, andno one can tell me otherwise, but I also know some of his theatrics were on meand I’ll take full responsibility for that because I love it.

Aswe spoke, I noticed that Bai He had gotten weirdly quiet as we went on and whenI looked up at her she was looking at us with an odd, almost bittersweetexpression. One that I was familiar with as it was one that I’ve worn countlesstimes before in the past and that broke my heart. She looked like she wascaught in the middle of a crime when she realized I was looking at her and Icouldn’t help my lopsided smile at the sight. I beckoned her to come over andjoin us on the couch and she came over with wide eyes and a sleepy, flowerlessCastor in her arms. She sat next to me, and I kissed her forehead, and hersmile brightened a fraction. She learned against my side, and I put my armaround her and picked out the last few flowers from Wukong’s fur singlehanded.

Youokay? I asked her, and she just hummed.

Betternow. I hummed back in consideration, not fully convinced, and anotheridea came to mind.

Hey,how about instead of you washing up first, Wukong and I go in and you can stayup later tonight. That way you can talk with these two knuckleheads for longerand I’ll just wash your brothers in the sink after. I watched herface and listened to the sound of her heart as I spoke and when I said ‘yourbrothers’ her heart rate sped up a bit and her eyes filled with hopefulamazement before the biggest smile I’d ever seen on her spread across herface.

Okay!She shouted, and I suppressed my grimace of pain, not wanting to put a damperon her mood. I had a pretty good idea that she was feeling left out from that lookbut didn’t want to say anything and I couldn’t let that stand. I’d let myselfbe pushed to the side too much to let it happen to her.

It’sa plan then. I could already feel the smug looks that were beingbored into the back of my head from the two colorful twins standing behind us.I cast a subtle glare their way and mouthed ‘not one word’ to them and theybarely stifled their giggles at my expense. I would deal with their braggingabout being right later. Right now, I wanted to focus on letting Bai He knowshe was a part of this family too, if that’s what she wanted, and it made herhappy.

Aftera couple more minutes where I let Bai He lead the conversation by talking abouther training and bragging about how she’s Castor and Pollux’s favorite and itquickly escalated to a four-way argument between Her, Jin, Yin, and Wukong overwho the boys liked the most. Though it was a rather pointless argument, I letit go on until my own fur was free of flowers and then some. It was funnylistening to them try to reason why they were the favorite since I knew for afact that it’s gotten to the point where I’m not sure if their favorite is BaiHe or me and honestly? I couldn’t be happier for them. Having her around hasreally helped them grow out of their shells and has been a big help in Castorwanting to speak again. Though I’m sure that it’ll be much harder for Pollux towant to speak, teaching him, and the rest of my kids, sign language would be agood idea.

WhenI put a stop to their lighthearted arguing by insisting that we had to getwashed up since it would take a while for Wukong and I to dry off after. I toldBai He that her and Pollux could keep their flowers in their hair a littlelonger because of how much time this would take and put her in charge since sheknew the house and the boys best and I trusted her more than Jin and Yin aroundanything in the kitchen.

Onceeveryone who needed the bathroom used it and I gathered up a change of clothesfor the both of us, Wukong and I headed into the bathroom together, but withoutsome comments from under Jin and Yin’s breath meant only for me to hear, stillwondering why Wukong was here, only for me to tell them it was complicated. Inthe bathroom, Wukong still hesitated to strip, and I still didn’t understandwhy.

Youokay? I asked him, while I took off my shirt. He let out a startledchirp at my question and put on a nervous, forced smile that wouldn’t havefooled anyone.

Yeah,I’m fine. It’s still weird having anyone see me like this.

WellI’m not going to judge you. You look great for your old ass age. Itold him, and he looked at me indignantly.

Ohlike you’re so much younger than me or better for that matter! He frowned,and I smirked at him before quickly pulling down my pants and maintaining eyecontact with him. His fur stood on end, and I listened to his heart rate spikeas he averted his eyes and I laughed at him. You’re the worst, youknow that? He complained, and I laughed harder.

Whyare you even bothered by me naked? You like, just saw me like this, and you’re the one who wanted to do this. He groaned, andI turned on the shower.

Iknow, what did I get myself into? He joked, still sounding nervousand awkward. I walked up to him, put a hand on his shoulder and gave him asympathetic look.

Relax,we’ve already done things like this once before and I promise I’m not gonnajudge you for your body if that’s what you’re worried about. As if toprove or back up my claim I dropped my glamour over my fur which got a notablereaction from him. His eyebrows shot up briefly and his smile became a bit moregenuine.

Yeah,yeah, I know, you’re right.” He sighed. “Just give me asecond.

Alright.I’ll wait for you in the shower then. I patted his shoulder andstepped into the shower. I listened to him trying to hype himself up to join meand though a part of me did feel a little bad for him, I was way more amused byhim still being nervous over this and I couldn’t even be mad at myself for howendearing I found it. Hereally is such a bumbling fool.

WukongP.O.V.

Macaquewas right that I was overthinking things, but that wasn’t my only issue. Wewere alone again, and I still really wanted to ask about what happened to him.He’d already made it clear he didn’t want to talk about it. I know me worryingabout him isn’t something he’s entirely comfortable with right now either, buthe did ask me to stay with them all tonightand I know that he wants to workon any tension between us, but things feel so up and down between us.

Isighed to myself and started to get undressed. I hate feeling this stressedaround the guy, especially after having his hands in my fur that helped merelax. When I joined Macaque in the shower, I noticed a problem we had if I wasgoing to do his fur.

Uh,could you kneel down or something for me? He snorted. Don’tlaugh! He laughed more openly, but he did sit down on the floor ofthe tub with his legs crossed and I sighed.

Sorry,sorry I’ll stop, promise. I already wet my fur so just use that long bottlethere first. The jar is the conditioner. He leaned his head back withhis eyes closed.

Istared at him for a few seconds before crouching down and pulling him back, sohe was out of the water. He flailed a little at first, but he relaxed when Ilet him go and he shot me a look before closing his eyes again. I took thebottle he told me to use and poured some of the liquid into my hand, thenkneeled down so I could rub it into his fur, starting from his shoulders. Iwanted to massage him like he’d done with me, but I wasn’t sure how much forcewas too much force, and I didn’t want to hurt him, so I just kept it allbusiness. Even so, I felt them tense a little bit when I touched them only forthem to relax surprisingly quickly. I listened to them start to hum ascontinued and their tail started lightly swaying and hitting my legs. It waskind of cute, but I decided not to share that thought with him. I was surprisedhow nice his fur felt in my hands even while it was wet.

AsI moved on to his back, I realized now might be the perfect opportunity to dowhat I’d originally set out to do today. I chirped to them to get his attentionand I could tell he chirped back on reflex again from the way they groanedright after.

Heyso remember when I told you I was hoping to talk to you privately? Icarefully broached the idea and they hummed.

Yeah,I do. I guess now is as good a time as any huh? Ah, good he sounds okay with this.

Yeah,I thought so too…I was just wondering if you could tell me about the kind ofpeople that might have it out for you guys, you know and stuff you may havealready had to deal with so I- er, Mk! Knows what to look out for if he everhas to deal with the same thing. Nice save.I mentally shook my head at myself. At least Macaque got a laugh out of myblunder instead of getting annoyed at my worrying again. I thought about makingsome kind of retort, but I started to feel the scars his fur hid as I went, andI kept my mouth shut.

Notyour best work there huh? He remarked, and I didn’t need to look athis face to know that he was smirking. Smug bastard. There’ve been plenty of people after my headand I’m sure a good chunk of them are doing it for the same reason they harassMk, but that was more toward the beginning of becoming a demon. Now it’s mostlydemons that want to court me or they’re looking for street cred and braggingrights which is annoying, but you get used to it. There’s a couple of ways toget around the whole courtship thing. It's just annoying more than anything todeal with, but it’s low on the threat list. That was actually prettyreassuring to hear, but the multitude of scars I could feel under his fur stilltwisted my gut. If Mk actually has any concern about potentially beingcourted, he should as Red Son. He gets more attention than me these days. Meishould probably learn about it too, you should hear the things they care aboutin those circles, it’s so dumb, it used to be way worse though. Thecasual way that he spoke about all this was quickly raising my concerns again.Especially since it could potentially affect Mk and his friends.

Couldyou talk to him about it, and I do mean Mk this time. I’m pretty sure you’vegot more experience with the worst of it than Red Son does. His earstwitched at the request. He hummed and considered what I’d said. I didn’t thinkit was too big of an ask, but I guess asking him to give Mk advice was still aweird thing to do even if things are getting better between them.

Iguess I’ll do it, but only if you do me a favor first. Of course.He just wanted something from me, that makes more sense.

Seriously?I asked him in an unamused tone, and he snickered. He turned his head so hecould look over his shoulder at me with a small, half smirk, half grin, on hisface.

Yeah,but don’t worry, I don’t think you’ll mind too much, and it could be a goodtrust exercise for us. I couldn’t tell if that was more or lessconcerning.

...Whatis it? His grin grew before he turned his head to look forwardagain.

Iwant to go up and visit Chang’e, but I don’t think it’s the best idea to bringthe kids with me, but in order to do that I’d need someone to look after them.I would ask Mk to do it again, but witheverything with this stalker, I don’t think they’d be safe with just Mk in thecity.

Areyou…asking me to babysit your kids? That’s…a really big jump forus.

Yes,preferably on the mountain. It’ll feel better knowing that they’re safe withyou and I know that you’d never let anything happen to the kids, but Bai Heprobably isn’t going to like it. Maybe if you convinced Mk to spend the nightthere too? He made it sound like I’d already agreed to this. Not thatI had any plans of saying no. I’d love to spend time with those cubs and show themthe mountain and it would be the perfect time to teach Mk how to take care ofcubs like. Oh and I can show you what they really look like. I haven’tseen what they look like in a while myself so it could be good for themtoo. Well if I wasn’t convinced before.

Alright,alright I’ll do it. You don’t need to give me the hard sell, okay? Hesnickered at my false complaining.

Good.I was thinking maybe tomorrow? It’s really been too long since I’ve visited her,and I wanted to see her as soon as possible.

Whatthe heck made you need to see her so badly?

Ijust needed to talk to her about something. Besides, I’ve been hanging out withmy other friends, and she’d be pissed ifshe found out and I didn’t pay her a visit soon. He chuckled, and Iremembered how unexpectedly angry she’d gotten at me when I downplayed theimportance of cooking. I wonder if all of his friends were destined to not likeme?

Isee. So if I’m going to be babysitting is there anything else I shouldknow? Preferablyabout these other threats to them.As he was thinking of what else to tell me I moved on to his neck and as soonas I started rubbing more shampoo into his fur there, a deep rumbling purrtumbled out of him and his fur fluffed up, flinging some water and soap aroundthem. He let me stroke the base of his neck as his body went slack for farlonger than I’m sure either of us were expecting him to before he smacked myhand away and embarrassingly rubbed the back of his neck and cast a glare at meover his shoulder. I put my hands up defensively and I couldn’t even pretend tofeel threatened by their glare when their face was bright red, and their earswere glowing dimly from their embarrassment. It was too cute, and it tookeverything I had to only let out a little suppressed laugh. Of course, thatonly made them glare harder.

Ididn’t hear or see anything. I told him, and his eyes narrowedsuspiciously at me. A few more puffs of laughter bubbled out of my chest, andthey groaned before turning back around again.

Youbetter not have. He huffed, and I laughed a little harder. He whackedme across the face with his tail and I lost it with laughter. Don’tmake me turn around again Wukong. He threatened, and I tried my bestto swallow down my laughing fit.

“OhI’m sorry, I’m sorry. I managed better giggles, completelyunconvincing in my sincerity. I’m not making fun of you it’s just, I,seeing you all flustered like that isn’t something I expected anymore.It’s so cute! Their ears glowed brighter and flared out aggressivelyas he growled again.

Itsure sounds like you’re making fun of me. I could clearly picture hisfrowny pouting face.

I’mnot, I promise! I almost forgot how much you liked-

Pleasejust shut up. He interrupted me in a groan and put his head in hishands. I grabbed his shoulders and lightly shook him.

Comeon, you’re gonna get soap in your eyes like that. They continued togroan in complaint as I made him tilt his head back so I could finally get totheir head fur.

Iwas extra careful whenever I got close to his sensitive ears, making sure notto accidentally touch or graze them. I gently scratched his scalp and he slowlyrelaxed again, but I could tell he was still being pouty. Eventually we got tochatting again and he told me about how he was usually more concerned aboutwhat celestials might do to his kids given our history with the celestial realmand how he was worried they would assume they’d just grow up and follow thesame path we did against them. I had to admit it was a pretty legitimateconcern, but I tried to reassure him that when Mk went up to the celestialrealm and nothing ever came of that, so they were kind of slacking on thatfront. Of course, he argued back that Mk wasn’t a monkey or directly linked tohim and I unlike those little cubs, which was also fair I guess.

Iasked him if celestials ever tried to court him and that got anotherexasperated groan out of him. Apparently, celestials and demons alike havetried to court him with the intention of using him against me and there’d beena small flare up of offers when Mk showed up and I came back, which wasfrustrating to hear and when I asked who, he glared at me and tolled be not tomake trouble. I begrudgingly agreed but made a mental note to ask Nezha andmaybe even DBK about it later.

Bythe time I got to the end of conditioning his fur he was telling me about howto take care of his kids. Most of the care was stuff that I already knew fromtaking care of the monkeys that still inhabited the mountain and taking care ofother cubs in the past, but the refresher was appreciated. He warned me thatthe boys weren’t accustomed to that kind of space and that the mountain couldbe dangerous for them, so I had to keep an eye on them. He told me all thefoods that they liked to eat and that I wasn’t allowed to feed them any hair orjust junk food. Both of their ears were sensitive, but Castors were moresensitive. If either of them had nightmares I would have to cradle them and humto them, but I probably wouldn’t have to worry about that since it hasn’thappened in a while. If Bai He has a nightmare, give her, her space and thatshe’d come to me if she wanted to talk about it. If I had any other questionsabout how to take care of them while he was out, ask Bai He.

Listeningto him talking about his kids' quirks filled with this almost overwhelmingfondness. I remembered when he used to talk about wanting a family of his ownone day and the way he used to play with the cubs of the mountain. He alwayslooked so happy then and seeing him get to have that family he wanted so badly,well…

I’mreally happy for you Macaque.

Huh?He asked while washing that last of the conditioner out of his fur.

You’vefinally got that family you wanted, and it seems like they really make youhappy so I’m happy for you Macaque. His head snapped to look at meand I just smiled at his frazzled expression. His ears flicked and twitched aswater hit his head and I assumed he was listening to my heart to see if I wasbeing serious. I could see the moment it set in that I wasn’t just messing withhim when his eyes widened and his ears started to flap, but he quickly coveredthem with his hands. A faint blush made its way onto his face and my smilebroadened as he could make himself frown and turned his head away so I wouldn’tsee his face.

...Thanks,I guess. He mumbled under his breath and my tail wagged when I sawhis lightly doing the same. Gah! Let's just get this overwith. He huffed in his flustered state and hurriedly turned off the waterso he could get out of the shower and escape the situation. I stepped out at myown pace and watched him try to put up the front of annoyance as he turned onthe fan and started to towel off.

Ireally had meant what I’d said. Watching him all afternoon with his family andfriends really warmed my heart. He had people he cared about and trusted thatfelt the same way about him and I already knew a while ago that there was noway I could reason, even to myself, that I was just keeping an eye on him, sohe’d stay out of trouble anymore. I just wish I had more self-control. I stilldidn’t want to muck anything up for him since he really does want a fresh startand I really wanted things to go well for him. Yet here I am, still spying onhim and running up to heaven, and planning on doing it again, and potentiallymaking things harder for him because I don’t know how to just talk to him.Gods what is wrong withme?

Ican hear those rusted gears of yours turning in your head. What’s wrong thistime? He asked without even looking at me, snapping me out of mythoughts.

HeyI’m not that bad, it’s not like I’m some blockhead that never uses theirbrain! He gave me a look that said, ‘are you sure about that?’

Yeahand that’s how you got here, by using your brain. He smirked at mewith a quirked brow, and he was officially not cute again.

Okay!Admittedly that was not a smart move. I raised my voice infrustration because I KNOW,OKAY?! I did keep inmind not to actually yell at him.

Youreally need to just start saying what you’re gonna do out loud to yourselfbefore you do whatever it is you’re gonna do. It’ll save a lot of people a lotof headache. He teased me. I’m positive that he was just trying toget back at me for flustering him before.

Ohmy god I get it! I’ve had some lapses in judgment, okay? He snickeredat my annoyance and tossed a towel at me so I could start drying off.

Ithink that’s putting it kind of lightly. He remarks then sighs.Yet I still let you into my home and asked you to watch my kids sowhat the hell does that say about me? I could sense a bit ofseriousness in that question, but he moved on pretty quick.

Let’sjust say there’s something wrong with both of us and leave it atthat? I offered anyway, and he looked at me from under his towel likehe wanted to have another retort at first, but then he scoffed a laugh.

Yeah,maybe you’re right. I guess that’s something we still have in common. Now dryoff already, everyone else still needs to shower. I thought aboutwhat he said for a second as I did as I was told.

Iguess you’re right too. A part of me really hoped that there was morewe could agree on than that and the kids' wellbeing, but only time wouldtell.

Chapter 18: The Permanent Arrangement

Chapter Text

Macaque’s P.O.V.

Showering with Wukong had been…odd, to say the least. I know I’d just done the same for him not that long ago, but I’d forgotten how good he was with his hands. Even if I could sense some hesitation, he was very gentle with me. It was so soothing that I couldn’t help relaxing and pressing into his hands at times. Which was especially frustrating when I didn’t want to pull away from him when he was working my neck. It had felt so good, but that purr was so embarrassing. Ugh, why must my body betray me like this? He’d better make good on his promise not to say anything!

Once Wukong and I were dry enough to put on clothes we left the bathroom together. Though I was only in my robe and some boxer briefs since I still needed to be dried off more thoroughly and get my fur groomed. Before that though I finally sent Bai He to go wash up in the shower and for some reason before she went in, she hugged me with a happy little smile on her face. While it was confusing since it came seemingly out of nowhere, I hugged her back and eyed Jin and Yin suspiciously, but they just grinned at me. I rolled my eyes at them and told myself that I’d question them later.

I had Wukong set everything up in the same way they’d been for him when I cut and groomed his fur while I got Castor and Pollux washed up in the sink. Apparently while we were in the shower Pollux had finally allowed Bai He to remove the flowers from his fur and all the flowers we had that weren’t used for flower crowns were tied together in a messy bouquet on the counter. It was cute and I took them so I could hang them upside down so they could last longer as a nice reminder of today. I was starting to run out of free wall space from all the drawings that filled them out everywhere and I had to move some of them closer together to get a clear spot for the flowers.

These drawings are still so cute. I wish Mk would draw pictures for me. Wukong commented while he pulled the stool on top of the tarp he’d rolled out.

Are any of these yours? Jin asked while admiring the art.

No, they’re a mix of Mk’s, Bai He’s, Castor and Pollux’s. I don’t really draw. I’m terrible at it and I’ve had enough embarrassment about it for a lifetime. I thought to myself as I looked at the drawings. Most of them involved pictures of us and people from Mk’s group though sometimes the boys would draw Tieshan, Jin, Yin, and everyone they’re living with right now.

Why not? I’m bad at it. I thought a little louder.

It’s just not for me. I dismissed with a wave of my hand.

I think you’d be good at it. Wukong said as he came up to me with a towel in his hands for the boys to dry off with when I was done bathing them. We shared a look that still managed to hold an entire conversation just about my art. It’s a conversation we’d had a thousand times in the past and in the past, it would stave off my insecurities for a little while, but they’d always come back soon enough and in the present any compliments he’d have to offer would fall on deaf ears.

Yeah well, I don’t. I told him with a finality that rattled Jin and Yin and the subject was promptly dropped. It’s not that I didn’t want to, and I’m sure that if I wanted to the kids would enjoy me joining in and not just observing, but it was one of those things that I used to do with Wukong that felt too personal to get back into with someone else just yet, even after all this time.

As silly as it is, the closest thing I could compare it to was how I was with my ears, but even that wasn’t quite right. My ears were something I was self-conscious about, but they were a part of me that I had before Wukong that he loves, and I hate, it’s a part of me that will be there long after him. I can reveal them to whoever I feel won’t hurt me, that I can trust. Drawing was different in a unique way. It was a part of Wukong that he had shared with me, one he had long before we ever even met, but it was a part that I wasn’t great at, and I wasn’t willing to continue after him. Even so seeing Mk and the kids drawing together would always warm my heart and the drawings they made were all beautiful to me and I’d hate to do anything that would deter them from the hobby. I sighed and shook the thoughts out of my head. I didn’t feel like thinking about that right now.

I quickly finished cleaning Castor and Pollux and moved them to the towel to dry them off. They squirmed, chirped, and chittered in complaint as I whipped them down, making their fur fluff up and making them look adorable and squeaky clean. Once I was done, I nuzzled their cute pouty faces with my nose and scooped them up in my arms still wrapped in the towel and brought them over to the stool with me like that. That’s where the three other grown adults in the room decided to coo and aw at us.

Stoooop. Haven’t we done enough of this already? I am getting so tired of their nonsense.

Aww, but you guys are so adorable. Yin teased.

Yeah, it’s so unfairly cute. Wukong told us, peering over my shoulder to look at the boys.

How could we help it? How is this the way these three get along? Do they all just enjoy messing with me that much?

You’re all terrible and you. I pointedly looked at Wukong. Shouldn’t you be grooming my fur? I summoned my main clone only because I trusted them the most with the boys and that they’d be behaved enough not to act on anything with Jin and Yin around, though I was aware that I might be putting too much faith in them so I gave them a warning that if they acted up, then he wasn’t gonna get to hang out with Chang’e. That seemed to be enough to keep their mouth shut for now. I handed them off to my clone so I could slide my robe off of my shoulders to give him more access to my fur. I could hear an odd spike in Wukong’s heart rate, and I shot him another questioning look that he smiled a touch too broadly at me.

Right, right, sorry. He combed his fingers through my hair with just as much gentleness as before and I took Castor and Pollux back into my arms now that they were free from my robes. I instructed my clone to start making a light dinner for us and not to trust Jin or Yin in the kitchen.

No faith. Jin pouted, and I rolled my eyes.

You two can barely make a T.V. dinner right. Speaking of. I summoned the T.V. remote into my hand and tossed it to the two of them. Why don’t you find something to put on at least as background noise.

Hmm, alright, but don’t think you can distract us from whatever this is. Yin gestured wildly to Wukong and I then him and Jin plopped down on the couch together to get comfortable. I sighed through my nose at them and glanced toward the bathroom door. I suppose this is private enough of a setting.

This is complicated, like I said, but I guess we can talk about it. I mean, not that I even know what to make of it. Wukong started using a hairdryer and his free hand to dry and detangle any knots in my fur while I spoke on the subject of whatever we are. I mean you know it started with Bai He and Mk and me making amends with some of his gang so that’s how this guy ended up becoming a stalker in the name of ‘safety’. As I spoke to keep from looking at anyone else in the room and focused on the boys to help me navigate my thoughts.

They would keep me calm and they reminded me of all the good that’s come from getting myself involved with others again. As hard as it was to adjust to something new in your life, but it’s been so worth it. It was worth it to have Castor and Pollux in my life and it's been worth having Bai He in my life. It was worth it not just because of the encouragement we gave each other or how they’ve helped me rebuild, strengthen, and forge relationships with others that I trusted or at least wanted to trust. I got to enjoy the comforts I was robbed of by her and ironically enough, her host was a major part of why. These kids mean the world to me, so it was worth having a numbskull like Wukong be a borderline creep every once in a while, especially if he finally stops said creepy behavior.

I explained all the things that happened between us and everyone else in Mk’s group so far and they nodded along and occasionally chuckled at some of the odder moments. All the while Wukong was gently, almost reverently tending to my fur. I could feel his hands linger on scars purposefully hidden by fur before moving to the next section of fur. It was pretty distracting to be touched with such tenderness from him that it made me feel more vulnerable than when we were completely exposed to one another. If anyone asked, the dusting of a blush on my face was just from the heat of the shower and the low purr that fought to be heard was just the cubs, not me.

I know that it’s weird to have Wukong of all people here after everything, but I promise that it’s not so bad and I think…I think I want things to work out and I promise I’ll be cautious. Jin and Yin were quiet for a beat as they let everything I had to say about things stew in their minds.

So what, did you guys have joint custody? Jin joked, and I couldn’t help snickering at that. I could even hear Wukong try to suppress a laugh of his own and I smacked my tail into his leg, only for him to catch it with his own tail and loosely wrap it around mine making my not blush worse.

Good to know that’s your takeaway from all that. My laugh contained some nervousness in it from the touch of our tails that I didn’t even try to pull away from and Castor chittered along with me.

Hey you sounded so serious, just trying to keep things light and breezy. Jin chuckled cheekily.

Yeah, it’s all good, besides we trust you and we all know that if anything happens, we’ve got your back. Yin told me with a big smile and my tail would have wagged if it weren’t for Wukong.

Thanks and by the way, just because they’re monkey’s and he’s technically their king, doesn’t mean he’s entitled to their presence. They are my kids and I have full custody of them. I told them matter of factly and kissed both of their heads, making them chirp in response. For a second Wukong’s hands stilled in my fur, and I squeezed his tail gently in mine as if to say we’ll talk about this later, though I would still stand by having full custody of my kids even if he was also technically their father too, they were my sons. Though I would prefer it if they got to know both of their parents now that things were better. That way they wouldn’t have to worry about the person who’d created them and harmed them so badly.

Does that go for the old Monkie Kid too?

Of course not, he’s only got one mentor. Wukong immediately responded, and I felt the need to mess with him here.

I don’t know, you can never have too many mentors. I leaned my head back to look and grin at him and he frowned at me. He whispered low enough for only me to hear ‘hypocrite’ and I snickered. He nudged my head to look up and straight again, then had me lean further forward so he could work on my lower back. Due to the shift, Castor and Pollux decided to climb out of my arms and to the usual places on my head and shoulders, but then Castor hopped off me to climb onto Wukong and rested on his shoulder and started grooming his fur. In response Wukong chirped his thanks and nuzzled him a bit with his cheek.

Step mentor? Jin asked and let out a sharp laugh.

As if, part time at best. I’ve already got enough kids on my hands to train full time. I gave Pollex a few head scratches and he nuzzled into my hand.

Well that’s not fair. Wukong scoffed.

Hardly, a part time position with Mk is lightwork compared to taking care of kids every day. Mk is a grown ass man.

Alright then, if you were going to be a mentor to the kid, does that mean you’re gonna have all your demon friends stop bothering him? Wukong asked dryly, likely already knowing how I’d answer that.

Hmmm, no I don’t think I will, the kid needs some more in the field training that isn’t gonna result in world ending catastrophe if he stumbles. Plus, I’m sure it’ll help the kid relax and build his confidence. Besides, it's not like I’m sending them after him. Was the excuse I came up with and Wukong grumbled before responding indignantly.

Then what are you teaching him! Jin, Yin, and I all snickered at him. It was fun getting him all worked up over something so minor. I knew he could probably do the same to me if he really wanted to, but he was outnumbered and in my home so he was at a disadvantage. I probably shouldn’t be messing with the guy in charge of my fur right now though.

Eh, I’ll put in my time when he really needs it or you’re otherwise indisposed. A backup mentor if you will. I casually reclined in the chair, leaning into his hands, and gesturing vaguely with my own. He sighed and removed his hands from me so he could stand up and work on my arms. This way I got to see his cute, er funny, pout…who am I kidding it’s adorable, how dare he?

Sounds like you’re slacking there Macaque. Yin chipped in during my internal scolding of both of us. I scoffed another laugh to cover up my short pause and got back into the conversation in a snap.

Yeah maybe. You guys are a bad influence on me. I joked, and I could see that Wukong was trying not to smile at that. I squeezed his tail in mine and I watched the corner of his lips twitch up again.

Uhuh and you love us for it. Jin played along and in that small pause between sentences I could sense him about to put that label to the test with some mischief. A grin split across his face, and I could tell that Yin was already in on it from the quick look they shared, and all their scheming went unnoticed by Wukong of course so he was blindsided when he continued. Heck, liked us enough to marry us. Wukong’s hands tensed in my fur and for the first time tonight he pulled it enough for it to mildly hurt and I, not knowing what else to do, doubled down on this nonsense and started laughing hysterically. Though it was out of unwarranted nervousness, it still sounded normal to the untrained listener. Unfortunately, all the people here were well aware of what my nervous laugh sounded like, so it meant nothing. Even Pollux and Castor looked at me wondering if I was alright. I don’t even know why this bothered me at all. I don’t even know why Wukong seems to care. His hands had stalled on my arm, just holding it while his brain rebooted. There wasn’t any reason for either of us to feel weird about that information being revealed and yet here we are. I just, even if there was a reason, it’s not like the relationships were real.

And yet here we are, divorced. I told them once my laughter subsided enough for me to respond. I got thoroughly amused looks from the more troublesome set of twins and a very loud part of me wanted to throttle them. This didn’t need to feel so embarrassing for me and I should have known it was only going to get worse before it got better.

Breakups don’t mean you suddenly or permanently don’t care about them, Mihou. My clone inserted themself into the conversation with a plate of different omelets in their hands that they set down on the counter along with a small bowl of sliced fruits. Both Castor and Pollux abandoned us to eat, and my clone gently told them to save the cheese omelet for Bai He. I glared at him, knowing that he wasn’t just referring to them, but my current relationship with Wukong as well. They just smiled at me and came around to pat Wukong’s shoulder. Relax, no need to be so tense over a faux marriage. They teased him and Wukong blushed lightly while rolling his eyes. I listened to his heart race and avoided looking him in the eye, choosing instead to glare at the smirking asshole twins to keep from even looking in his direction.

I don’t care. A massive lie that really should have been the truth. He finally found it in him to start moving his hands again and continued to dry and groom my fur and once he did, my clone moved on to the aforementioned asshole twins.

You sure look like you, ouch. My clone flicked them both in the forehead.

But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to knock your heads together sometimes. He scolded them for me, pleasantly surprising me. They grabbed them both by the horns in a way that is similar to grabbing a child by their ears to continue their scolding and lifting them up off the couch. I know how tempting it is to tease them, but they’re working on it so don’t make this process take longer by making them feel more awkward than they already do, got it? He warned them before pulling them harder toward the counter so they could eat the food they’d made as if to say, now shut up already and give finality to what they said.

Fine, fine, so touchy. Jin said and they both pouted.

Thank you. I thought to my clone. Of course, I’ve waited too long for you two to get this far and I will not have anything ruin it whether they mean to or not. He and I snickered, seeming out of nowhere to the others and I waved off any looks or concern. Okay, I think I can forgive you for the other day, but you’re still on thin ice. So you always say. Bai He will be coming out of the bathroom soon, would you like me to get the couch bed ready or leave it be for now? Hmm, sure, but try to move it a bit further back first if you can. I’ll get right on that. They went and did just that, making the couch flush with the wall before taking off the cushions then heading to the room to get everything else. Just as they disappeared into the room, Bai He came out of the bathroom, just as they said she would, and she instantly recognized that something was off in the room.

What did I miss? She asked carefully and slowly closed the bathroom door behind her. At her question, Castor chirped, pointed at the flowers I’d hung and acted out holding a bouquet in his hands with an innocent smile on his face.

Mirage! I choked on another laugh at both his adorable and confident mistake, but also the palpable confusion that flashed through Bai He as her brain connected the dots to figure out what he was actually trying to say. Her eyes darted to the flowers, then to Castor, then the rest of us a few times on repeat before a lightbulb went off in her head and she gasped loudly with sparkles in her eyes.

You’re getting married?! You wouldn’t even tell me if you guys were dating! She exclaimed, and I burst out laughing. Her excitement and offense was just so cute and funny that I couldn’t help myself. Jin and Yin were just as bad as I was and even Wukong was giggling, and I felt his hands shaking against me from the giggles. Is that it? She asked desperately needing to know the answer, but I couldn’t stop laughing. I was glad that this time around it wasn’t out of nervousness, but joy and amusem*nt.

My clone came out from the room behind her with their arms full of blankets, pillows, and sheets and patted her head with his tail and left it there until she moved it away herself. She looked up at him with a similar confusion, but a smile quickly replaced it.

Oh, hey Shadow Mr. Macaque.

Hello little one. They are simply talking about some old marriages Mac was in. I think you might have heard about it before once or twice in his stories.

Oh yeah, I remember him mentioning something about marriage, I think. So, you’re not getting married? She sounded disappointed by the news, or lack thereof. So nosy…Chang’e would love her.

No Bai He, I’m not getting married, but I think now’s as good a time as any to tell you about a couple of things. Have a seat. I gestured to her usual stool at the counter, and she did just as I asked, clambering up to her spot and looking at me with an expectant look on her face, patiently waiting as always for more details. So, Bai He, it’s not uncommon in a few cultures I’ve seen over the years of my very long life for people to get married for more, let's say business oriented, reasons. As you know, demons can be pretty annoying when it comes to courtship so to avoid any unwanted attention people will enter a fake marriage that to everyone else is real to appear like they’re spoken for. I’ve done it a few times. I married, and divorced, Jin and Yin before, don’t freak out. I told Bai He sternly, but gently upon seeing the look in her eyes. And I almost got married to Spider Queen once, you shut up too. I pointed my finger at Wukong who I could hear was ready to have a shocked outburst over it and talked to him with less gentleness than I had with Bai He. I’ve never been a fan of all the demon courting nonsense, especially back in the day.

Yeah you were pretty popular. Yin commented through a mouth full of food.

Psh, were? Even we still somehow get letters and messages asking about him. Jin snickered, but I could see they were both irritated by that fact. It’s tiring to go through a bunch of opportunistic demons and even celestials that just want your friend for who knows what reasons. I’m sure they forward whatever messages they get to Tieshan or my boss since those are the people something like that are supposed to go through, but of course those would be suitors couldn’t even get that right.

Ugh are you serious? Why are they so persistent? I sighed deeply in frustration. I really wish people weren’t so greedy or horny or whatever the problem was with the assholes constantly trying to get with me. It’s whatever, that’s not my point right now, but we’ll have to talk about that later. There are a couple of things you’re gonna wanna be aware of going forward. One, we already know someone is stalking you so I hope it’s not that creepy bastard and if it isn’t, it could be someone looking to use you as blackmail against me. I don’t want you to panic over this or anything and while I haven’t had to deal with any of the more aggressive ways of courting in a long time, but I’ve never had any kids to worry about before either and I’m scared of some people getting any ideas. I know the hassle Tieshan went through when Red Son was still a kid and DBK was trapped. It was awful and I don’t want you to have to go through anything like that or be worried about it, but you should know that it could happen and to be prepared for it. I held her gaze as I explained the gravity of the situation is or would be in if she continued to be associated with me as one of my kids, without explicitly stating that she was my kid. Even now for some reason I hesitated despite everything else heavily implying that I was her dad at this point and that she’d be fine with that. There were a lot of reasons I put off having a family of my own and this was one of the big reasons why. I didn’t want to put them in danger just by being associated with me and some asshole thought they’d have a chance with me.

I could tell that Bai He and even Wukong were processing the information and I fidgeted with my hands as I waited for some kind of reaction from them. As I fidgeted, I thought about all the other things I had to worry about for these kids, like how all of that applies to Castor and Pollux too, but they were probably too young to understand it full, or how I still needed to ask Bai He about the whole school situation and Pigsy too about what to do with that whole process while I’m at it. Then there’s this apartment of mine. It’s good for me and the pups, but all three of them are gonna grow up before I know it and a cramped apartment with only one bedroom isn’t ideal for them. They all deserve their privacy, so this wasn’t gonna cut it for the long term. Looking for a place to accommodate all of us and located in a safe place for a reasonable price is gonna be a real pain in the ass. It was hard enough finding the place we live now.

So what are you saying? Finally came Bai He’s tentative response which snapped me out of my thoughts. My eyes focused in on her again and she looked…she looked like she was bracing herself for bad news, like she was waiting for some kind of bomb to drop and for her world to shatter.

I’m saying that I don’t want you to be in danger, but if you want to stay here with me and Castor and Pollux and be a part of all this then you should also know the risks.

...Are you saying that I can stay here? Like, not just because you’re helping me you know, not worry everyone else? There was that hopeful look in her eye again. I knew she wasn’t ready to say the full reason why I agreed to her staying here with Wukong around, and I don’t blame her. Even if she wasn’t scared of Wukong telling the others about the LBD stuff and the problems that came with it that were still affecting her, letting Wukong know alone probably brought their own host of fears with it. He was willing to kill her to get rid of the Lady Bone Demon, so I get being scared when she’s still wondering if a part of her is still with her.

If that’s what you want, then yes. Besides, we’ve gotten pretty used to having you around and I think Castor and Pollux would be pretty upset if you suddenly weren’t around anymore.

Just Castor and Pollux? Even when she’s no doubt emotionally stressed, and her heart is in her throat she still finds it in her to push buttons. She really fits right in here.

Alright, I’d miss having you around too. I easily conceded, and her heart raced. She smiled so big it looked like it hurt, and I got worried when she started to hiccup. Tears gathered in the corners of her eyes, and I quickly put my robe back on so I could get up and hug her. I picked her up and the way she clung to me reminded me of when I’d first found Castor and Pollux. They clung to me like I was their only lifeline and back then, I think I actually was. I’d been the only comfort they’d gotten aside from each other. Someone that looked like them who treated them with gentleness that had been so foreign to them at that point that they craved it so deeply they couldn’t bear to separate from me for even a single second.

It made me wonder about their curiosity when they first met her and if they saw any of the fear that used to grip them so deeply reflected in her. They’d warmed up to her so quickly and they trust and care about her so deeply already. Their care for her was further proven when they saw her crying and us hugging and joined us, once again worried about her. They nuzzled at her face and quietly cooed to her. I cradled her head and let her cry to her heart’s content in my arms. Even my clone came up to us to gently kiss her head once they were done with the sofa bed. Then I heard them whisper to Wukong, Jin and Yin individually and respectively, ‘I think grooming will have to wait.’ ‘Why don’t we keep any comments about this until they’ve all calmed down and I think this hug is exclusive at the present moment.’ ‘Maybe you should turn the T.V. down or off.’ It was a gesture I appreciated, and it was enough to let me forgive them, possibly for only tonight or maybe until they do something incriminating again.

I wasn’t sure how long we embraced like that in silence, but I knew it was long enough for Jin and Yin to get washed up individually and make themselves as comfortable as they could while having to be witnesses to a moment that had become more emotional than it was expected to be. Wukong probably felt the most uncomfortable and out of place in that situation since he already felt like an outsider and told my clone that he’d patrol outside to see if there were any signs of that stalker to both momentarily escape the situation and to genuinely secure our safety.

It still annoyed me a bit to see how worried he actually was over my family, but under that I was actually really glad to have him here. Despite everything, I still felt safer with him around. He was strong enough to take down gods and perceptive enough to see through any demon's disguise so if there was anyone out there, he would know and he would take care of it. One of the few perks of having Wukong on your side.

There were a lot of emotions I had to unpack from this evening along from Wukong wanting to be around and being happy for me, having to justify why he was even here to Jin and Yin, the fear of us likely being in some level of danger, and our temporary situation becoming more of a permanent situation. I was happy, scared, confused, and angry all at once, but right now, most of all, I’m exhausted. The stress was setting in and at this point, all I wanted to do was go to sleep. Jin and Yin had somehow already managed and were taking up most of the bed space and I was admittedly kind of jealous of them. I was sure that I wouldn’t be able to get to sleep so easily. Oh well. Bai He had gotten so drowsy while she was in my arms that she sounded like she was asleep.

I used some shadow tendrils to move Jin and Yin out of the way and off to the side of the bed so I could put her down. They groaned about being moved and I shushed them. Bai He still weakly clung to me and whined about putting her down, but it only took some gentle nudging to get her to let go. Pollux and Castor joined her, and I tucked them all in like I usually do, telling them goodnight and giving them their forehead kisses, ending with Bai He tonight.

Goodnight Bai He. I told her softly, so as not to disturb her and tucked some of her hair behind her ear then wiped some residual tears from her face. She smiled and nuzzled into her pillow with a tiny, happy smile on her face still.

Goodnight Baba…I love you. She whispered in a slurred voice and my heart stopped. I could feel tears wanting to well up in my eyes that I had to wipe away when they threatened to spill over, and I shakily gave my reply.

I love you too, Tiny. Her smile grew, and I was going to get up to excuse myself, but it had apparently escaped my notice that Jin and Yin had either woken up or were pretending to be asleep.

We love you too, does that mean we get forehead kisses too? Yin asked, and I honestly couldn’t even be mad. I hiccupped a laugh at their stupid antics right now, wiped my eyes again and smiled at them.

Okay, but I’m not tucking you guys’ in. I went over to their side of the bed and gave them both kisses on their foreheads that they giggled at when they received them, and I giggled along with them through my happy tears. As I went to stand up right again, they spoke.

What about him? Jin asked and pointed to the door and when I turned to look there stood my clone and Wukong. Both of them had big smiles on their faces, which told me that they’d been there for the whole exchange, both Wukong eyes filled with panic when they registered what Jin had said. His smile turned anxious, and he put up his hands defensively as a blush dusted his cheeks.

You don’t have to do that. He told me in one quick, quiet sentence and while I wanted to smirk in that moment, I was in too good of a mood and just ended up smiling broader at him and making his blush worse and his already rapid heart rate speed up. I crossed the room in long strides, and he tensed as I approached him. As I reached out my hand his shoulders hunched up to his ears, only for me to change course last second and kiss my clone’s forehead, causing Jin, Yin, and my clone to start stifling giggles to keep from fulling bring Bai He back to consciousness. Wukong frowned at me, and I chuckled at him. You’re terrible. He grumbled and now that I’ve had my fun, I thought it was time to have a little more. I put my hands on his shoulders and I could feel him tense again under my touch. His eyes went wide, and his face was practically lit ablaze as I slowly leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to his forehead. I lingered there for longer than I had with the others, and I could hear my own heart hammering in my chest. I slowly pulled back and swallowed down the feelings that small action had brought bubbling up to the surface that I thought I’d buried deeper down than this a long time ago.

I know. I whispered to him, and I could hear and feel the way he shuddered from it. My hands trailed off his shoulders and down his arms to hold his hands and dragged him backward. Now come on, let's get changed into some pajamas and finally get some damn sleep. He dumbly nodded along with that and stumbled a bit when I pulled him out of place. I tried to bury my feeling back down again and avoided looking at my clone, because I knew that if I did, they’d pick me apart in just one look.

Thank anyone who is listening that Bai He isn’t awake for this.

Chapter 19: Rough Night

Chapter Text

Once Wukong and I were in the bathroom together, his brain started working again and he realized he didn’t actually have to be in here with me since he was already dressed in pajamas and had just come back from being outside. I could tell he had a million questions running through his mind from that realization and I let him stew in his anxious confused state for a little bit as I got changed into my pajamas. I listened to the way his heart raced the longer we stayed in silence and when I teased him by taking my time getting dressed, slowly sliding my pajama pants up my legs and leaving my pajama shirt unbuttoned for now. I could feel his eyes on me, watching my every move and I was sure that had this happened a few weeks ago I probably would have been pissed, but right now I could only find it amusing. When I was done having my fun, I sat on the sink and used my powers to blanket the room in darkness, keeping us away from any prying eyes or ears. The atmosphere in the room changed from playful fun to serious in an instant.

Did you find anything while you were out? I needed to know if there was anything suspicious going on outside right under my nose without my knowledge that could jeopardize my kids’ safety. Understanding the weight of my question, Wukong’s entire presence adjusted accordingly to that of the great sage he claimed to be.

I didn’t spot anything this time, but I asked around a bit with some people outside and your neighbors. Apparently, they’ve seen someone lurking around every so often for a while now and some of them talked about feeling uneasy at certain times of day. I tried asking them a couple of follow up questions and from the looks of it, Bai He isn’t the only one being watched. They’re watching you too Macaque and since I can’t imagine that you of all people would just miss something like that, whoever it is must be using a charm of some kind tuned to block out powers like yours from detecting them… I could feel a sense of dread wash over me at the news as my worst case scenario was looking more and more likely as he went on. I had hoped that everything involving that witch was over, but here it seems like her lap dog was still intent on haunting me until I’m back in my own personal hell. What am I going to do? Wait for another attack and take care of him then? I can’t have him endangering my family, I only just got comfortable again, I only just felt safe again and now… I felt my vision pinhole and my own heartbeat felt too loud to my ears. I wanted to curl up into a ball and let this whole daydream I’ve been living wash away and let myself be thrusted back into my waking nightmare I never truly escaped come back into the center stage that was my life. I waited for the rug to be pulled out from under me and when I cracked my head for that soulless champion of hers to tell me that I could never be happy anymore since I crossed his lady with his crooked grin on his face. My ears were ringing so loud in my head that it almost hurt as I spiraled into despair, I-I-

Mango. I felt a hand soft touch mine that I flinched away from, only to desperately cling to it not even half a second later. Please, take a second, listen and breathe with me. I blinked a few times, trying to register what was happening still. My ears twitched and flicked as they tried to focus on my present instead of the voices that taunted me in the not-so-distant past. I could hear the purposeful breathing and somewhere in my mind I recognized it and did as the equally familiar voice asked to the best of my abilities. My breaths were shaky with every intake and exhalation of air. My body shook just the same and very slowly some of my vision returned. I’m here, you’re here, it’ll be okay. I’ve got you. The voice gently cooed, and I found myself wanting to believe that, but still in disbelief of it. That’s it, you’re doing great. I gulped on a wet breath and the ringing in my ears quieted some. I could feel steady warmth flowing into me though my hand and I subconsciously tugged the hand I held in mine close to my chest and let that feeling flow through my body. I curled around it like it was my lifeline in the sea of anguish my mind brought to the surface, that threatened to consume my every sense. If you can just listen to my heart. As if on some kind of reflex, I listened to that voice without a single thought. My ears homed in on the figure’s body, to listen to all of its functions. I listened to the way their blood flowed through their veins, the way their muscles moved, forcing themselves to be relaxed, the way that they breathed, their every blink, and of course the way their heart beat. It was strong, steady, and so familiar that it was as if my body knew it could be at ease now that it was here. The longer I listened, the more I felt like I could relax and let this person take care of me. It wasn’t as if I’d just melted at their presence, but it did help me come back from the depths of my grief. My vision had returned, but still in a blurred state from the tears that had welded up in my eyes I don’t remember even forming. Even with my vision impaired I could make out the person in front of me and I felt so stupid for not just assuming it had been him all along. He was the only other person in the room. I would have pushed him away if I wasn’t still so shaken up. What do you need? I didn’t know. I felt like my whole world had just come into question in my mind. I wondered if it was all real or if it was all some sick cruel joke being played on me by the most vile creature I’d ever met. I had no idea what I needed, but I guess there was one thing that I knew I wanted in this world more than anything to be true.

I…I want to see my kids. I barely got out in a shaky mess of gasping breaths.

Okay.

Wukong had carefully picked me up with his free arm since I could not will myself to let go of the one pinned to my chest. He used his tail to help secure me and keep him from losing his grip on me in the short walk from the sink to the door. He somehow managed to crack the door open just enough for us to peek out of and there they were. My beautiful little family lay sleeping safe, and sound curled up together, but I wasn’t satisfied with that. I strained my ears and focused on them in the same way I had with Wukong and listened to the sounds of all their bodies, including Jin and Yin. I could hear their hearts beating without issue or worry. I watched Castor stretch out in his sleep before rolling to cuddle his brother, who was already being loosely held in Bai He’s arms and wrapped up in his favorite blanket. When his brother cuddled close to him, he let him under his blankie and I felt like I could cry again just from the looks on their faces. They reminded me so much of Wukong and I, but this time Pollux reminded me of myself, and Castor reminded me of Wukong, and I could see what he was talking about when he said I’d cursed him. Pollux’s pinched little face even when he slept that was soothed by the presence of his family and Castor’s relaxed, almost dopey face, with his mouth hanging open slightly, completely at ease made me want to protect them with everything I had. Then there was Bai He, who held them both close to her heart, still wearing that tiny smile on her face from earlier, reminded me so much of someone who I don’t think I’ve ever told anyone about, not even Wukong. That connection put a deeper fear in my chest and a protectiveness that I felt when I’d first found Castor and Pollux. I clung tighter to Wukong’s arm and curled closer to him as an anchor, to keep me from the persistent panic of my own mind.

I mumbled to him that I wanted to go back into the bathroom, and he closed the door and sat us both down on the floor, with me in his lap. I’d felt a wave of relief wash over me seeing that they were real and here, but more importantly they were safe, yet so much fear and worry was still swirling around inside of me.

How am I going to protect them all? I shakily sobbed and Wukong’s now free hand carded through the fur on my head as he cooed and chirped to me. I chittered and trilled back to him, and the conversation continued in our own language.

It’ll be okay. We’ve got you, you’re not alone in this. We’ll figure it out. More tears streamed down my face, and he shifted me in his arms so my head was directly over his chest so I could more easily listen to his heartbeat. Tomorrow, if you want, you can still visit Chang’e, and they’ll be safe on the mountain. If you want, we can keep them there or somewhere else you think is safe until we resolve this problem. He still had that serious tone from before, but it was so much softer when he spoke to me now.

Why can’t that asshole just leave us alone? I vented to him and the irony of it was not lost on me. I was sure that there were plenty of times he thought the same thing about me whenever we ran into each other again. There was a point where I thought of him in that very same way, not even that long ago.

I know, I know I get it and it sucks, but it’ll be okay. You’re going to get through this. It was humiliating to be in this state in front of him, being cradled like a f*cking child, but unwilling to move or let go. I needed someone to keep me grounded right now and it just so happened to be him. In some weird way, despite how angry it made me, I was glad it was him. Even after all this time he knew how to help me calm down and had the sense to set aside any weirdness between us to put me first for once. It had the added benefit of not letting the kids or anyone else see me like this. Jin and Yin had seen me in a similar state of panic before, but Chang’e had to bear the brunt of that awful situation and calm me down. What a great first impression that was…

I just want this to be over already. Exhaustion ebbed into my voice and body and my grip on his arm finally loosened enough for him to move his arm to wrap it around me instead in a tentative embrace. When his hand moved, I noticed a golden glow coming from it and realized the warmth I felt wasn’t just from his body heat, but from him pouring some of his own power into me. I let my eyes wander the bathroom and a few things dawned on me. Darkness and shadows were creeping back down the walls and toward me, receding. I’d already been expending a lot of energy to conceal us and I have lost control of my powers before when I’d gotten into that state, hence how I ended up on the moon and met Chang’e, so it wasn’t impossible for it to have consumed the room to the point where it was swallowing up the both of us. It was an extremely tiring process and it’s possible that Wukong was just afraid of me passing out or using so much that it could be harmful to me and potentially make me sick.

I know, and it will be. I heard him say as I was processing all this. I closed my eyes and tried to think about what’d just happened deeper. I could sense that my clone had dissipated at some point, and I could barely recall their memories, but I could feel the way my feelings had affected their thoughts and the worry they felt for my well-being. As I tried to recall everything that had transpired, something else caught my attention.

...Did you call me Mango? I questioned, without moving from my spot. Wukong’s hand stuttered in my hair for a moment, before stroking my head more cautiously.

Yeah, sorry about that. I tried calling out to you a couple of times, but it was the only thing you responded to. He nervously told me. The way his voice shook, and his heartbeat quickened made me smile, weak as it may have been.

That’s okay…Please don’t tell anyone about this. I-I mean I have to tell Bai He about her being in danger, but they don’t need to know about all of, well this. I gestured to myself then wrapped my arms around myself. He held me closer to his chest and nuzzled my head with his nose.

Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.

After a while of sitting on the bathroom floor together and Wukong helping me calm down enough for me to stand on my own, we left the bathroom together with our tails loosely intertwined. I was still pretty shaken up about everything and Wukong volunteered to stay up and keep watch for a couple of hours so I could get some sleep, knowing that someone was watching over us.

It was a sweet gesture and after coming down from an emotional high to plummet into an emotional low head first, it was deeply appreciated, and I couldn’t find it in me to downplay that gratitude. I pulled him into a loose hug, surprising him, but he held me back with very little hesitation.

Thank you. I whispered to him, and he held me more firmly in his arms.

Any time. Now get some rest, tomorrow is probably going to be a lot too, so it’ll be better if you get some sleep. We’ll all be here when you wake up. He assured me, and I hummed in response. The hug lingered for longer than I intended it to, but I think it was something we both needed right now after such a long day.

When we parted, he helped me to the couch bed, and I laid down beside Bai He on the far end of the bed. I tiredly chuckled when he pulled the covers over me and made sure I was comfortable with a deep look of concentration on his face. For a moment our eyes locked and I weakly smiled at him and he softly smiled back. My eyes slowly drooped closed, so I didn’t see when he leaned in, but I did feel the gentle pressure against my forehead that made me smile a little stronger, and my heart flutter. I didn’t fall asleep so much as I passed out from fatigue, but either way I was able to get some much-needed sleep after everything that happened today and I was able to do so knowing that my family would be safe, at least for tonight.

It felt like I was surrounded by warmth in my sleep ailed state, and I could feel the warmth that was in my arms slowly recede from me. As the chill settled into my chest, I felt myself whine and search out heat to stave off the cold sensation, twisting and turning until I found something to replace that warmth to banish the cold. I could feel this new warmth encompass my body and I relaxed into its embrace. I could faintly hear myself purr and the shushing and cooing of another that brought me back into a light sleep. It felt so comfortable and soft, and I nuzzled further into it in my sleep.

I’m not sure how much time passed by the time I stirred into semi-consciousness, but this time it was by the smell of freshly cooked food and gentle nudging. I grumbled about being woken up and I could hear soft chuckling. My eyes slowly blinked halfway open, and the world progressively came into focus. I could feel that warm, soft body pressed against me, and I realized I was curled up against their side…his side…in front of everyone…

I was very quickly thrusted into perfect lucidity. I had my face practically smushed into his chest and my hands were fisted in his shirt. He had one arm around my waist and a hand covering both of mine. I looked up at his face and it felt like I’d momentarily been brought back to the past like I’d fear, but this part wasn’t one of the bad ones. He had a relaxed dopey smile on his face and this softness in his eyes that made my heart ache for a time long gone. I felt heat rush to my face and his smile quickly became nervous.

Um, good morning? He told me, and I listened to his heart rate speed up from the anxiety of my non reaction. I slowly sat up, removing myself from his side and looked at the people who definitely should not be in my kitchen wearing cheeky grins and smug smirks on their faces. I held the blanket to my chest, scandalized and Wukong sat up with me, giving me some much-needed space.

Not.One.Word. I told them carefully and Bai He rushed over to me with a mischief riddled smile, hopped up onto the bed and tackled me into a big hug.

Like that’s going to happen, eheh. She fiendishly giggled, but of course I hugged her back regardless of her schemes. You looked cute! As soon as I got up you rolled around to start hugging him, it was adorable. She cooed, while clinging to me so tightly it felt like she was trying to keep me from attempting any kind of escape. I patted her head and resigned myself to the inevitable while also creating my clone to keep anything from being set ablaze, cubs included, while everyone was distracted.

You looked so peaceful we didn’t wanna bother you. Jin remarked. I want to die.

Even the old sage didn’t want us to bother you. Yin added, making me glance at said sage. There was still a hint of nervousness on his face, but his expression had returned to the one he’d used on me when I initially woke up, for the most part. I had to look away or else my ears might start to glow along with my face and that would only make this situation more embarrassing.

I figured you needed the sleep. He reasoned to me, and I wondered when he’d even gotten into bed with us. As if reading my mind, Wukong answered my internal question with more of a shy smile. Yin woke up and offered to keep watch while I got some sleep. I could see the bags under his eyes, and I understood why he’d offered such a thing in an instant. Yesterday wasn’t just draining on me, but him as well and he’d even stayed up so I could get some proper rest and everyone let me sleep in to make sure I got as much sleep as I could. It was incredibly sweet, and I’d have to find a way to make it up to them all later, but as for right now, I was still dealing with their shenanigans. I have to say though, as embarrassing as this was, I was happy to see all of them happy and okay, but now in motion. It helped to reinforce that everything in front of me was real, tangible. I held Bai He a little tighter and kissed the top of her head.

Thank you. I still feel so tired, so every little bit helps. I gotta ask though, why are you in my kitchen? I squinted at the duo my clone had shooed off to the side of the kitchen to take over cooking. Jin turned up the volume on their phone and I heard a familiar voice.

Don’t worry, they had supervision and guidance.

Lin? I asked, as if her accent wasn’t distinct enough of an identifier.

Yeah, I’m glad you remembered me. Sorry about them not asking first, but they figured this would be better than just using the place without anyone to keep an eye on them, even if I can’t actually see them. She chuckled, and I chuckled along with her. As Jin let us speak with his phone, my clone had Yin taking anything that was finished from them and setting food aside.

Of course, how could I forget the person who helps keep these two together. You’re doing a big service there and thanks for helping them not burn my house down. I joked with her, and I could hear the giddiness in her laugh and tone. I guess I made a good impression with her.

You’re welcome, it can be a lot sometimes, but they’ve got their own charm. You know how it is.

Hey I helped too! Bai He piped up to complain, wanting credit. I patted her head again, then started to fix her hair by combing my fingers through it and detangling any knots I found.

You did? Is that why the mess is so small and nothing’s broken? She giggled, and it could have just been my imagination, but it sounded lighter than usual.

We’re not that bad!

You two were buried under a mess of who knows what when I visited. You guys are that bad. I snickered, and they laughed along with me. Ah, but I can admit that you did better than I thought you would, and I am curious to see how it tastes. I crawled off the bed with Bai He still clinging to my chest like a juvenile monkey cub. When I stood up, I made sure she was secure in my arms, and I beckoned Wukong to come over with my tail so we could all enjoy breakfast together before Jin and Yin had to leave and we had to prepare for the trip to the mountain.

That morning I was able to enjoy my time with my friends and family, further reinforcing that they were real and safe. Jin and Yin teased me about how they were right about my situation with my kids, but also told us they were happy they could be uncles and see me happy. In the end Castor never said either of their names, but he did say something close enough to both of their names to make them argue and I could tell that he did it on purpose from the sly grin on his face and how he looked to his siblings to see their reactions. When Pollux started chittering his amusem*nt, Castor joined him and the rest of us joined in while Jin and Yin argued, hamming it up for the kids.

When things settled down, things got serious again. I felt that it would be better to explain the situation now rather than later. I didn’t enjoy putting a damper on the mood, but nothing would ruin a mood more than one of us potentially getting hurt or kidnapped or both. Of course, I made sure the room was cloaked in darkness first to give us privacy and I had Wukong help me explain since thinking about it still shook me up. He held my hand as we spoke, both so I would have something to ground me and so I could hold the magic I used to conceal us for longer. The most flack I got for that was a calm look from Jin and Yin acknowledging it, but not commenting on it.

Pollux and Castor didn’t fully understand what was going on, but they knew I was upset so they clung to me and cooed to me, worried and confused. Bai He similarly held me, and I her, to comfort each other. She was pretty shaken up about it herself and I apologized to her for not being able to keep these kinds of situations away from her. She held me tighter and told me in a quiet voice that it was okay and that she loves me and that she was scared of losing me. I told her that I loved her too and promised that I would do everything in my power to avoid any of us getting hurt and we’d have to tell the rest of our extended family and friends to keep an eye out for anything suspicious.

I felt so useless since I couldn’t detect his presence and even if I could, it would likely be when it was too late since that’s what happened when he jumped me. It was terrifying, I haven’t felt this helpless since I was under that witch’s thumb. Some more tears were shed, and we had a big group hug with everyone for a while after. I ended up making sure Bai He had all of my close friends' numbers in case of an emergency, something I would have done eventually just in case, but was more inclined to do right this second.

It took a while for us all to be comfortable enough for Jin and Yin to leave. I opened a portal for the two of them in my apartment and they gave Bai He and I more hugs goodbye, telling both of us to reach out if we ever needed help with anything. I also heard them vaguely threaten Wukong to make sure we were alright and not to creep on us again at which point I ushered them out with barely contained giggles at this form of their affection. I love them so much.

When they were gone, I sat Bai He down again to tell her about the plan I’d had for Wukong to watch them on the mountain, but that I was willing to change that plan if she didn’t feel comfortable. She took some time to think it over and we talked over some of the details together. A loud part of me was wondering if I should go right now given the circ*mstances. I knew that they would likely be okay for one evening on the mountain, but I was still incredibly worried about them. Gods is this what being a parent feels like? Is this how Pigsy feels whenever Mk is doing Monkie Kid stuff? I really need to talk to him for so many reasons at this point geez…

Macaque, it’s okay if you don’t want to anymore, I’m sure Chang’e would understand. Wukong reasoned with me, squeezing my hand that I hadn’t realized he was still holding until then.

...It’s okay Baba. I think getting to see more of Flower Fruit Mountain could be fun and you can show us all the places you used to hang out right? She asked with an excited twinkle in her eyes and a look of suspicion between us.

Of course, and you’ll get to see what Castor and Pollux look like under their glamours.

You are not taking this away from me! I must see, even if I gotta be around Wukong. She sounded every bit the gremlin I knew her to be. I patted her head and chuckled with her as Wukong processed his offense at her comment.

Okay, okay, if you’re sure then we’ve got to get a couple of things together before we go. A change of clothes, a couple of snacks, utilities, everything you all need for bedtime. I slowly trailed off as I came up with a mental checklist, summoning my clone so they could get started on putting together an overnight bag for them. Oh and you’ll have to tell Mk about this too, so he’s not surprised to see us for training. I told Wukong, and I moved from my spot to help my clone get everything together. I summoned another clone that I disguised as a human and sent them out with a shopping list of things I wanted to bring to Chang’e later and instructed them to bring everything back to me on the mountain when they were done.

I almost forgot about that part. Mind if I astral project to him in your room or something? I know it looks pretty weird when there’s people around and I don’t want to weird out the cubs.

Oh so you understand when that looks bad, but not everything else you’ve done? I asked him without any heat to my accusation and he pouted at me. I rolled my eyes and put my back to him so he wouldn’t see me smile. Be my guest. Bai He, is there anything you need before my clone leaves? Also, could you do me a favor and put away the couch bed with the boys?

I’m on it!

Once our plan was in order, we spent around an hour getting everything together. I had Bai He get dressed in her workout gear since I was planning on getting her back onto training with this trip before leaving. It would double as a hiking trip, so I packed water bottles for everyone and additional snacks for them. I spoke back and forth with my clone to make sure I had everything we’d need, all the while Bai He was smiling and giggling watching us bounce around our small apartment, swinging her legs back and forth on her stool with Pollux in her arms. Castor was having fun hopping from my clone, Wukong, and I whenever we passed each other, chittering away.

In the middle of it all I’d asked her what she was so giddy about with some of my own amusem*nt shining through in my tone. Her smile turned shy, but no less happy or giddy.

I’m just really happy seeing you like this, I guess. I mean, it’s a little silly since you’ve always cared about me, but I don’t know, it really makes me feel like I’m your kid and you’re my dad. My poor heart had melted right on the spot and I’d hugged her and nuzzled her head with my cheek. She giggled even more, and Pollux chittered in being wrapped up in the hug as well.

Aww, Bai He, that’s not silly at all. I understand the feeling more than you know. I kissed her head, and she nuzzled her cheek into me. At this point I don’t care how much having a family makes me soft because these are my kids goddamnit and I’m not gonna hide my love for them in some weird prideful, ego bullsh*t! Later I might tell her how I related to her feelings of clinging to a parental figure, and how my childhood had gone, but that was for a time where we could talk privately. I don’t like to talk about my time prior to returning to flower fruit mountain, but I think now that I’ve got a family of my own, what better time is there to tell them about their grandma?

Chapter 20: Hiking Trip

Chapter Text

Once we’d gotten everything together from my house, I told them I planned on picking up some things from my storage unit and of course both Wukong and Bai He insisted on coming with me, one under the guise of protecting us while the other was very transparent about their curiosity for the place. I relented after a couple of minutes of pestering and figured that maybe it’d be okay to have a few extra pairs of eyes. I should have known better.

The moment I teleported us inside they were gone, examining anything they could their greedy little peepers on before I inevitably reined them in. Honestly I didn’t know who to set my sights on first, Wukong who would no doubt go farther and understand more of the items I may keep here and find something I desperately didn’t want him to, or Bai He who didn’t understand any relic I may keep and could potentially hurt herself and others…The choice was actually really obvious wasn’t it?

I went after Bai He first because her safety mattered far more to me than a bit of shame or embarrassment. I attempted to portal her to me but was surprised and very impressed with her when she managed to evade the portal, I opened in front of her by side stepping around it. She seemed impressed with herself as well until in her own celebration she failed to notice the portal I opened under her feet, and she fell into it. She came out of a portal I opened above me, and I caught her in my arms.

Not bad, Tiny. I praised her, and she giggled.

Thank you! You’ve got a lot of stuff in here. How do you keep track of it all? She marveled and looked around the storage unit. She was right, I had it packed like a warehouse in here with things stacked on shelves or pallets that reached the ceiling and were snuggly put in place. I summoned another clone, who appeared with a big book in their hands.

I keep a ledger of everything and where it is. It’s the only way to find anything when you’ve got this much stuff. It’s seriously such a pain to have everything in a random huge treasure room like some people. Do me a favor and look up where the demon revealing mirror is please? I asked my clone and they started thumbing through the pages. As they did so I went on the hunt for wherever Wukong ran off to in here with Bai He still in my arms. Castor and Pollux were well behaved and stayed put on my head and shoulder, but they still gazed curiously at their surroundings. They’ve been here only a few times so everything inside this unit still appeared brand new to them. Bai He’s head was on a similar swivel, taking in everything we passed by with awe and great interest.

Though I have a number of relics in here, it really is a lot of things I’ve acquired from all kinds of things over the years. Costumes were some of my favorite items inside, but I did keep some old, scrapped drafts of scripts and books along the way. There were some gifts inside from friends I’ve made throughout my years and relics I’ve burrowed during my time with Jin and Yin. It’s crazy how much those two could get their hands on. Unfortunately there were also things in here that I never planned on anyone seeing and I really shouldn’t have trusted that asshole not to run off the second he had the chance. It wasn’t as if it was anything horrendous on its own, but well…some of my friends enjoyed giving me gag gifts to tease me and the easiest way to do so was-

Is that Monkey King merchandise?! I heard him shout and I instantly knew exactly where he was. I opened up another portal under my feet and as we went through it, I sent Bai He off to where my clone had been since I didn’t need her seeing just how extensive my collection was. I already hated knowing she knew about it to begin with, she didn’t need to know any more than that.

I reemerged in the admittedly embarrassingly large section of monkey king merchandise that was damn near untouched by me other than to be thrown inside of here. Wukong’s eyes were sparkling as he went through everything within the mountain of unopened merch.

Why do you have all of this? He asked, still yelling and unaware that I was behind him. He fiddled with a stuffed doll that was outfitted with his journey garb, but instead of that terrible circlet it had his cute little hat on it.

It’s not like I bought them for myself. They’re all just gag gifts. Some of them were from the theater I work at currently. The night I had a show at the same time as a monkey cop showing I got an exclusive poster of the movie.

HA! If that’s true, why'd I keep all of this? He’d moved on to fiddle with an opaque box that still had a ribbon around since I’d known exactly what it was when Spider Queen gave it to me. When he started to tug on the ribbon with a surprising amount of gentleness, or maybe it just felt like he was going in slow motion since the action filled me with panicked adrenaline.

Don’t open that. I warned him, and he gave me this cheeky yet confused look. One of his brows raised in question, but a grin played on his lips, and I wanted to strangle him when his fingers continued to slowly pull at the ribbon.

Oh come on it can’t be any worse than the rest of this. Oh yes it can! It’s reasons like this I’m glad I didn’t teleport my little black box here from my dojo. If he ever found that I would die on the spot. It was far more incriminating than this box since there isn’t any plausible deniability of use in that case scenario. There was only one course of action in this case really…I sprinted to him and aggressively wrenched it from his unsuspecting grasp and tossed it into a hastily made portal, not caring where it ended up. The only thought I had in mind was that I wanted it as far away as possible and then it was gone. He looked at me incredulously afterward, yet very clearly amused too.

I told you not to open that. I told him, unamused by his antics.

Yeah, but don’t you think that was a little melodramatic? He tried to joke around with me, and I seriously wanted to punch him.

No. He pouted at my flat response.

...Are you gonna tell me why you kept all this stuff? His grin returned in no time flat, and I really don’t have an answer to that question that doesn’t sound either incredibly sad or extremely embarrassing. Though many of the trinkets were tacky, some of them made a part of me that was supposed to be long dead feel all warm and soft inside so I kept all of them to make it seem like they were all just a bunch of trash I kept instead of some of them being actually appreciated and treasured. Far too embarrassing to share.

I don’t have to answer that and we’re not here for this anyways now shoo! I started shoving him away from behind and he dug in his heels like a child and put more of his weight against me to make things more difficult.

Aw come on; we were just getting started! He complained with a big smile on his face. I was starting to get the feeling that he’s trying to lighten things up because of what we talked about. There’s only going to be but so much calm before the inevitable next thing happens and having an idea of what that next thing could be was much scarier than not knowing. In a way, I appreciated it, but in another way, it was plain annoying.

No way! Shoo, shoo! This time when I shoved him, I found it in me to laugh and I didn’t shove him as hard as before. Seeing my small amount of amusem*nt, Wukong stopped resisting as much, but still put up enough of a fight for me to have to push him still just to be an ass I suppose. Yet it somehow made us both giggle like a bunch of idiots.

We regrouped with Bai He and my clone and found that they’d retrieved the mirror like I’d asked. I figured since Wukong, and I were on okay terms I should return it to him and what better time was there to hand it over than when we were going back to the mountain together? Though Bai He looked pensive holding in her hands and covered by the cloth I’d wrapped it in.

Are you alright? I asked, and her face pinched further, and she stared harder at the covered mirror.

Yeah, it’s just…I saw myself in this once, when she was around. She was really scary looking, and I still feel bad for that spider guy even if he was pretty creepy.

Did you want to look at it again? I asked her carefully, sharing a look with her and Wukong. I may truly believe that the witch was gone, but the idea that the mirror could potentially reveal otherwise was terrifying to even consider and I could tell Bai He and Wukong felt the same way. Her hands gripped the mirror tighter then in a quick movement, she closed her eyes and removed the cloth from the mirror.

What’s it look like? She asked too scared to look for herself and a part of me was too afraid too and my clone beside her had reflexively closed their eyes the moment she removed the cloth, but that wasn’t solely because of her. The cloth wasn’t over it to protect the glass, but because when I’d picked it up from the wreckage, I wasn’t ready to see myself without my glamours so suddenly and I didn’t want that experience to happen again. It was for that reason why I couldn’t let Wukong do this for me since her own small glamour wouldn’t be there to hide the blue mark on her face. Even so I shared a look with him, and he offered me his hand to hold if I needed it. My fingers twitched and I took him up on his offer, holding his hand tightly in mine as I ventured a look at the mirror.

I breathed a heavy sigh of relief and tension I didn’t know I had in me, bleed away when I saw exactly what I was supposed to. Just her normal face with the blue streak on her face and my unglamoured self. On top of that I saw Castor curiously peering over to see what all the fuss was from his place perched on top of my head. I got a little preview of what we’d all see soon of his slightly larger body with brown fur instead of black, his pink mask shaped like a heart and his two extra pairs of ears that flicked this way and that. His eyes shone upon seeing himself like that again and I had to catch him from jumping off me to get a closer look and I held him in my arms like the toddler he resembled in the mirror and let go of Wukong’s hand in the process.

It’s just you Bai He. No bag of bones to be found. I told her in a soft, quiet voice and she peaked one eye open to see herself, then another as she stared openly at herself. Just like I’d said she only found herself when she looked in the mirror and I could hear the way her heart picked up just looking at herself.

It’s really me. There was a bit of astonished disbelief in her voice as examined herself in the magic mirror. She picked at the mark on her face a bit and I gently told her to stop before she scratched herself too hard and broke skin. It was interesting seeing her do this again, but instead of seeing her face without the eye-catching blue marking, she saw all that she was and that was all that mattered wasn’t it? I was happy for her and so was Wukong if the big smile on his face was anything to go by. We were also both relieved to have further confirmation that she was gone from her even if her powers still lingered inside them.

Yeah, it is and by the way if you’re still worried about Huntsman, you know the creepy one, I hear him palling around with Sandy from time to time so he’s okay. The offer is still on the table to check in with the spiders whenever you’re ready, though I might touch base with them soon anyways about this whole situation since they were pretty affected by it too. I’m a little worried that he might be eyeing them too with all this spying going on. With how linked they were to her activities; I wouldn’t put it past him to try something funny with them too.

I don’t know, but if you go see them then I wanna go too! She sounded determined and energized by the idea. Do you think we could get them something first though? Like a peace offering? I know it wasn’t me exactly, but I still feel really bad about what happened. She took on a shyer attitude as she went on. I thought it was sweet how much she cared about them despite the way they treated her when she was possessed.

Of course Bai He and I’ll be sure to put in a good word for you.

You know if you want you can keep the mirror. Might be nice to have that reminder whenever you need it. Wukong suggested, surprising the both of us.

Are you sure? She held the mirror close to her chest and I could tell Wukong was experiencing what I usually do when she does things like this, acting all bright eyed and looking at you as if you’d just given her everything she’d ever wanted and more. I wonder how much of that he’d gotten when he first met Mk? Either way he looked like his heart was melting as much as mine usually did.

Yeah, why not? I’ve got plenty of other stuff and I didn’t miss this old thing. He patted her on the head, and she swatted away his hand after two pats, annoyed. Not like he even needed it anyways with his gold vision. I did appreciate him gifting it to her instead of keeping it in his hoard and I was already wondering where we should put it in the home. The bathroom felt like the most appropriate spot.

Thank you! She beamed at him for what was possibly the first time and I thought it was good they seem to be getting along right now since he was about to babysit for me.

Alright, alright I think it’s time we went to the mountain now. Mk could be waiting for us. He wasn’t. I could hear him still running around in his home putting all his things together to come over, tripping over things in his room. We would have plenty of time, but I wanted to get out of here before Bai He remembered to ask questions about the whole Monkey King merch thing.

Okay!

I transported us to the shores of the mountain and in the process sent the mirror back home for later. As soon as we got there Bai He’s mind was set on seeing Castor and Pollux unglamoured for the very first time already and Wukong was very quick to join in. It took a lot of convincing for them to calm down and wait until Mk got there and both of them got pouty afterward. I know Wukong said it would be safe for them to drop their glamours here, but I preferred it if we had another person looking out for us just in case anything pops off. I did find it cute that they were acting so similarly to each other given how opposed Bai He could be toward him at times, but she never crossed the line into full on hating him.

As we were waiting some monkeys from the mountain approached us, or more specifically me and the boys. Some of them clung to me like I was their mother and were cooing and purring as they rubbed their faces against me. I was worried that they might stress out Castor and more specifically Pollux, but they were surprisingly receptive to the attention. Unfortunately for me that meant I had a bunch of hyperactive monkeys crawling all over me and using my body like their own personal plaything.

Wukong and Bai He were extremely entertained by the treatment I was getting from them and when Mk showed up, he joined in on having fun at my expense. I was a little embarrassed by the little monkeys being so affectionate with me, but I couldn't be too upset. I’d missed the little ones and I didn’t get the chance to see anyone during the celebration after the defeat of the Lady Bone Demon. Plus, it was great seeing Castor and Pollux, so excited to play with the monkeys. I haven’t had the chance to go visit Yuanhou or Mahou, so they haven’t seen any other monkeys, young or old, in a while. They were so lively, and I didn’t have the heart to stop them any time soon.

I let them have their fill and was so happy to hear Pollux talking with the other monkeys in a few chirps and chitters and I could tell Castor was happy for his brother too. Castor was more animated than usual and kept checking back in with his brother to ensure he was comfortable with all the attention before going off with other monkeys again. I didn’t let them venture out of sight, but it was nice seeing them trying to branch out on their own. It was also so sweet seeing Castor bring other monkeys over to Bai He to introduce them. She’d done her best to follow along with everything they said even if she didn’t understand a word of it since Castor was too engrossed in all the chirps and chitters to think of switching to a language she could understand. At least her presence was still acknowledged unlike when Mk arrived and he wasn’t spared a second glance, or a first glance for that matter.

By the time they’d gotten used to the other monkeys, 30 minutes had passed since we’d initially arrived, and they took up their usual spots on me to rest a bit. I’m sure that Castor could have kept socializing with them, but when Pollux was worn out, he decided to stay by him instead.

Soooo? Bai He asked excitedly with Mk and Wukong backing her up with expectant looks on their faces.

You gonna show us? Wukong egged me on.

Alright just give me a second. Now Mk, I assume you already know, but just to be sure, you know you’re not allowed to tell anyone about this, right?

Yeah, yeah, I know. He waved me off and I squinted at him suspiciously.

Not even Mei or the others? I warned him, and I heard his heart rate spike. If I hear him say one thing about it to her, we’re gonna have to fight about it, then maybe a really boring lecture to really lay into him. I couldn’t do anything if he texted her about it though.

I can keep a secret! He promised, and I know he has in the past, but I still had some reservations about it.

And no pictures!

Get on with it already! Wukong complained, and I rolled my eyes at him.

Fine, fine just give me a second. I grumbled and gently coaxed Castor and Pollux into my arms. With a wave of my hand, I dispelled the glamours that usually kept them covered and revealed their true forms to everyone. Just like before, Castor's brown fur, six ears and pink heart shaped mask were revealed, but this time I got to see Pollux’s blonde fur and bright red mask that matched my own as well. Both of their bodies were larger and proportioned more like a human toddler than a monkey cub, much like how Wukong and I were proportioned with human length arms and legs while still having a majority of monkey traits. The two cubs barely got the chance to inspect themselves and each other before we were crowded by our three other witnesses.

Awww! They fawned in unison and Castor looked to Pollux before engaging with the attention. When he saw the bit of discomfort on his brother’s face, he shooed them away, so they’d back off some. They apologized to the little ones to soothe them both and Castor forgave them the second Pollux relaxed.

They’re so cute. Bai He gushed and slowly offered her hand toward them. Pollux let her pet him and nuzzled into her hand. Are you sure they’re not your babies?

It’s complicated. I’ll tell you all about it when we reach the cave.

Then let’s go! Mk tried to charge on ahead, but I portaled him right back over to us.

Not so fast bud. This is still a training day for you two. I mused with a great amount of amusem*nt when I witnessed both their faces fall and the two trainees whined.

Come on, we already came this far, just tell us! Bai He complained, and I patted her head, ruffling her hair.

Well you’ve waited this long so you can wait a little longer. I started walking away from them and Wukong joined me. I think hiking is a nice change of pace from the norm. Bai He groaned, and Mk sounded relieved.

I can do that no problem.

Oh so you want more of a challenge bud? Wukong asked, and we shared a knowing look that put some fear into Mk’s body.

I’ve got an idea. I portaled a massive round boulder down the mountain for Mk to roll back up. The sight of it made Bai He laugh, and Mk’s confidence waver a bit. There, some strength training with the cardio you don’t get enough of. I didn’t think this hike was going to be easy for him even without the boulder since he doesn’t really do a lot of walking to begin with and most of his training excluded a lot of cardio so this was gonna suck for him. Not that it would be much better for Bai He, but if she got tired, I would just carry her.

Ah, uh, I’ve got this! Yeah, this I’ll be fine. Mk told himself more than anything to reassure himself. Wukong and I snickered together, and we planned on getting a head start, scouting out and clearing a safe path for the both of them. I had a clone follow them in the shadows to make sure they were okay even if Mk was right there. The small bit of privacy had also given us an opportunity to talk over a couple of things.

I’m still nervous about going to visit Chang’e with all of this going on. Are you sure it’ll be okay for you to look after them? My own doubts were still crowding my mind with worries.

I’m positive. All your little babies will be safe with me and Mk. The mountain is as safe as can be. Doubtful. I could hear Mk struggling with the boulder on the uneven ground while Bai He supervised and occasionally helped him push when she didn’t have to. Cute.

Dangerous stuff has happened on this mountain Wukong. I told him flatly. I’d experienced a lot of the bad stuff that's taken place here firsthand, but that had been a very long time ago now and to most this place was just a myth these days. Even so, there were still other animals on the mountain that, while generally peaceful, were still predator animals.

It’s safe from threats like the Lady Bone Demon and other demons and celestials.The immediate groups that mattered in the moment. I still had my doubts about that given the history of this place. I’ve seen a lot of damned good monkeys go in some of the worst ways. He could probably see that I was uneasy since I felt his tail wrap around my waist and pulled me close to his side so he could put his arm over my shoulders, pulling me impossibly closer and flustering the hell out of me and annoying two previously comfortable cubs that were resting on me. Relax! It’ll be okay. I’ll be extra careful just for them. He poked my snout and I nipped at his finger before shoving him away. The side that was pressed against him felt cold afterward.

Be serious! I yelled my frustrations to him, and he put up his hands defensively.

I am! I’m worried too, but all of us getting stressed out isn’t gonna help anything and if you’re all wound up you might start freaking out your cubs. I opened my mouth to argue with him, but shut it again when I realized a second later that he had a bit of a point, for once. I, at the very least, can admit that I shouldn’t be so obviously stressed in front of Castor and Pollux, but I can’t let them go on not knowing. The last thing I needed was for something to go down and for them to be lost not understanding the how or why.

Maybe you have a point, but I’m not gonna let them be ignorant to what’s going on. That’ll only put them in more danger. I brought Castor and Pollux into my arms and cradled them. Once Pollux had calmed down enough from the socializing, the two of them were investigating each other’s appearances again, chirping little comments to each other about their looks. Wukong stepped closer to me again to look at them but left some space between us this time. I could sense something inside him shift, if only slightly, at my words.

I know, trust me. I want you guys to be safe and it’s stressing me out a bit too and having to be the strong one all the time sucks, but you’re their dad and it’s your job to put on a brave face and make them feel safe and secure even when you’re scared. I had to wonder how much of what he’d said came from experience. Both from being a king and from his journey days, hell even the brotherhood knowing him and his false relaxed persona. For all I knew he was putting that experience to work right now.

...I know…Hey thanks for, you know, being there for me last night and for all this too. I know things are still all kinds of weird between us, but you’ve been pretty civil all things considered so, thanks for that. Yep, that totally didn’t sound awkward or weird at all. I could barely look at him as I thanked him. It was such a weird experience to be thanking him for something like this or to even be here at all with him after so much. Having my kids here and the boys unglamoured made me feel very exposed.

I mean I could have done better in a couple of things, but you’re welcome! He admitted, somehow managing to get me to snicker from the way he’d grumbled the first half under his breath as if it would make it harder for me to comprehend. He got a little closer to me so he could play with the boys that had gotten cozy in my arms and against my chest. When his hand got close to them, Castor glanced at his brother before climbing onto him and going all the way up to his shoulder so he could look at his face and poke at his mask. Wukong took the attention in stride, chuckling at his poking and prodding. I was glad I could help you earlier. You really had me going for a moment there last night, but don’t worry, we’re gonna make sure your cubs are safe from that freaky weirdo. Tonight though, you’re gonna relax up on the moon with your buddy Chang’e, maybe gorge yourself on delicious food and share hot gossip or whatever you do with her to relax. He spoke quietly now that he was so close to me, but his voice held no less vigor. It was enough to make me grin despite myself and though I didn’t know it, I was subconsciously leaning into his space too. The way we walked together would have looked uncomfortable to anyone watching us, namely Mk and Bai He if their view wasn’t blocked by a boulder and distance, but we’ve both been worse and neither of us were willing to admit even to ourselves how nice the occasional brushing of our arms and bumping of our tails against each other felt. Though I’m sure Castor and Pollux realized it from the way they both seemed to relax in some ways. Castor chose to curl himself over Wukong’s shoulders, nuzzling up against his face and a quiet purring started to emanate from Pollux. It was adorable.

There’s usually a glass of wine or two in there. Usually way more than that, but he doesn’t need to know that. The little that I did share made him softly chuckle and the next time our tails brushed felt more intentional.

That’s the spirit. When you get back, we can talk about all the heavy stuff. I can’t wait for this to finally actually be over and done with. These kids have been through enough already.

Agreed. It’ll be nice for them to get to enjoy having a more normal childhood after this. Coming here has me thinking I should visit the other monkeys too. The boys clearly haven’t been getting enough time with other monkeys and I’m sure Bai He would love meeting more of her extended family. That would all have to come after formally adopting her and she might have to be glamoured to look like a monkey while we’re there at first considering how most of them have never seen a human and those who were ancient enough to know don’t have the best experiences with them. She’ll probably get a big kick out of that with how excited she gets from getting affirmation over being one of us. If you’re lucky you can and Mk can come too. I could tell he was excited to hear that offer from the chirp he let out and his tail wagging a bit faster, but it came to a halt within moments and I knew he was getting self-conscious.

I’d love to, but I don’t know if we’re ready yet still. That letter might be nice though. You did say you’d write them, right?

I will and if you’re worried they’re gonna be pissed at you, they miss you more than you know. That came out softer than I intended it to, but despite knowing that I chose to believe that Wukong’s more flustered expression and blush came solely from the idea of his old subjects still loving their king even if he feels unworthy of it.

You think so? He asked with a hint of giddy nervousness and his tail was back to whacking into mine.

Yeah, some of them are still waiting patiently for you to return.

Wow.

Come on, you shouldn’t be that surprised. I mean out of all the others I was the one who had the most problems with you and now we’re whatever this is.

I guess so, but still, it’s pretty crazy.

That they’d still love you? I don’t think it’s that much weirder.

No, no not them, us. Centuries of fighting and now we’re here again with our kids going on a hike together. It took Wukong a second to register my fur had fluffed up on surprise from his words. He stared at my faintly blushing face as he went over what he’d said in his head. When it struck him a faint blush of his own spread across his cheeks and a nervous laugh bubbled out of him. Sorry, that came out weird! I didn't want to make it sound like our kids! I meant like both of the kids we look after separately were here. I mean technically two of them are ours in a way, but it’s not exactly- The more he went on the worse both our blushing got.

Please shut up. I interrupted his nervous rambling that only made things worse to end our collective prolonged suffering.

Okay. There was a palpable silence that stretched on between us while our faces cooled down. The imaginary of us having cubs stuck in both our minds no doubt, causing an awkward air to fill the small space between us. In a way we did have kids together, but I prefer not to think about it that way. If I did, I’m sure it would dredge up all kinds of other emotions I tried to kill off after my revival. Though it was more difficult not to see it that way after seeing the boys unglamoured again. The resemblance they had to the both of us was unquestionable, to the point where I was surprised that Bai He didn’t say anything further about it other than asking if they were mine again. It’s gonna be hell when I explain everything to them.

Speaking of the kids, I could hear Mk starting to have a tough time with that boulder. He was getting more and more agitated by it getting stuck or not fitting through the spaces he wanted it to, and I could tell that Bai He was getting a bit tired too from the trek and trying to help him out.

We should probably give them a break before that boulder rolls down the mountain and hurts someone. I suggested, honestly wondering if the kids had enough and should walk without it the rest of the trip. I think he’s learned his lesson.

Why not? Oh! You know that pond’s near here, might be nice to relax there for a bit. I took in my surroundings at that and sure enough I recognized this place well.

You sure that’s a good idea? I might be tempted to recreate some memories. I smirked at him and gasped in mock offense.

You better not! His grin betrayed his true feelings.

Come on, your eyes are stronger now, a little sand won't hurt that bad. It dawned on me again how close we were when I leaned toward him, and our heads touched. We stopped to continue our ‘bickering’ and pushed our foreheads firmly against each other. I idly thought about how odd it still is to have him be the same height as me for this.

Easy for you to say you weren’t the one blinded and I don’t exactly want to test what it’d be like now. I snickered at the hint of genuine worry that most others wouldn’t have picked up on in his tone.

So you’ve got some sense in there after all huh? I pressed harder against him for emphasis, accidentally making our snouts touch in the process, though neither of us made any moves to fix that. Wukong’s grin broadened and before he could get another word in, we were interrupted.

Mk dropped the boulder down the mountain. We both jumped out of our skin at her sudden presence, much to the annoyance of Castor and Pollux, who almost fell in the commotion. Were you two gonna kiss? Bai He grinned fiendishly.

No, Wukong?

I got it! Wukong rushed past us to help Mk out, with Castor still clinging to him and chittering with joy at how fast they were going.

So what were you doing? As soon as she got closer, Pollux ditched me to cling to her instead, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and his legs around her waist. She cradled him and held his head in a way not dissimilar to the way I carry her sometimes.

Talking. I told her casually and the look she gave me screamed doubt.

Riiiight, hehe. I’ve raised a little demon, haven’t I? Good for her.

Hush you. We were just about to take a break. If you want, I can carry you both to the spot we were thinking about. I avoided addressing that mess entirely.

Hmmm, nah I’ve got this, I’ve come this far and I feel like I’ve earned it more that way, I think. That being said she did move to stand beside me and shifted her arms holding Pollux so she could hold my hand as we walked. It was so sweet and made me feel all fuzzy all the time. I squeezed her hand twice before we got to walking.

Anything you say. You know it's been a long time since I was able to walk the mountain like this. I missed it.

It’s very pretty here, but it’s so hot. She complained, and I not so subtly used my powers to create some more cloud cover and shade for us. She squeezed my hand and giggled at the gesture.

Yeah it can get pretty bad, but that’s what all the lush foliage and freshwater is for not to mention the giant shadow the mountain casts. For a second, I thought over telling her about my mother. We had relative privacy, and the setting wasn’t too bad, plus the others sounded like they’d be occupied for a while. I was born in that shadow; did you know that?

You were? Her interest was obvious and adorably sweet.

Yeah, but it was in the middle of the night. Everything was pitch black and to a little cub it was cold and terrifying. If I reminisce long enough, I could still remember the biting cold that night brought.

That sounds awful. She sympathized with me, and I wondered if Bai He had to ever spend nights outside when she was hiding the fact that she was functionally homeless for that long month. I’m glad she doesn’t need to worry about having a roof over her head and a bed to sleep in every night anymore. She’s a strong kid for enduring that for so long.

Oh it was, but it gets better I promise. I reassured her with a tired smile. It was exhausting to recall when I knew how it ended and I haven’t even gotten to talking about her yet.

Is this when you met Wukong? She grinned, and it got a breath of a laugh out of me despite the pit forming in my chest.

Nope, in fact I wouldn’t meet him until years later, but as I whined and complained in the lonely icy night air, an older monkey found me. Of course I was frightened by them at first, but they were very gentle and cooed to me to try and calm me down. When she was able to get close, she slowly scooped me up into her arms and cradled me until I was able to fall asleep. By the time she’d found me I’d made my throat hoarse from all my crying. I’m thankful the world wasn’t as noisy as it is today or else it would have been impossible for me to get to sleep.

Aww. She cooed, holding my hand a bit tighter and making my smile a little less tired, if only for a moment.

She was so soft and comforting that it didn’t take long for me to fall asleep. In the morning I was able to see her fully. She was another macaque like me, but she obviously didn’t have the extra ears and she had what I now know to be melanism which gave her this beautiful black fur that I’ll always remember as being the safest place in the world…I miss her too. Poachers had claimed her and took me from the mountain when I was still fairly little. I only got to spend a few years with her, but those few years meant the world to me. By the time I’d come back to the mountain I was grown and distrustful of most from what I’d gone through on my own. Meeting Wukong had been an interesting experience to say the least but getting to know him had helped me rebuild the ability to trust again and let someone take care of me. Even if sometimes that trust was misplaced and destroyed by him again, it allowed me to at least want to try and that’s something I’ll always be grateful for.

I’m sorry. She didn’t need to be told to understand that my mom was already long gone.

It’s okay. I still have the memory of her and the years she’d taken care of me. I’ll always have that. A bittersweet smile graced my lips as I reminisced. She took care of me in my youngest years, but I lost her too soon and I’ve missed her every day since. The memory of my time with her affects me even now. The way I felt with her was something I wanted others to feel too. It’s why I’ve always wanted a family of my own and sometimes when I see myself donning black fur like hers, I remember her in all the ways that matter most. And now I get to tell you about her. I’m sure she would have been very happy to meet her grandbabies.

I would have liked to have met her too. She sounds like a really special lady. She pressed her face against my side, and I patted her head with my free hand. A bittersweet atmosphere had formed around us, with Pollux taking note of it and chirping his concerns.

She was, and I promise to tell you more about her later. For now, why don’t we relax and enjoy the scenery? Oh, and don’t tell anyone about your grandma, okay? I’ve never told anyone else about her before, not even Wukong. It wasn’t ever something I thought to share with him, though looking back I think it was because a part of me blamed him for what happened and not being able to protect us when we needed him, but that’s not his fault. He couldn’t have known, and it’s crazy to expect him to always know everything that was going on, on his mountain, that’s what I ended up being there for anyways with these ears of mine.

Okay Baba. She nuzzled her cheek against me, and I found some small comfort in it. She really was a good kid, and I was happy to have her and the boys in my life. I swear on my everything that I will never let them experience what I went through when I lost my mother. I planned to be by their side for as long as I am able in order to comfort them and always keep them safe. Always.

Chapter 21: Chang'e

Chapter Text

While Bai He, Pollux and I were sitting by the pond, living in the quiet moment between us, Wukong and Mk emerged from the forest around us looking disheveled and bewildered with Mk holding his staff with the boulder impaled on it. Castor was chittering and laughing hysterically on Wukong’s shoulders in a way that reminded me of the man himself in his younger years. This is so weird. I thought to myself as Pollux left me to check on his brother, who hopped off of Wukong to meet him halfway and excitedly tell him about the antics he’d just witnessed and how funny found it in chirps and chitters.

You guys alright? I asked them with a hint of amusem*nt in my voice from the oddity of it.

Yep! Wukong responded quickly, popping his p.

Totally! Mk confirmed just as quickly. I wasn’t really buying it from the twigs in their hair and the dirt stains on their clothes that made me think they both took a tumble down the mountain.

Did anyone get hurt?

Somehow no…I think? Mk informed us, very reassuringly. I closed my eyes and sighed at them to cover up the fact that I was concentrating and listening out for any pained cries or whines that would signify an injured animal. Though I heard some trees and branches still complaining after being hit or completely run though by a boulder, I only heard sounds of curiosity and confusion from the other creatures on the mountain which put my mind at ease.

I think you’ve had enough for the day Mk; you can put that down now. I think the mountain had faced enough terror for the day as well.

You sure? He looked up at the impaled boulder skeptically then back at me.

Yes, I’m sure, now both of you get over here and take a break, I packed a lunch. I used my shadows and some clones to set up a picnic spot and thought about how much I’ve been eating out like this, so to speak. The visit to Tieshan, the picnic yesterday and now this. I’m really running down my social battery this week.

You’ve never packed me a lunch before… Mk spoke out the side of his mouth and side eyed Wukong playfully and Wukong scoffed in offense.

Hey I’ve gotten you food!

That was hair!

Not all of it!

Most of it was or I brought to you from Pigsy’s.

Erh, next time?

Just get over here already! I yelled at them, effectively getting their attention, and making Bai He chuckle.

Coming! They responded in unison. When Mk shrank his staff and let the boulder fall off it, I portaled it away somewhere it wouldn’t cause any more damage.

As we relaxed and let the kids take a break, my clone and I worked on detangling any twigs that had gotten lodged in their hair as a result of their scramble to keep the boulder from hurting anyone and causing general mayhem. The short break allowed Bai He, Mk, and Wukong to make themselves more familiar with Pollux and Castor’s looks. The same could be said for the boys themselves. Bai He would praise them about how pretty and cute they were, which made them giggle giddily at the praise, with Pollux being a bit more bashful. Pollux would hide his face behind his hands but peek out with a big smile on his face. My kids were so cute I just wanna cuddle and fawn over them when they’re acting like this, but that was too much so I just watched them with a big smile on my face. I was also just happy to see them happy with each other and so comfortable too. I could sense that Wukong and Mk were feeling similarly when watching them together and it made some part of me want to hold them as a substitute. I suppressed that part of me as much as I could, but my clone was still able to rest his chin on top of Mk’s head for a little while after they finished picking through his hair. I let them be for a few minutes before dismissing them and took a seat next to Wukong, sitting closer than expressly necessary as we shared in the moment. It was nice to relax in a place that held a soft spot in my heart with them like this.

As we were relaxing, we watched Pollux approach the pond’s water to look at himself with Castor and Bai He beside him. They all looked at themselves and while Bai He was rubbing at her cheek with a half-smile, Castor was giggling at his looks and rocking in place, and Pollux was staring deeply at his reflection while gently touching his fur. He was staring so hard at himself that I was a little worried he was feeling self-conscious. His brows furrowed like he was concentrating and when his blond fur started to darken a quiet gasp escaped me and I reached out to hold on to Wukong’s arm and unintentionally not so gently shook him to manage my barely contained joy and excitement. It took him a moment to realize why I was acting that way, but when he did, he had a similar reaction and reciprocated by holding me back while our tails thumped against each other as they wagged. Slowly everyone else caught on and watched Pollux create his very first glamour. Once his fur was the black color, he’d grown accustomed to his face relaxed and he smiled at his reflection, which is also when I hopped up to start praising him.

Pollux! That was your very first glamour. I'm so proud of you! You did such a good job too, no patches at all! I picked him up and lifted him high before bringing him back down into my arms for a hug.

That's so cool Polly! Bai He added, coming up close and resting her hands on my arms to tug me down closer to her level so she could see him better. I crouched to make it easier for everyone to look.

Pretty Polly! Castor added. Pollux was flustered from all the attention, but I could also tell that this time he was enjoying all the praise, which just made me even happier for him. His ears even started to glow like mine did when I was flustered, among other things.

When things calmed down, we continued our trek up the mountain together again. While I was still buzzing with pride for Pollux, my attention did shift to Bai He, who’d asked for tips about making glamours for herself. I could tell she was excited to actually use her powers and I did my best to help her, but the best I could tell her is to focus and visualize the change she wanted to happen and that it helped when starting out to also touch the spot they wanted to change. It would let her channel her powers through her fingertips to the spot and make the change easier. I told her to practice moving her power through her body in the meantime by making them flow out of her hands in the form of smoke.

Of course that whole conversation raised some questions and after some silent deliberation between Bai He and I had through facial expressions and eye movements, we agreed to tell Mk about it along with everything else I’d planned to share when we were in total privacy today. It would no doubt be anxiety inducing for her, but I’d be there to explain and if anything got too tense, I’d be there to help sort things out.

I did start sharing some stories from my time on the mountain with them in order to take their minds off it in the meantime and Wukong joined in with a few of his own anecdotes. There was a bit of a disagreement about how we’d first met and how my take on it made him look bad, but I would argue that my retelling of the way he watched me dancing by myself on the shores at night like a creep was a perfect representation of events, but I agreed to telling it in turns.

I told them all about how I’d come back to the mountain for the first time since I was little and was taking in the sights and basking in the moon's glow and warm night air, relaxing in the best way I knew how. I didn’t think anyone would be around since I could tell the majority of the other monkeys on the mountain were gathered together having one of Wukong’s ‘parties’ so I didn’t immediately recognize or register that I was being watched until I heard a twig snap behind me.

He told them how he’d gotten bored at his own ‘party’ and decided to walk the mountain that night. When he was wandering, he heard humming and saw puffs of purple smoke swirling around and had to investigate. When he’d gotten to the shores, from his objective perspective, he’d seen a monkey unlike any he’d ever seen before dancing beautifully and levitating off the ground as they did so. He said that I was enchanting from the way the smoke swirled and ghosted over me and the light of the moon illuminated me. He just had to speak with me.

Despite the way I usually like to recount the event, hearing him describe seeing me like that made me feel a little bashful. It had been a while since I’d heard him talk about it or heard him praise me like that, so I didn’t realize how much I still really enjoyed it.

Oh so this is why Bai He’s always asking if you two dated. Mk commented, making Bai He laugh, Wukong extremely flustered, and me choke on a laugh and blush up to my ears.

Exactly! It’s so obvious but they won’t just tell me! Bai He shouted, feeling validated, I’m sure.

You’re incorrigible! I told her while practically cackling. With a few shaky breaths I managed to calm myself down enough to continue. That moment came to a screeching halt almost immediately. As soon as that twig snapped, I squawked and panicked. It was far from the grace I’d had just seconds before.

Yeah because as soon as I got close you threw sand in my eyes. Wukong crossed his arms and pouted.

You scared me and made me fall over! I panicked and grabbed the closest thing to me to throw at you and it just happened to be sand! I helped you rinse it out! I had teleported away the second he’d been stunned by the sand, but I’d stayed close to observe him. I didn’t know who he was at that point in my life, and I hadn’t seen another monkey since I’d been taken off the mountain, so I was still curious about him. I’d seen him trying to rub the sand out of his eyes, which only made the irritation worse. I felt bad about what I did and came back to him, took his hand, and led him to the pond we’d just stopped at to rinse out his eyes. The only reason I’d known about it was because I’d taken the time to explore the mountain before making my way to the beach. On the walk we’d gotten to talk to each other, and I never shared it with him, but it had felt so good to speak with another monkey and relax around someone else for the first time in years. Even though he scared me at first, he endeared himself incredibly to me and it made me stick around longer than I’d ever intended to.

After you ran away and watched me suffer! He was complaining, but his lips kept quirking upward as he tried to suppress his smile. It was nice knowing it was still a fond memory for the both of us.

You deserved it at least a little bit. I coyly smiled at him, and his smile finally broke through.

Oh they totally dated. Mk whispered to Bai He and I heard her whisper back.

Thank you oh my god. Which made me snicker. Being here was helping me feel better about everything that was going on right now. It wasn't that I could forget about it, but it allowed me to be calm instead of paranoid about it. My kids would be safe on the mountain for a little while with Wukong and Mk and we could figure out the details of how to deal with everything when I got back.

Once it had gotten later than I would have liked, I transported us the rest of the way up the mountain so Wukong could let us into his home. Before we could head inside, we were stopped by Bai He and Mk putting themselves between us and the door.

Hold it! Before we go in, you two have to compliment each other. Bai He pointed between the two of us with a grin on her face.

I thought that was just a thing at my place? I asked her with an amused quality to my voice, though I really didn’t expect her to stop us like this with how badly she wanted to know more about Castor and Pollux. This would just delay that info getting to her.

I don't know, it'd be nice to hear you say something nice about me. Wukong nudged me with his elbow, sounding just as amused as I was, and our two mentees were giggling amongst themselves. I rolled my eyes and smirked at him.

You need another stroke to your ego that badly? I teased him and bumped my shoulder into his. I could hear his heartbeat pick up before he bumped me back.

That is not a compliment. His tone sounded playful instead of insulted, so I took that as a good sign.

It wasn’t supposed to be. I smacked my tail into his.

Come on Macaque, the sooner you do this the sooner we go inside. Mk told me through a cheeky, playful grin, making me roll my eyes again affectionately.

Alright. Wukong, I think it’s really nice of you to be doing this for me and supporting me like this when things are still complicated between us. I appreciate it. I know I’d thanked him before and it felt like a rehash of other things I said to him, but it still felt important to say again, especially after last night and how much he wanted to help me and my family. It was comforting to have his support.

No problem. It’s not as complicated as it was, I think. You know I’m really proud of how far you’ve come for your cubs and I’m glad you’re actually asking for help instead of taking it all on yourself. We shared a soft smile and despite how nice that was, I think I’m getting too comfortable around him.

Unlike some people I know. I spoke out the side of my mouth in relation to him. I wasn’t the only one with problems reaching out for help. He was a master of bottling things up and attempting to handle everything on his own even if it’s a terrible idea.

I heard that.His brow twitched, probably annoyed with how much flack he’d gotten for everything with the Lady Bone Demon at this point.

You were supposed to. Can’t let things get too chummy, can we? I snickered and jabbed him playfully with my elbow which made him roll his eyes at moi.

You still seem pretty chummy to me. Mk teased the both of us while Bai He was giggling like a fiend beside him. During all of this Castor and Pollux were unperturbed.

Nonsense, now let’s go inside already, since you were all so eager before. I ushered them all inside ahead of me, getting more laughs and giggles out of them in the process. Good, because this conversation isn’t going to be sunshine and rainbows. They should enjoy the mirth while it lasts.

When we all squeezed into the Wukong’s shack of a home I gathered myself to finally tell Bai He and Mk about the boys’ origins with Wukong there to reassure me that it was safe to do so.

I tried to be gentler about it for Bai He’s sake. While I revealed that the boys were experiments by some creepy demon, I did not go into detail about why that demon wanted to create clones of me or his behavior prior to that, nor did I tell her the full extent of the terrible state I found the boys in. What they did know was this, I was tipped off by Nezha that a demon had created clones of me and was treating them poorly. That demon was then neutralized and I nursed them back to health and gave them a safe home. I only recently found out that the clones were also made with Wukong’s DNA so in a way they were like our children. I told them that I didn’t want anyone to know that they were related to either of us since it would only put them in danger, and they were too young to effectively defend themselves.

By the time I was finished, Bai He was cradling Pollux and Castor as best as she could in her arms like they were fragile little babies with big sad eyes while Mk looked drained and existential. I let them sit on that new information for a bit and I heard Bai He whispering to them.

No one’s gonna hurt you ever again. She held them closer to her and while they were still confused, they hugged her back and nuzzled her cheeks. She looked and sounded like she was on the verge of tears, and all took a moment to console them both and shared a group hug on Wukong’s couch. Wukong and I sat on either end of the couch with everyone else between us. We sat together long enough for the kids to calm down and then some. Wukong and I were reassuring them the whole time that it would be okay and that we’d take care of them, all of them, and keep them safe. We’d get through this together.

It took a while, but when Bai He was ready, she shared the arrangement she and I had and how she was under my care permanently now and what her situation had been like beforehand. She told them about her mistreatment at her orphanage after she’d returned from her possession and how she’d been homeless until I’d taken her in. She shared the fears she’d grappled with, and still does, with the Lady Bone Demon still possibly being around to torment us. She even shared why she’d been training and that she had both mine and her powers.

By the time she was finished, she was completely drained and clinging to me like the small child she was. I cradled her in my arms and cooed to her to calm her down from her frazzled state.

This doesn’t change anything. You’re still Bai He and we’re always gonna care about you and support you, right Monkey King? Mk consoled her softly yet firmly so there was no room for doubt. When he’d looked to Wukong, Wukong was clearly taken off guard by being involved, but was quick to react.

Right. Plus, we’ve already confirmed a few times that she’s gone and you’re you. We’ll keep you and all your family safe this time. I knew we both desperately wanted to believe him.

You promise? She asked through tears, effectively breaking all our hearts in the process.

I promise. He spoke to her with warmth and finality that made me think he could actually keep that promise and I could tell that they believed it too.

When Bai He’s tears finally calmed down, I helped her clean her face and prepared to leave for the moon. It felt weird to leave after such an emotional moment, but I was told that it was okay and that they’d all be there and ready to talk more when I got back. Of course, that meant I’d have to give Wukong the rundown of care for my kids before I left. I told him how to take care of the boys if they couldn’t sleep in this new space, by singing them a lullaby and rocking them in his arms. How to prepare the meals I’d already put together to make things easier for him and so he wouldn’t be feeding them hair, and that they should still get their forehead kisses before they went to bed tonight. I got a few sappy aws from Mk on that one and I promptly rolled my eyes at him and carried on as if it didn’t happen.

I’d packed Bai He a few changes of clothes just in case and if they needed anything they could always text me or Tieshan since she’d had the most experience with handling the boys out of all my other friends and I didn’t want to leave all the issues of care on Bai He’s shoulders. I’d also told him that it was important not to yell at the boys or let Pollux get too overwhelmed since he will lash out if pushed too far past his limit and he doesn’t know his own strength yet. While I was on that point, I did request that Wukong help with their training since some of their powers would overlap with his, and by extension Mk, so it would be helpful if he was a part of the process. I knew I had powers in common with them as well, but there were still some things even I couldn’t do, and I didn’t want to limit them because of my own ego or pride.

Only when I was sure Wukong and Mk absorbed all of the information, did I feel like I could leave. I said my goodbyes to my kids, with a hug and a kiss to their foreheads, then said my goodbyes to Mk and Wukong with far less affection by giving them both an awkward pat on the shoulder. I summoned up everything I was going to bring with me then opened a portal to the moon. With one last wave of goodbye, I took my leave and trusted my kids in Wukong and Mk’s hands.

When I stepped through my portal and set foot on the moon, I couldn’t help noticing that I didn’t feel as drained as I normally do when I visit. It was a long distance and typically used up a lot of my power, so I was surprised that I didn’t feel like a husk when I got there. I wondered if it had anything to do with being fully alive again after so long. I knew I’d been feeling more energized than before and I’d only ever been here after I’d died, but I didn’t want to make any assumptions just yet.

As I was thinking, a small bunny mech ran into my ankle and as cute as it was, that still hurt like a bitch. Since when was there even a tiny version of those guys? Just as I was thinking that Chang’e appeared to pull me into a big, tight hug.

Mac! Ugh, it’s so good to see you. You have got so much to catch me up on. How have you not told me you had kids before? I thought we were friends. She squeezed me tighter in her arms, briefly lifting me off the ground.

We are! Most people are only finding out about them now. In some ways self-included.

I’m still offended. She huffed and set me back down. You didn’t even call me when the Lady Bone Demon came back. Oh, and by the by, I met Wukong and Mk. Mk was a cutie, but Wukong had some real nerve, showing up to my home and insulting cooking to my face. She complained with an obvious look of disdain that had me grinning like a fool.

What did you expect from the guy that eats his own hair? I spoke through a chuckle.

I thought he’d be more charming since you were soooo into him. Raise your standards a little girl. She playfully shoved me by my shoulder, and I rolled my eyes.

Yeah because the cooking thing was what was make or break for me. I told her sarcastically. She was already aware of everything that annoyed me about the man…and most of the things I liked about him, but that’s neither here nor there.

I think that’d be a make-or-break thing for a lot of people actually. You’ve just got a lot worse to deal with, but from the sounds of it you’re still into the guy. You have got to tell me about this. What’s the deal? Have you two been getting nice and cozy again? Forgiveness and love overflowing? She pumped her eyebrows and pressed into my personal space. I rolled my eyes again with a grin and shoved her good-naturedly.

You’re not getting that out of me until I’ve had at least one drink in me.

Well what are we waiting for? I have to know everything! She got behind me and started shoving me toward her home.

Alright, alright. So eager. You’re even worse than Bai He. I say that with nothing but affection.

Is that one of your kids? She gasped, bursting with excitement.

Yeah, it’s a long story.

I’ve got plenty of time. She ushered me into her home and sat me down at her everyday life kitchen counter. As she was settling into her own spot at the counter, I started pulling out the bottles of wine I’d brought for this evening. I knew where she kept her glassware and portaled two glasses into my hands and gently set them down for us. Oh and before we get to all the juicy details of your love life, I got hit in the head earlier. She said it as if it was just another tidbit of the day and gently moved her bangs out of the way so I could see the red mark on her forehead.

Are you okay? I asked her while slightly reaching toward her, but not reaching far enough to actually make contact with her forehead.

Yeah, but it was really weird. I was wondering if you could shed some light on this for me. She quickly pulled something out from a drawer in her counter and slammed it down on top of said counter. She didn’t take her hand away until moving it half an inch closer to me and I recognized it almost immediately. The ribbon had come undone, and the box wasn’t completely flush closed letting me know that she definitely saw what was inside of it. I stared at it in wide eyed horror and embarrassment.

Uh-

I was curious, you know? I mean I was just minding my business harvesting some of my crops and when I saw a portal open up, I thought you were coming by early, but wouldn’t you know it? This flies out and knocks me right in the head. Is this some kind of sign? Are you knocking my love life up here? I let her go on and silently poured myself a drink. I was still recovering from having that presented in front of me so suddenly and didn’t even know where to begin with how incriminating it looked. Even if I needed another one of these, I certainly didn’t need one that was monkey cop themed. I mean I could see the appeal for you, but I didn’t think you were that into the guy.

I did not buy that for myself. It was a gag gift from Spider Queen a while back. I mumbled into the rim of my drink, desperately wanting her to stop. Spider Queen had given it to me upon finding out how, in her words, pathetic my love life has been.

So your ex gave you a, ahem, ‘personal pleasure product’ of your other ex for fun? She was clearly amused by all this. Meanwhile my face was practically a degree away from being on fire. Yet I still felt the need to correct her.

Wukong and I never dated. I fiddled with my glass and avoided eye contact with her.

Not formally but like, functionally. She argued, but to me that still didn’t count.

That may be so, but I refuse to be a bitter ex cliche. I am more than just Wukong’s ex. And I’m more than just his sidekick damnit! I was still pissed about him saying that, but I couldn’t let him know that he got to me. He’d probably be a bigger dick about it.

Damn right you are! You do still have feelings for him though. She reached across the counter to pat my shoulder in a way I’m sure she thought would be reassuring. While I was glad, she was hyping me up, right now it didn’t feel as purely genuine as it usually does, given the topic.

Complicated feelings. I corrected her once again; all be it quietly.

Ah, but feelings nonetheless, but we are getting a little off topic. How did this end up on my moon? She picked up and waved it around in her hand and I stared into my drink.

Wukong and I were hanging out right up until I came here, and he saw it so…I panicked. I admitted then took another sip of my drink. I was tempted to chug it all, but I’d hate to waste good wine. I wonder if Chang’e had anything stronger to drink on hand?

Aw Macy baby there’s nothing to be so scared about. I’m sure he has some toys of his own. While I didn’t want to picture that, it was already too late. I was now forever cursed with the image of Wukong’s potential collection of sex toys. That’s just great.

First of all, ew. Second of all, I’m sure they’re not branded to be like my dick, and I never used that! I think I would die on the spot if I so much as considered using it on myself. I’d be so ashamed it would literally kill me again.

I would hope not! It fell out of the box, and I had to put it back in. Though if you had used it, I trust that you would have thoroughly cleaned it. She opened the box to look at it like it was an everyday object. I turned myself around in my seat so I wouldn’t accidentally see it. I didn’t know what it looked like since I never opened it, but I had a fresh memory of what Wukong’s junk looked like and I didn’t want to subconsciously compare the two.

Can we please stop talking about this? I brought up one of my hands to block the peripheral vision of my good eye.

Hmm, only one more thing about it. I could already tell I wasn’t gonna like whatever it was from her tone.

Fine. At the very least maybe talking about this might make talking about everything seem easy by comparison.

Did you want it back? Okay I wasn’t prepared for that. I honestly didn’t know how to answer that. Sure, it was mine, but it was a gag gift that I never used. I’d just put it back in my storage unit with everything else and occasionally dust off the box it was contained in. The idea of Chang’e potentially getting some mileage out of it didn’t sit well with me though and made me feel uncomfortable for reasons I couldn’t specify. Well? She prompted again, sounding as smug as ever, knowing that I was silently suffering over something she didn’t consider a big deal. We’d talked about all manner of things in the past ranging from E for everyone to rated R subjects. She was one of the few friends I had with whom I felt comfortable discussing more private and personal topics with and she knew it, but my internal conflict wasn’t just about how embarrassing this was. It was just a joke gift, of a sex toy for Monkey Cop, so why did I want to keep it?

I’m not gonna use it. I rationalized out loud.

So I can keep it? She asked, now sounding as cheeky as ever.

...No. What is wrong with me? I already threw it away so why do I want it back?

So you want Wukong’s dick?

Why are you like this? I groaned, took another sip of my drink and massaged my temple.

I mean that’s what you want to talk about isn’t it? That and the fact that you have kids apparently. The attitude in her voice made a thought occur to me.

...Are you still mad I didn’t tell you sooner? I looked over my shoulder at her and her smile looked crazy.

YES! One text Mac! One! She aggressively held up one finger at me and I couldn't help bursting into laughter. My previous embarrassment dwindled at the realization that she was just annoyed with me and pushing my buttons more than usually because of it.

Okay I’m sorry! If I ever have another kid, you’ll be the first to know about them. Will that make this better? I promised her through my laughs. I didn’t plan on having any other kids any time soon, but then again none of my kids were planned so who knows?

Hmm, a little bit, but I wanna be the first to know if anything actually happens between you and Wukong. Her smile was now less crazy and more mischievous. I think Bai He and Mei would like her.

Deal. There is so much I gotta tell you. Some of it’s weird, some of it a little romantic, but all of it has me very confused and conflicted. I fully turned back around in my seat and leaned my elbows on the counter to get closer to her. She did the same though she raised out of her seat as she exclaimed in excitement.

Hell yes! Finally!

Chapter 22: Gossip

Chapter Text

OH MY GOD YOU’RE JOKING!

NO I’M SERIOUS IT HAPPENED!

THAT’S SO CUTE YOU’RE BOTH SO DUMB AND CUTE UGH I LOVE IT!

One hour and a few glasses deep, I had told her all about most of the times Wukong and I had interacted, most of it was him being a little creeper, but I’d just gotten to when the two of us danced together and she’d literally squealed at the news. She knew of my struggle and how much I regretted never dancing with him when we were good from a couple of similar chitchats in the past and she was delighted for me.

It was so wonderful Chang’e, like everything I ever wanted. It was like the soul of my past self-ascended and it was so sweet that he was worried about messing things up. Then I was super nervous and he took the lead. It was so healing for my heart. Gods it was so comfortable to be held in his arms I’m such a mess. I rested my head in my hands, squishing my cheeks. I hadn’t gotten to talk about my feelings that day and remembering it now unfiltered made me feel almost as giddy as when it had happened. Having what was likely my only friend who approved of my feelings for the guy without question and even encouraged it wasn’t helping either.

No no, indulge the feelings, let your dreams come true! Case and point. She’s the best. Please tell me you kissed. My face flushed a deeper shade of red just picturing it. I didn’t want to have that thought in my head, but I was already thinking about how his lips would my feel against mine. Ugh I’m just gonna blame that on the alcohol and the company amplifying my feelings and intrusive thoughts.

What!? Of course not. We are nowhere near kissing territory…well not on the lips at least. I hid in my hands, making the tail end of my statement come out mumbled, but it wasn’t muffled enough for her not to hear it.

Please explain! She enthusiastically slapped at the table, jostling our glasses and the now empty bottle of wine and the second one we’d already started on. We may have drank too much too fast, but oh well.

Look, it's not a big deal. We gave each other forehead kisses once or whatever. I dropped one of my hands down onto the counter, revealing my shy smile and red face to her. I got to watch her eyes light up even brighter than before. Even I was aware I was downplaying it and the way it made me feel inside. All soft and bubbly and so, so stupid.

Bullsh*t it’s not a big deal! You two have been smooching all up on each other for the first time in centuries. It’s only a matter of time before you two start making out with each other again. She pursed her lips and made kissing noises at me while hugging herself. Real mature.

Chang’e stop, it’s not like that.

But he’s already watching his kids and pretty soon they’re gonna be calling him dad and you’re gonna be calling him daddy Wukong. That made every part of my body shudder in disgust. I don’t know if Bai He would ever say that, but if Castor and Pollux ever start calling him that, I wouldn’t have any problems, but I draw the line at me calling him that.

Gross Chang’e ew. I am not ever calling him daddy. So not my thing. I looked around the room as if anyone else might hear me, then shakily slid out of my seat to walk the short distance to her to whisper in her ear. Two of them are technically his kids too. She audibly gasped.

WHAT!? She yelled in a mix of shock and unadulterated delight with the news.

Shhuuush. Keep your voice down. I motioned with my hands to keep it down in a hushed voice.

Who would even hear us? Jade? Wu Gang? Who would they even tell? Despite her words she matched my tone and kept quiet.

Just keep it down. If we’re gonna talk about specifically their relationship to him and me for that matter.

Fine, fine, but you two were making babies this whole time and you didn’t tell me? You didn’t even tell me you were pregnant. Every time I swear.

Why does everyone assume I was pregnant? I whisper shouted at her and she snorted a laugh.

Can you really picture Wukong being pregnant? The drama. She snickered and rolled her eyes with clear amusem*nt.

Oh but you can picture me pregnant? I argued back, definitely not pouting might I add.

I think you’d drink that water on purpose or carry a baby just so you didn’t have to listen to Wukong complain about being pregnant. I did consider drinking from the mother child river once, but all my anxiety about being a parent and the dangers it would bring any of my potential children made me hesitate. Her argument about dealing with pregnant Wukong was also pretty sound. He would become a bigger drama queen than me or even Spider Queen. He’s already got a thing about his body not being what it was so I can only imagine what he’d be like with a baby bump. Not that I need to be thinking about any of this.

...Okay you have a point there, but neither of us were pregnant and we did not ‘make babies.’ What happened was… I told her everything from Nezha telling me about them, all the way up to me telling the others before I left. I told her more than I probably should have and wouldn’t have if I were completely sober, but I couldn’t take any of it back now. At least I knew she could keep a secret.

She was pretty quiet throughout my explanation of my cubs’ origins, only letting out tiny gasps at the more upsetting parts. When I was finished relaying their story to her she took in a deep breath, then a sip of her drink before setting it back down to pull me into another tight hug. I hugged her back and we silently embraced in a way not dissimilar to how I’d been with Bai He earlier.

If any celestial things they can try messing with my niece and nephews they’ve got another thing coming. She threatened seriously, and it made me feel so safe inside. I held her tighter, and she started to gently pet my head, carding her fingers through my fur.

Thanks Chang’e. I nestled into her shoulder. She always smelled so sweet and like freshly baked goods. It made her presence even more comforting than it already was to me or anyone else.

You never have to ask Mac. If you ever need anyone else to babysit for you or cook for them or take care of them, or if you need to know who the good celestials are, or just need to talk, I’m your girl. Her voice was soft as she spoke to me. It made me want to curl up into a ball and be cradled and cuddled.

You’re the best. I really meant that too. She was probably, legitimately my best friend out of all the people I’d met since my falling out with Wukong. She was my safe space and even if Wukong and I make up, she’s still gonna be my best friend.

I know I am. She slid out of her seat now and pulled back slightly from our hug. Now then, let's put a pause on the Wukong gossip. Tell me what those kiddos like, I wanna make them something delicious. Fondness radiated off of her in waves, warming my heart and making me smile with just as much fondness.

Sure. OH! I’m gonna text Mei. I offered to make her some giant food not that long ago, if that’s okay with you. I looked at the pocket I kept my phone in but didn’t make a move for it until I got an okay. She giggled at my small action then glided out of our embrace.

It’s no problem at all. I love cooking with you. She playfully shoved at my shoulder, knocking a soft giggle out of me.

Aww, same! I pulled out my phone as she went for her aprons for us.

Me: Yo Mei, it’s Macaque. I’m on the moon with Chang’e.

Me: If you want that giant food I promised now’s the time to ask.

It only took a few seconds for Mei to get back to me.

Mei: Whaaaaa?!?

Mei: Does everyone get to go to the moon but me?

Mei: :(

I snickered at her little frowny face.

Hey, how would you feel about me visiting you more often? When I asked her when she handed me the apron, she kept up here that was specifically meant for me. It was black with the word copycat and a small full moon beside it affectionately embroidered it in by her very hands. The copycat was in reference to her moon theme that she’d actually encouraged me to lean into, so I knew there was only love, care, and playful teasing behind it. The one she wore when I was around was similar, with its only difference being the name, the original, embroidered on it and her embroidery was colored yellow while mine was purple.

Are you kidding? I would love to see you more! It gets pretty lonely up here. She beamed at me, and I felt bad for not coming up here more. I’ve offered to take her off the moon before, but she’d always say she wasn’t ready yet. That didn’t deter me from always asking before I left.

And if I bring a friend? My voice went up at the end as if I was being cheeky for asking.

Even better! You better bring your little babies next time though. She threatened me with a whisk in her hand and a pout on her face, making me laugh.

I will, I will, I promise.

Me: I can bring you next time.

Mei: REALLY!? :D

Me: Yeah it’ll be easy.

Mei: f*ck YEAH!

Mei: Save my giant food till then. I wanna get to cook with Chang’e too and it sounds like fun. >:3

Me: Gotcha.

Me: I’m sure it’s not because you don’t know what you want yet.

Mei: Shhhhhh.

Mei: You don’t know.

Raincheck on the giant food, but I’d love to make something for my little ones with you. Wukong and Mk are gonna be there too when I get back if that matters. I put my phone away and finally put on my apron.

Mk was a real sweetheart when he was up here. I would love to and Wukong can get a little something, something too. As a treat.

How kind of you.

I know. We snickered together, and I rolled my eyes fondly.

Alright, so my babies. I said like I was gushing over them in a baby voice.

Your babies!

Bai He likes cheese and egg dishes a lot, Pollux, he’s one of the cubs, he has my craving for meat, but he really likes chicken and Castor has more of a pension for fruits and veggies. I haven’t figured out what he likes the most though. All of them will eat anything though. I counted on my fingers as I listed their likes.

Diverse.

Yeah, they’re pretty easy to cook for. I don’t think there’s anything they dislike yet. I should keep making them a variety of meals, so they don’t become picky eaters later down the line.

What about your darling lover? She cooed the words to me, rolling her rs making me roll my eyes.

Chang’e. I scolded her lightly, and she just snickered, waving me off.

Ah right, right. Your baby daddy? She pumped her eyebrows at me at, baby daddy. I visibly recoiled at the words even as my face burst into flames.

CHANG’E! I yelled at her in my flustered state, and she cackled at me.

Sorry, couldn’t help myself. You’re so easy to tease when it comes to him and now things aren’t as weird so I feel like I can do it more. Also, I mean come on you told me you two bathed together. She slid up beside me and wrapped her arm around my shoulders to bring me closer.

Which is a totally normal thing for monkeys. I reasoned with her, just as I have many times before.

Of course, but it isn’t totally normal for supposed enemies to rub each other down. She booped me on my snout with her pointer finger making my nose twitch.

You are so much worse than Bai He. At least she doesn’t make things sexual. I chose not to tackle her logic head on, knowing I’d probably just be digging my grave deeper that way.

Give her a few years. I think. I have no idea how old your kids are.

Bai He is ten. Castor and Pollux are twins so they’re three.

Aw they really are your babies. So cute. How’s single fatherhood?

Stressful…but having the help is really nice. I have no idea how Wukong is doing with babysitting right now. I really hoped the kids were okay. Poor boys haven’t been away from me since everything with the Lady Bone Demon so I’m a little worried about them. At least they’ve got Bai He to reassure them and they seem pretty comfortable with Wukong and Mk. I’m sure they’ll be fine.

I’m sure he’s fine, but speaking of help, where’s my other favorite guy? She pressed her head into the side of my face, squishing it uncomfortably.

Oh right. I guess he was good enough. I summoned my main shadow clone, who was already fitted with their own apron and was pulled into a similar hold as I was by Chang’es free arm. My shadow’s tail wagged upon seeing her again. Of course, we both missed her. We’re both me and I missed her terribly.

There we go. Now that the gang's all here, let’s get cooking!

Together the three of us got to work making boxed meals for my kids that could be easily reheated to have the same taste as when they were freshly made. As we worked, my clone and I shared more about how things have been going for me while Chang’e shared more about her and added little comments here and there as we spoke.

She lost it when I told her Wukong and I cuddled last night and I woke up in his arms. My clone didn’t help matters when they told her how warm and safe it made me feel, not that she shamed me for it. She was just happy for me. She knew how hard it was for me to feel like I’ve moved on from my romantic feelings for the guy and how much I still missed our friendship anyways even when I was furious with him so hearing that we were connecting again made her incredibly excited for me. Her happiness made me feel all giddy inside even if I know deep down I shouldn’t. There was still so much left unsaid between us and so much about him that still pisses me off. I know he told me he didn’t mean to hurt me, but I couldn’t accept that, not yet at least.

We hurt each other and I knew there was plenty of intention behind our aggression. It was easy to fall back into our old dynamic now that tensions weren’t as high as they used to be. Plus, with all the reasons pulling us back into each other’s presence, it was getting harder to remind myself of how he’d treated me in the past. We used to be closer than close, blurring the line between friendship and romance, but that didn't stop either of us from what we’d done. What’s to keep us from doing that song and dance all over again? I can’t risk that, now when I’ve got people relying on me to take care of them.

You’re overthinking this. My clone thought to me, and I rolled my eyes. Sometimes I can’t believe you’re me. I thought back, and they whacked me with their tail. The feeling is mutual. You came up here to talk about your feelings and now you’re suppressing them again. It’s okay to like the guy. Hardly. He’s a creepy weirdo who doesn’t understand anything about boundaries and could turn on me whenever he feels like he’s lost interest. Do you really believe that? You’ve changed plenty already so why don’t you think he has too? I mean you’ve gone out of your way to apologize to the others. That isn’t something you would have done in the past and we can’t forget all the times you’ve thought of yourself as going soft. He’s gone soft in more ways than one. Hey don’t make fun of him for being less ripped. See! You care enough to defend him.

You two are doing that thing aren’t you? What are you hiding? She pointed a knife between us with her eyes squinted in suspicion.

Nothing. I told her, very inconspicuously.

How he’s a slave to his forbidden love for Wukong. My clone crossed their arms as they spoke flatly and completely unimpressed with me. The two of us would need to have another talking to about this.

Are you brooding Macy baby? She got into my space, setting her knife down first before she started critically examining me.

I wouldn’t say brooding. I crossed my arms and I did not pout at the dig.

It’s brooding honey. You know it’s totally fine to indulge your feelings sweetie, especially now. You’re both stable, you’re on equal footing and independent, not in your most toxic era, got your own friends. I think now might be the best time for you to indulge a little and live your second chance at life. She grabbed me by my face, squished my cheeks and pressed out foreheads together, forcing me to look her in the eyes as she reasoned to me with genuine care for my wellbeing.

That’s exactly why I can’t. I don’t want to mess anything up now that I’ve finally gotten my sh*t together. Alright now I knew I was pouting as I sank into her hands and held them with my own.

But life is messy! You and Wukong have some of the messiest lives I’ve ever seen. I knew she didn’t mean it in a mean way, but that still stung a bit.

Thanks. I told her in a monotone voice and felt my clone’s hand on my back only to lean in and speak into my ear.

She’s kinda right.

Hush you. Chang’e scolded my clone lightly as I glared at them as best as I could with my head pretty much locked in place. My point is, you two deserve some happiness in your lives and if a little bit of loving makes you happy then I think you should go for it. She slowly pulled me into another hug and nuzzled our cheeks together affectionately.

Assuming he even feels the same way. My voice came out slightly muffled from my face being squished, but no less flat and doubtful.

Really?My clone pressed their face against my other cheek, squishing my face further in offended astonishment at my doubts. When he says it, I feel more called out.

See even you know deep down he does. You have a second chance, and you could, if you really want to, spend it together. You could be official this time around. She leaned out of our embrace then held me by my shoulders with her eyes sparkling with wonder I wished I had.

Why would he want that? Why would I want that? I still defended myself despite knowing where this would go already, whether I liked it or not.

Because he’s been actually reliable, consistent, and helpful lately. He’s been great moral support, you’ve been grooming each other again, the dance and the cuddling he didn’t oppose at all. Where Chang’e backed off, my clone zeroed in on me with their accusations and supposed proof that I try my best to rationalize away somehow.

Take it easy, we don’t want to scare him. You can take it one day at a time at least. Process your feelings and go with the flow a little or maybe put it on pause until you’re sure your kiddos are safe and sound. You do what you’re comfortable with because I get it. It’s hard to trust him again after everything, but it’s been centuries. You’ve both grown a lot I’m sure and you’ve been interested enough in what that time has done to him to let him be close again. So close you’re trusting him to watch your kids and keep them safe. I’m not saying that means you love him, but I do think you at least want to give your connection another shot.

Maybe you’re right. She is. I will unsummon you.

She really did have a point. I did want to be friends with him again and have him back in my life. It was nice, if a little scary, having him around. He’s still super weird and needs to work on his social skills and apologize for more than a few things, but I’m not that different from him. I was going around and apologizing to everyone, I was figuring out my place in my old relationships, and my new ones. Despite how old we were, we still had a lot of growing to do in our lives, but I could admit that we’ve changed, at the very least. I want to know who he is now, after all this time. I want to know what we could be, but I wasn’t sure if that was okay.

Of course I am, but no matter what I get to stay the new best buddy. She grinned smugly, knowing damn well there wasn’t any question about that.

Obviously. That ship sailed a long time ago for him. He’s in like 7th, maybe 8th place? There’s Chang’e, Tieshan, Jin and Yin, Yuanhou, Red Butt, Spider Queen, ugh, DBK? It’s not a long list, but they all still mean a lot to me in their own unique ways. I think that mattered way more than having a bunch of meaningless connections.

Then my spot is secure. She hugged me tight again and I clung to her as my mind raced. I really did care about Wukong and seeing him care about my wellbeing could get a little unnerving at times. It was nice to have, but I knew how he could get and how single minded he could get. How single minded I could get.

...Chang’e, do you think Wukong, and I are gonna be okay? Really? Like I know, I know, you’ve been really supportive and everything and I love that! I just don’t know if I trust it. It’s so easy to want to fall back into what we were, but that’s not good for us. I don’t want to be some guy idolizing him and going along with whatever, he wants, putting aside my concerns and going along with his ambitions. I don’t want to trail behind him only to lag behind…to get left behind. I don’t want to lose myself in my love for him. I was obsessed and I don’t want to be that guy again. That guy, the people we were, destroyed us. I sank more of my weight against her. I’d spoken in a hushed tone as I reflected on our past selves. The thought of falling back into the people we used to be, haunted me whenever we got closer. I know he’s made excuses to be around me so as much as I like to deny how he might feel about whatever us was right now, I knew he must feel similarly. Then again, he might not be overthinking it as much as I was. He was always more of a go with the flow kind of guy so there’s a chance he’s just been letting things unfold as we go.

... My clone didn’t have anything to say, and I could tell they were looking to Chang’e for guidance. I had a feeling it was because I was actually being honest with myself, so he had nothing else to work with because of it. Thankful they didn’t have to when Chang’e pulled back again to look at me.

I can’t say it’ll never happen again 100 percent, but I can promise to smack you if I start seeing the signs. Her smile was small and nervous and yet.

That’s honestly more reassuring than you know. The idea of having someone who will knock some sense into me if they see me slipping is actually really nice. I’m sure Tieshan would do the same without hesitation now that I think about it. I don’t even think I’d have to ask.

Seriously though, I don’t think you have to be too worried about that. As big as your crush is for the guy, I think you’re past your obsession phase. LBD is gone so your head is clear, you’ve got a job and kids to worry about, a good support system that doesn’t overlap with his. I don’t think you’re gonna become borderline dependent on him again or make him your whole world again. Plus, he went on a whole arc without you, and he’s got his own friends, an adorable student, and you’ve got your own places. Even if you break up, you’d both recover without getting a bunch of other people involved again. Yeah, we could have handled a lot of things better and we’re still trying to make up for all that.

Thanks for the reminder. Internally I was cringing at my past actions. I really lost my head for a while there. I’m only getting the chance to recover fully now and I couldn’t be happier.

No problem. Also, he knows what his feelings for you were back then now so he’ll probably know what they are if they develop again so you can’t get away with your ‘totally platonic best friend kisses’ again.

I still can’t believe he brought that up. I’d felt like I was going to combust when he’d said it and recall him being in a similar state. It was funny that the two of us had the same reaction to hearing that.

He’s been thinking about it. Could be a sign? A sign of what exactly? I don’t know, something? Aggressive.

Maybe, right? Chang’e wondered too, sounding hopeful.

Maybe he’s just feeling stupid in hindsight. I had to add my splash of pessimistic realism.

Maybe he regrets not getting the chance to kiss you when you were both completely aware of the context…Hey what would it take for you to get together anyways?

Excuse me? I was completely blindsided by her question and how casually she’d asked it. I had to ask to be sure I heard her correctly.

I’m curious. We’ve been talking about a lot of hypotheticals tonight so I wanna know. What would it take for him to win you over? I…I guess that’s fair?

Hmmm. I never really thought about it before. What would it take? Well, to start, he would have to initiate.

Really? She sounded astonished by that idea, but it seemed obvious to me.

Yeah. I had to initiate everything before to try and be romantic. I had to feel what it was like to take those leaps only for him to not get it completely. Then even though he clearly enjoyed all our kissing and cuddling he never kissed me first. It was always me starting it or him asking me to kiss him. It’s his turn to make a move on me! I decided to really lean into the idea as I thought about it. There was plenty that frustrated me in our past relationship that I’d kept quiet about, the indicating being a big one. Then he’d want to go further, but never commit to what we were first, so we only ever went as far as kissing. He never even asked me to be his mate. Asshole.

Yeah! My clone hyped me up to continue, feeling my inner frustration.

And you know what? I don’t want it to be one of his big, boastful Monkey King bullsh*t with all showing off trying to prove himself or whatever. I’d want it to be just me and him having a quiet, peaceful moment together and it’d be intimate and romantic as f*ck! Never liked his parties or his big displays of power. Back then all I wanted from him was him, no more no less. We could have been doing any little thing and I would have said yes to being his mate. All he had to do was ask. I know he didn’t know it was romantic before, but there were so many signs. Hell, he knew well enough that what we were doing wasn’t completely platonic since he’d want to f*ck. Ugh that man.

Heck yeah! You want him to be all classy and sh*t, eheh.

Uh huh. He’d have to treat me like a gentleman. I’d wanna be cuddled and held all gently and sweetly. I wanna feel all important and cherished. I gushed, briefly getting lost in the idea only to be ripped out of the fantasy.

So if he kissed you while you were dancing what would you have done? She’d asked me through snickers, and she was quickly joined by my clone.

Die happy probably.

...

Would you have liked it!? She practically screamed in giddy astonishment.

I don’t know, maybe? I was pretty deep in the past at the time. I don’t even know what I’d feel right now. Panic probably. Things are already complicated enough, but it’d probably bring up a bunch of feelings to make things more complicated or maybe less? I’ve got no f*cking clue. Maybe I would have died on the spot? My brain would have stopped working without a doubt.

I know I’d enjoy it. I glared at him.

Well we know you would. You made out with one of his clones, so you don’t count. She casually dismissed him, and I was reeling from that memory getting dredged up and thrown in my face so blatantly, but it made another thought pop into my mind.

You know I don’t think I’ve gotten to see any of his clones since we started talking again. I definitely haven’t seen that clone. I assume he got in just as much trouble as you did. The memory of when we’d discovered the two of them was burning into my mind forever. My face started to warm as I thought about it. I never see myself making out with Wukong in the third person, or to share that experience with Wukong himself. We’d screamed at them and we’d both agreed not to talk about it and our fight that day ended there. So obviously I had to share that with Chang’e just to process what the f*ck happened that day.

There’s a strong possibility of that. I miss them. He swooned with a sigh and starry eyes as they thought about him. I know he was essentially my subconscious, but I wish that didn’t include my complicated feelings for Wukong.

I’m sure you do, traitor. I glared at him even harder.

You’d enjoy it. His arms were so strong and warm when he held me. They hugged themself and sighed dreamily while I groaned in embarrassment.

Aww that sounds so nice. Chang’e cooed, worsening the heat that was rushing to my face and ears.

Sure it does, but it’s only a thought. It’s not like it’ll ever happen. Things have been better between us, and I’ve been enjoying our time together despite all his weird sh*t. I just don’t think it’s in the cards for us. My ears drooped at my own words. Everything is still too complicated to consider anything romantic with him and traversing a new friendship has been weird enough as is. I’ve got kids to consider in this too. If it was just me, then maybe I’d consider it a more viable option. Messing with Wukong got me in serious trouble this year and I was terrified for my boys when I’d gotten home. I don’t think I could handle them potentially getting caught in between us if anything went south again.

That’s okay. Keep an open mind and who knows what’ll happen. Now, think you can open a portal to send these to your kids? She patted me on the back and swiftly changed the topic. I assume it was because she could sense that I was reaching my emotional limit on most things Wukong. She always had a knack for bringing me right to the edge of my comfort zone and reeling me in before things got out of hand.

I thought we were going to give it to them later?

I know, but I’m curious about another thing. You don’t look as drained as you usually do, and our little buddy is pretty solid without me having to lend you any energy. I wanna see how much power you’ve got left in the tank. I did notice that when I got here. Normally on my visits I’d spend the night here at least then get some energy from Chang’e to have enough in me to get back down to earth safely, but right now I felt like I could do it on my own without much worry.

I guess I could try. I’m gonna text Wukong to make sure I’ve got a clear spot to put them. I didn’t want to portal in the food in a way that would just ruin them if it knocked into anything.

Cool! I’m gonna write them little notes then. She pulled out a sharpie and some post-it notes from her junk drawer.

Oh, I wanna write something too. They joined her and grabbed a pen from the same drawer. The two of them put the specially made boxes of food on the counter and labeled them as they made individual notes to my little ones as well as Wukong and Mk.

Cute. I spoke mostly to myself as I pulled out my phone to message Wukong with a small smile on my face.

Me: Hey dingus.

Me: How’s it going down there?

He took a couple of minutes to respond so I doodled little pictures of myself on the notes as well, just like Bai He and Mk did for me.

Wukong: Fine! Great even

A little suspicious, but I could be reading into that.

Me: Are you sure?

Wukong: Yep!

Wukong: Relax, I’ve got this.

Wukong: Why?

Okay, definitely suspicious.

Me: I was just checking in.

Me: I was going to send down a couple of things Chang’e and I cooked up and wanted to know if your table was clear.

Wukong: Should be.

Wukong: Hey.

Wukong: For like no reason at all.

Wukong: How would YOU calm down a crying baby?

Me: Excuse me?

Me: Do I need to come back down there?

Wukong: NO NO NO!

Wukong: Everything is fine, it’s fine.

I decided to text Mk instead.

Me: Mk what the hell is going on down there?

Mk: Castor and Polly were getting sleep and miss you so they’re whining.

Aw that sounds cute…too cute.

Me: Bai He what’s going on down there?

Bai He: Monkey King is making a bunch of monkey noises I do not understand, and Castor and Polly are making really high chitters.

I sighed and started rubbing my eyes. These guys I swear.

Everything alright?

Yeah, yeah everything’s okay. Give me a second.

Me: Okay Bai He. I need you to listen to me.

Bai He: Okay.

Me: Get their blankie and Pollux’s monkey. If that doesn’t work, tell him to sing to them until they settle down. It’s been a while since I’ve been away from them so make sure they know I’ll be back soon.

Me: And tell him to give them plenty of nuzzles and kisses on the head. They already trust him, so they’ll seek comfort from him like they do with you.

Bai He: Okay, I’ll let him know.

Me:Thank you. Love you Bai He

Bai He: I love you too Baba.

Bai He: Eheheheh :)

Me: Keep me posted and let me know if I need to come home early.

Bai He: b^.^d

Sooo? Chang’e questioned, not wanting to be left on the hook.

Wukong’s struggling down there with my boys. Hopefully, Bai He can help keep things together. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m gonna draw something for my babies. I took a few post its and started making my way toward her bedroom.

You’re not gonna draw here? Her disappointment was obvious, and I did my best not to laugh. She knew how I felt about the act of drawing and doing this at all felt like a big step for me.

No. My drawings are private.

I’m gonna see them one day. She recovered from her disappointment and quickly moved on to determination.

Don’t bet on it. That made me laugh out loud while Chang’e gasped and pouted, exaggerating her offense to the tenth degree.

Dang even you?

Sorry Mooncakes, you know how he is with this.

I know, I know. Maybe one day. She huffed, maintaining her pout.

We live forever so who knows. There’s a non-zero chance. I comforted her while I hovered in the threshold between the hall and her room.

So there’s a non-zero chance you and Wukong will eventually work this out then too? She was always so hopeful at every turn, but I guess she had a point. Sure, there could be infinite possibilities for things to get worse, they could always get better too.

...Yeah, yeah, I guess there is.

Chapter 23: Babysitting

Chapter Text

Wukong’s P.O.V. Right After Macaque Left

WhenMacaque disappeared through his portal a brief silence followed in his absence.I was left holding his littlest cubs in my arms, or should I say our cubs?Uh, still figuring thatone out. Thelittlest cubs in my arms, and they looked to me with those big, adorable eyesof theirs wondering the same thing. What now?Which I didn’t have an answer to, so I looked to Mk only to find the samequestion reflected in his eyes.

It’sbeen a long time since I’ve had to take care of cubs like them. They neededmore care than the monkeys that remained on the mountain, I knew that much.They were already clothed, and we ate earlier. They probably didn’t need to napuntil later. I was pretty sure they were already potty trained, and Macaquetold me they could be pretty independent, so they’d probably tell me if theyneeded anything right? That just leaves entertainment, right?

Youhave no idea what you’re doing, do you? Bai He questioned me withthis smug, knowing smirk that reminded me so much of Macaque I swear it causedme psychic damage.

Ido! I’m just, uh, trying to decide on what to do first! Yeah, I’msure that sounded convincing.

Mhm.How about this? You tell me stories about Mister Macaque from when you too were‘friends’ and maybe show me the spots he usedto like. I think that could be fun. She helpfully suggested, but Iknew better than to trust that it was a completely innocent request. The kidwas just as scheming as Macaque was and she would no doubt use whatever I saidto her advantage…Am Ireading into this too much? She’s like a child.

Sure,but no funny business got it? I shifted my hold on the little ones soI could hold them in one arm and waggle my finger at her in warning.

Nopromises. She grinned deviously and snickered in the same way. I hadto wonder if she was already like this or if being around Macaque for so longmade her this way?

What’sthe worst she could do? Judge you? Mk teased me and pouted at him. Ithought he’d be more on my side, but I should have known better. Him and Meiloved to mess with me these days.

Iguess. Shecould tell Macaque. That would be way worse. I had no idea what she could get out of me, and healready made it pretty clear that he didn’t want her to know anything about ouractual relationship back then. I still didn’t understand why he was so adamantabout it or why he insisted that we weren’t together. Sure, I never asked himto be my mate and sure we were never officially together, butwe were exclusive with our affection we showed each other, and we even toldeach other I love you…GodsI was so dense.

Areyou gonna tell us what the heck happened between the two of you to make you allpissed at each other in the first place. Mk asked, and I really didnot want to get into that. It wasn’t something I was comfortable sharing on agood day let alone when there were a bunch of children around who didn’t needto hear all the violent details. Before I could tell him that I didn’t want toget into it right now, Bai He chimed in.

Ialready know about all that. I wanna know the nice stuff, not the darkstuff. She dismissed the idea with ease while I was still processingwhat she’d just said. Could Macaque have told her about what happened? No way,I’ve seen his plays recently and they wouldn’t be that graphic. At most he’dallude to it, but he wouldn’t go into detail about it, or at least Ihope.

Whatdo you mean by that? I asked her slowly and she gave me a flat,unimpressed look. She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes then enlightenedme.

Isaw a lot of things when she was around. She did a lot of terriblethings and I saw the way she messed with both your heads, so I caught enoughglimpses of the bad stuff to piece things together. I’d rather hear why you twowere even friends in the first place because I don’t get it so far.She said it all like it was the most obvious thing in the world and not the unnervingtruth that it was. I can only imagine the horrible images she must have beenexposed to from that, but it added to why she probably doesn’t like me thatmuch. If she knew what I’d done to her baba combined with her own experienceswith me then she had more than enough reason to not trust me.

Iglanced at Mk who only looked more confused by her words, then to the boys inmy arms and I was struck with thoughts of the past. For a second, they lookedjust like their father. The black fur that Pollux gave himself wasn’t helpingmatters, especially when his mask pattern was the same color as his too. Theyreminded me of a simpler time. One with a softer Macaque, with more innocenceand youthful naivete from the both of them. I thought I could take on anythingback then. Thought everything I was doing was for the better. What a fool I hadbeen.

Now,with these young cubs in my arms, guilt swirled in the pit of my stomach asthat same protectiveness I felt for him bubbled up inside me. I wanted to keepthem safe, but I was useless the last time I tried. I made everything worse formy friends and myself. What if I end up getting them hurt too?

MonkeyKing? Mk’s voice snapped me out of my doubts. I wondered when he’dgotten so close or when he’d placed his hand on my shoulder. I’ve failed himbefore too, and Bai He, all of them I’ve let down in one way or another, butnot again. Not this time.

I’mfine, bud. Just thinking. Sorry about everything back then Bai He. I can’timagine what that must have been like. I knelt down to be at eyelevel with her as I apologized to her. I could tell from the look on her facethat the gesture made her tense.

Idon’t like to think too deeply about it. It’s a part of why I’d like to hearsomething nice. Even though I knew she was downplaying how itactually made her feel, it didn’t feel like my place to call her out on it. Itdidn’t really feel like a good time either. I’d just have to tell Macaque aboutthis when he got back. For now, I could indulge her in something she feels likecould help. It could be nice taking a stroll down memory lane with them andmaybe I’d get to make some new memories with all of them.

Okaykid. Why don’t I tell you what happened after we met for the firsttime. I slowly stood up straight again and steadied myself with mytail. I already had the perfect place in mind to bring them all.

Yesplease! Bai He excitedly clapped her hands together.

Great,so it happened a couple of weeks after our initial meeting…

Thoughthe memories were far away I could still recall them as if they’d happened justyesterday. He and I actually had a few brief run ins before he accepted being apart of my kingdom. I loved the small encounters we had that gave me snippets ofan idea of what he was like. I would catch him in his shadow form keeping cubsout of trouble and observing our gatherings from a distance. It was nice seeinghow much he cared about the others, and I loved the bits of banter we’dexchange before he was brought in by Red Butt who was annoyed by our little‘intruder.’ I was still fairly sure he let himself be captured by them, butwe’d both gotten a kick out of Red Butt’s reaction when I told him to let themgo.

Afterthat day Macaque had become an official part of my kingdom and he was welcomedinto my inner circle with Red Butt, Yuanhou, my generals and my marshals. I canstill remember the smile he had on his face at our banquet in his honor. He’dbeen so flustered by all the attention, and he needed a minute to himself whenthe sounds overwhelmed him after a while. I went with him, and we got to talkfor the first time one on one without it being a fleeting moment. He wasstandoffish at first, but after a while of a similar trend of the two of usgetting to spend time together while everyone else was busy, we got closer, andhe got more comfortable with me. He trusted me and I trusted him…I missit.

Iknew that I cared about him a great deal back then, but I had no concept ofwhat I was feeling. When we were together it felt like we could take on theworld and the first time I saw him get hurt, really hurt I freaked. I always thought of us as equals so I’dforgotten that his body wasn’t as resistant to damage as mine was. Even if hewas more cautious, more careful than I was, he could still get caught offguard, but he didn’t have the same layer of protection as I did. I wanted tochange that, I wanted to protect him and before I knew it, that desire consumedme. I’d never had anyone so close to me before and I wanted to do everything inmy power to keep them safe, keep them close. All that worry ever led us to wasruin and even if I knew we both f*cked things up, I can’t help blaming myselffor it more, but that doesn’t excuse all the sh*t he pulled afterward and heknows it. Although he was trying to make amends for thatand it’s making me feel like I should have given out more apologies than Ihave.

Youdon’t say? Bai He interrupted me with her arms crossed and anunimpressed look on her face. There had been parts of my story that I’domitted, but there were parts that I’d only mumbled under my breath. I shouldhave known anyone living with Macaque would have sharpened their sense ofhearing. I wonder ifthat’s a side effect of his powers or from his quieter lifestyle?

Wellum, yeah, I could be doing better with that. I feel like there are some peoplewho are still upset with me? Mei was high on that list for sure.She’d really laid into me when the Samadhi fire nearly killed us all and wehaven’t gotten the chance to really talk about it. She wasn’t wrong withanything she said and maybe I was falling back into some bad habits back then.Things could have gotten much worse than they had because of me and if itweren’t for Macaque saving Mk we could have been in an even worse position.

Youalready apologized to Mk and semi apologized to me so you’re on the right trackat least. I felt a bit of sarcasm in her words and couldn’t helpasking.

Semiapologized? She leveled me with that same unimpressed look of hersand raised a brow as if to say, really? You don’t know?Which was slowly getting to me, and I don’t know why. There was just somethingabout it that rubbed me the wrong way.

Doyou really want to get into that right now? Because I don’t. Her eyesnarrowed at me in a glare. Youknow what? It’s not worth it right now.

O-kay.I brushed it off. I’m sure she’s got her reasons for being less than pleasedwith me and I honestly don’t blame her.

Youcould always try joining us when we help Macaque with his apologies and all thepeople that deserve one. Mk offered hopefully, but I’m pretty sureMacaque is gonna get genuinely angry eventually if I keep barging into his homeuninvited by him.

Maybeyou could even finally apologize to each other too. Bai He spoke outthe side of her mouth. Again, I don’t like her tone, but she did have a point.I have been wondering if an apology would come to me after all this since hewas trying his best to make amends. If that happened, what would I do? Do Ieven wait for an apology? I could kick things off with something small, butI’ve been lectured in the past for apologizing just to expect one back. Would Iapologize if he did the same? I know a spiteful part of me wouldn’t want to,especially since a lot of stunts he’s pulled are still relatively recent in thegrand scheme of things, but I’m so tired of all the fighting. I would love itif we could just be okay again without any of the awkwardness and weirdundertones that would pop up in my head, in our heads, I’m sure. I know anapology wouldn’t solve all of that, but it’d go a long way in the recovery ofour relationship. Things have already been going pretty well, it’s possiblethat any potential apology would only bolster whatever momentum we’ve got goingeven further.

I’llhave to think about it, but no promises. We’re not here to talk about all thatanyways. We’re here to talk about this! While I’d been regaling themall with the tales of our youth, I’d lead them down the mountain to a secretalcove that housed the old lodgings of a certain six eared hermit. The home wassmall, but preserved with their magic so it stood the test of time. Of course,that same magic kept me from being able to enter the home for a very long time. It didn’t keep me fromtending to the wilderness that surrounded it and I was fortunate enough thatthe kids did not know that fact or know to question me as to why thatwas.

Whatis this? Another one of your many homes you have, like, everywhere?Mk questioned with a teasing lit to his voice. Honestly, I didn’t have thatmany different homes. Just my shack, and my shame temple, and all the manyrooms inside the mountain, but those don’t count individually at least.

Didyou bring us here to show off or something? Bai He joined in on Mk’steasing and I was beginning to think the only ones who were going to be nice tome today were the cubs that had left my arms to use my body as their own personaljungle gym now that they were comfortable.

Ahm,no I didn’t come here to show off. Though I did build the place so you could say I’mshowing them my work.And it isn’t mine. It’s Macaque’s, or at least it was his place whenhe still lived here. It’s still the same way he left it, but that’s onlybecause I can’t get inside.

Sowe are here to just look at ahouse. Bai He grinned, clearly amused by the situation.

Whycan’t we go inside? Mk asked, already trying to approach the door. Istopped him by grabbing him around his waist with my tail and pulling him back.I was fairly certain that Macaque’s spell was made to react very poorly to myown and Mk would probably have the same issue I had of being catapulted awaywith extreme force. Though he didn’t know this, so he looked at me veryconfused by my actions.

Wellwhen he left here, he covered his house in his magic to keep it safe and keepany intruders out. I could try to force my way in, but that might damage the place,so I haven’t tried it. Trying to get in normally only made me leavean impression in a rock about a mile away.

...CanI try? Bai He piped up while looking at her hands then to the houseand back again. I hummed to myself in thought and used my gold vision to checkher progress. I could see the recognizable purple energy swirling around insideof her. It’s grown a decent amount since the last time I’d seen it and itthinly coursed through her limbs. I could also see the way it interacted withthe remnants of the Lady Bone Demons power. They didn’t mix inside her, insteadthey repelled each other like magnets do, but Macaque’s energy nearlysurrounded it as if it was trying to contain it. Interesting. I’ll have to discuss that with Macaque later, especiallysince it could signify a potential internal conflict within her own mind that’skeeping them from joining. For now, I had to answer her question. It wasn’t aterrible idea and at the very least it shouldn't repel her like it would Mk andI and I wasn’t sure how it would react to Castor and Pollux since they were amix of us.

AsI thought that I looked down at them and noted that now that their glamourswere off, Macaque’s powers weren’t completely masking my own that swirledthrough them. Unlike Bai He, our powers were coiled together in one cohesivemesh that coursed through them and passively made them radiate their own faintauras. Pollux’s was only slightly muted from the glamour he’d placed onhimself, but I could tell that Castor contained more energy reserves than hedid anyways from the more pronounced color in his aura that he produced. I’mguessing that, while Pollux has more physical strength than his brother, Castorwould have more magical strength.

Youknow what? Be my guest. I finally told her when I’d snapped out of mythoughts. I let her cautiously approach the door and I stood behind her just incase the spell rejected her like it does me anyways. I do not want to explain to Macaque why his cublooked like she’d been hit by a truck whenever he got back.

Weall watched her curiously as her hand reached for the door. Since I neverstopped using my gold vision, I could see the spell that cloaked the home. Itwisped off the door as if it were alive and had faintly danced around her. Themoment her hand touched the door knob the energy parted for her, and the doorcreaked open. It worked!

Itworked! Bai He cheered my exact thoughts and turned to us with abeaming smile.

Iknew you could do it kid. I lied through my teeth, but she didn’tneed to know that.

Sooothis means we get to go inside riiight?Mk grinned, bumping into my space, and waiting for my response.

You’renot the only ones dying to see what’s in there.

Heckyeah! Bai He exclaimed and rushed inside with Mk quickly followingsuit. Even Castor hopped off of me to join them, leaving Pollux to look me upand down, waiting for me to move.

Alrightlittle man, let’s go. His tail swayed, and he chirped at me inresponse and for the first time in centuries I was allowed to cross thethreshold of Macaque’s old home.

Theinside was just as I remembered it, for the most part. Minimalist furniture,made by me of course, stolen quilted blankets and pillows that were made intonests we use to cuddle in together. Portraits were hung on his walls along withpoems they enjoyed, all perfectly preserved by his spell. Some were drawn byhim, but most of them were made by me.

Isthis what mister Macaque used to look like? Bai He asked, looking upat a portrait of the two of us. He looks so… Her handtrailed along the high up picture’s edge as she went quiet.

Happy.Mk finished when he joined her. It wasn’t a photograph, those hadn’t beeninvented yet and anything traditionally thought of as a photograph in here wasmade of my hair like they were in my shame temple. No, they were looking at aportrait I painted of us all. It was one I’d done a little after building hishouse. I think it was meant to be a commemoration and a reminder that he had aplace here. We thought that would never change back then. Honestly, I wasn’tsure if it did. It was strange looking at it now after all this time. It wasbittersweet, like looking into a window of the past and getting a brief glimpseat the innocence we used to have. I miss it.

PrettyMama! Castor giggled, having climbed up Mk’s body to get a betterlook at the picture. Uncle Red Butt! Uncle Figgy! Hisamusem*nt snapped me out of my soured mood and managed to get a laugh out ofme. I could safely assume that Figgy was Yuanhou, but I wasn’t sure why theywere calling him that.

RedButt? Bai He questioned, having also been snapped out of her thoughtsby Castor.

He’sMahou, the Red Buttocked Horse Monkey, but Macaque always used to call him RedButt since he used to call him the Six Eared Macaque before we knew who hewas. I told them without thinking. It was pretty fun when Macaque startedcalling him that, but he sure didn’t like it. The nicknames stuck from a mix ofstubborn pettiness and teasing. Eventually they became affectionate between us,with me being the Stone Monkey and Yuanhou being the Long-Armed Gibbon. It’sstill odd to me knowing that Mihou mostly goes by his title now.

Is…Isthat not his name? Mk asked, visibly confused and it dawned on methat very few people actually knew he had any other name at this point. Bai Hewas looking at me with a similar amount of confusion.

Uh,well no actually. I admitted to them, and I had just enough time tocover Pollux’s ears before they both erupted in shouts.

WHAT!?!They both yelled at me, making the two little cubs chirp and complain at thesudden loud noise.

Shush,be a little more sensitive to the little ones, would ya? I scoldedthem then gently cooed to Pollux to calm him down.

Sorryguys. Bai He apologized in a whisper and the brothers were alreadychirping their forgiveness.

Ifthat’s not his name then what is? Mk asked and gently scratched underCastor’s chin as another form of apology. They cooed appreciatively andchittered in annoyance when he stopped.

I’mnot gonna tell you that. I mean he’s gone by Macaque for forever now so itis his name now, basically. Ihad a feeling I’d be in trouble with him if I told them. If he finds out Ibrought them here I would already be in for an earful…I wonder if I can bribe them for their silence?

Okaythen why did he change it? Mk pressed me.

Ehpeople change their names for lots of reasons, I mean you did. Icould see the way his brain stalled for a second as he processed what I’dsaid.

Uh,okay fair point.

Thenwhy did he change his? Bai He asked, looking up at the portraitagain.

I…don’tknow. All I know is by the time he and I ran into each other he was alreadygoing by Macaque. I think Princess Iron Fan still calls him by his old name butlike in an affectionate way. I was a little jealous of that fact nowthat we were on better terms. I wasn’t sure if I could even ask about the namechange. I never bothered to even think about it until just now. Since it hadalways been his name in one way or another, I never really questioned it. Iwonder what happened?

Hmm.Then could you at least tell me if he always used to be like this?She’s such a curious kid, isn’t she? It’d be cute if she wasn’t also a littlemenace.

Ohgods no. He definitely still had his broody moments. He always had his edgyside in there he was just a little, I don’t know, softer? You should have heardhim when he and Red Butt would get into fights with each other. He’s probablygot a couple pictures of his pouty face somewhere around here. Iventured further into the home to explore what other memories were held within.To be honest looking at the old place brought a sense of bittersweet nostalgia.I missed it and I would never get that feeling or that same connection back,but I think we can have something new now. Being surrounded by our, thekids was a constant reminder of that. We have different lives now with newresponsibilities. I know technically I was a king, but I was pretty free fromresponsibilities. I protected my people when I could, but outside of that Imostly got to do whatever I wanted.

Weused to be free to do as we pleased, but we got, or I got us wrapped up in alot. I think having the little ones rely on us so heavily would keep us more incheck from getting into our more obsessive sides. I already got chewed out bypretty much everyone and Macaque was already changing for the better for hiskids. I couldn’t get away with running around unchecked and I understood theconsequences my actions had on others more than ever. Not to mention that thistime around, no one agreed to be a part of the danger, not in the same way thatmy old friends did. Notthat most of them deserved their harsh punishments.

Despiteeverything I was hopeful that I wasn’t doomed to relive history, that we allweren’t. Since we’ve already gone through what I hoped was the worst of things,I think we can all move on to better. Macaque and I are better, and I havefaith that neither of us were dumb enough to become our worst selves again.Maybe if we did apologize to each other, relapsing would be even further fromhappening?

Didhe use to wear this? I was snapped out of my daze by Bai He snoopingaround Macaque’s old wardrobe.

We’dquickly made our way into his old bedroom without me even noticing it. Morememories flooded my mind. I could clearly picture him hunched over his littlewriting desk, so absorbed in what he was doing that he wouldn’t notice when Isnuck in to see snoop on him in bug form. Sometimes he’d get really flusteredand try to hide whatever he was writing in his desk. His face would get all redand he’d frantically try to push me out the room gods it was so cute.

Myeyes drifted to his bed which was just a big nest of blankets, pillows, andfurs. I could picture the two of us curled up together and when it stormed, Iwould cover his ears and hold him closer as we waited it out together. He wouldtremble and whimper from the fear and pain it caused him and all I could do wasbe there for him. Iwonder how he dealt with that while he was on his own?

Thenmy eyes finally drifted to the main focus of Bai He and Mk’s and choked on alaugh and tried to stifle my snickering. It was one of his old combat outfits.It had one sleeve and cut low enough that it caused half his chest to beexposed to the world. That style was pretty typical of Macaque back then so Iwasn’t really surprised by it, but I couldn’t say the same for Mk and BaiHe.

Reallyhad his tit* out to the world huh? Mk spoke to himself while heexamined the outfit by pulling down the neckline. He didn’t see the way Bai Hecringed upon hearing his words about her new papa or the way her head slowlyturned to look at him.

I’mgonna tell him you said that in front of me. She threatened him, andMk gasped.

Don’t!He quickly tried to convince her to reconsider, but I was pretty sure that’d bea fruitless effort. She was already pulling out her phone and running away fromhim. Bai Henoooo. Hechased after her and the cubs trailed behind, curious about the suddencommotion. I just chuckled at the display and lingered in Macaque’s bedroom. Iwanted to snoop around his old things a little longer and reminisce.

Hiswardrobe was fuller than I would have expected with him leaving behind hisalready retired clothes and the things he’d grown out of in a literal andmetaphorical sense. Oddly enough his old pink tunic was missing from his collection,so I had to wonder if he’d taken it with him when he’d left. There was no wayit fit him right anymore so I don’t see why he would have taken it withhim.

He’dleft all the trinkets from our old adventures together packed inside his closettoo and I was beginning to piece together that he very well could have leftwith nothing but the clothes on his back. I wanted to know what he did in ourtime apart, but I was worried that asking might spark an argument. I can get anidea of what happened to him from his plays, but I know he’s leaving out somuch that I’ll never get the full picture. Maybe one day I’ll get the chance to share storieswith him again.

Imoved on to his desk and glided my hand over it and was slightly unnerved bythe fact that so little dust was left on my hand. It was as if we’d never leftthis place. That it was still in use to this day…I wonder if he’s ever snuck into here before? I tried to open the drawer he used tohide his letters in, but It felt like I was whipped in the back of my hand byan invisible force. I used my gold vision once again and saw another layer ofhis magic over the drawers, protecting it from being opened by anyone but him.I’m not gonna risk BaiHe opening this one.Whatever was in here must be pretty private if he went out of his way to put asecondary lock on it. So paranoid.

Islowly left his room, but lingered in his doorway as I watched the kids runningaround the living room and hopping over furniture while they played. Is thiswhat he always had in mind for himself I wonder? Having his home filled withrambunctious little ones making a mess of things, but bringing a smile to hisface from their joy alone? The mundanity wasn’t as scary as I would havethought all those years ago. Almost makes me wish we could have had somethinglike this…but I’m happy with what we dohave.

Mkand Bai He weren’t my kids and Mk wasn’t even a child by mortal standards, butthey were still family. No less family in mine nor his eyes than Castor andPollux. Watching Mk indulge in Bai He’s antics despite being able to catch upto her easily and letting the boys climb and use him as a springboard wassweet. It was nice seeing our kids getting along with each other rather thanfighting each other. I think a part of me was worried when I’d first heard ofthe twins being ours that they’d share the same fate of hurting each otherbeyond comprehension. Even more so when I saw them unglamoured only Pollux toglamour his fur. They looked just like us, like him, and that scares the sh*tout of me, but I think, I hope that they’ll be okay. I want to take care ofthem like I do the mountain monkeys and so much more, but I don’t think I’llever get the chance to have what I truly want out of this.

MisterMonkey King? Are you okay? I was snapped out of my thoughts by BaiHe’s genuine concern. I don’t know when they’d stopped running around or whenthey all started staring at me, but I knew I had to react fast.

What?Of course I am! Why wouldn’t I be? I tried to sound as casual aspossible, but I could tell they weren’t buying it. Even Castor and Pollux werelooking at me with concern in their eyes while Mk looked me up and down like heknew I was hiding something. Great.

Youjust looked really sad. She pressed, sounding no less worried. In anodd way it was kinda nice knowing that she cared.

Yeah,are you sure you’re okay? Mk backed her up and narrowed his eyes atme and rubbed his chin in suspicion. I really needed to stop giving him reasons to besuspicious of me.

Yeah,yeah bud I’m good. I was just thinking is all. Reminiscing andthinking. Not a lie, but I knew that wasn’t the answer they werelooking for.

Doyou want to talk about it? His concern really made me feel touched,but I’ve never been the type to talk about how I felt. It probably could havesaved me a lot of headaches if I was better at eloquently speaking my mind insteadof being tactless or just staying quiet. I won't lie, it hurts to keep secretsfrom them, but even I know that what plagued my mind was too personal for me toshare with Mk and too grownup to share with the kids.

I’mokay. Come on, we've still got a lot of places to visit. Come here. Icrouched down and beckoned the littlest ones to me and the twins came to mewithout hesitation. They crawled up my arms to rest on my shoulders and when Ilooked up again, I caught Bai He staring at me and pouting. What'swrong? All eyes were on her at my question, and she hid behind Mk’sleg.

...Nothing.She murmured and pouted more while eyeing me up and down. I wonder if?

Didyou…want me to carry you too? I asked her with barely concealedamusem*nt at one of the cutest things I’ve seen her do. I swear everything shedoes makes me think of Macaque. From her gremlin attitude to her surprisingly cutemoments.

No!She blushed slightly in embarrassment as she shouted at me, and I couldn’t keepmyself from laughing. It only made her more embarrassed. I could tell that Mkwas stifling a laugh of his own, but he was nicer when he asked her.

Didyou want me to carry you? He’d gottendown to her level and extended his arms out to her. She sized him up just likeshe’d done to me.

Maybe.She murmured again and took a tiny step toward him. Why are his cubs so dang adorable?

MissingMacaque? She practically fell into Mk’s arms at my question, and hewrapped them around her with ease.

Yeah.I miss my hugs. Her voice was muffled as she nuzzled into Mk’s chest.She clung to him as if she was a monkey cub herself and it made my heart brimwith delight.

Awww.Mk and I fawned over her, and she nestled further into Mk to hide.

Youknow I never expected him to be such a softie and it’s so adorable.He’d commented as he secured Bai He in place and stood up. A hint of pride wentthrough me seeing him carrying her properly, but I’m not sure where it camefrom. It was an odd feeling to have over something so simple, but I lovedit.

Hehas always wanted a family so it’s not toosurprising. Which reminds me of another story. Back when we wereyounger…

Iregaled them all with more stories of Macaque’s more nurturing side as wewandered the mountain again. Subconsciously taking them down the paths Macaqueand I used to take together when we needed to wind down or get away fromeveryone for a little while. I loved being able to have alone time with him. Tohold his full attention so easily, to be admired by someone who meant so muchto me. I loved the stories he would whisper to my ear at night as we gazed atthe stars, curled up together under shared blankets for warmth on those chillynights.

Icould vividly remember the feeling of him pressed against my side and nuzzlinginto the crook of my neck. Sometimes we’d fall asleep like that, and we’d beteased by Red Butt and Yuanhou the next morning. I’d gotten a taste of thewonderful feeling again and I couldn’t help yearning for it now that thingswere semi okay between us again, but maybe that would be asking for toomuch.

Duringour trip I ended up showing them the little nesting places of the little onesof the mountain to let the boys get more accustomed to other monkeys. It hadalso doubled as a learning experience for Mk and Bai He on how best to approachactual monkeys, not just the fully conscious kind.

It’dtaken some time for the other little ones to warm up to them, but with the helpof Castor, Pollux, and I, things went much smoother. Again, my heart swelledwith pride seeing them all get along with the mountain monkeys and seeing themimprove as we went from tribe to tribe. Some cubs were even following us on ourlittle group adventure, and Bai He was having the time of her life. Every timea monkey approached her, her eyes shone with raw joy and light, and I wasreally starting to understand Macaque’s desire to have a family all his own. Ofcourse, I already had some understanding of his wants, but this sense of prideand happiness seeing them happy made me feel warmth I’ve only recently begun tofeel again after meeting Mk. Love that little guy. Every victory and new lessonlearned made me so proud of him and I’m at peace when I see him happy and he’snot even my kid, but he still feels like he’s family. I could only hope heturns out better than I did.

Whenthe day was winding down and the sun was setting, painting the sky thosebeautiful shades of purple and orange, I ended up carrying all the little onesup the mountain, even Mk. I carried Mk on my back while Bai He clung to mychest, now less fussy with how tired she was, while Castor and Pollux madethemself more comfortable by stretching across mine and Mk’s shoulders.

Itdefinitely wasn’t comfortable for me, but it was oddly calming. It reminded meof the days I’d sleep in a pile with Red Butt, Yuanhou and Macaque. I missedthe warmth and the comfort the weight and feel of them would bring me.Listening to their steading breathing and knowing that they were safe, that Iwas safe with them surrounding me. There was so much that I missed and so muchI wished to reclaim now that the option was visible to me. I just needed tofigure out how to approach it. How to keep myself from making things worse andhaving the chance slip through my fingers.

Now,as I listened to the gentle dozing of the kids, I told myself confidently thatI wouldn’t let that happen. That this time willbe different. I wouldn’t push them away this time, wouldn’t let my emotions getthe better of me, wouldn’t get them hurt because of me. This time I would keepthem safe, no matter what.

Bythe time I entered my home, the only ones not asleep were Pollux and I, thoughhis self-made glamour had faded away from his exhaustion. It took somemaneuvering, but I managed to set Mk down on my couch without dropping eitherof the boys. He’d only stirred enough to roll himself onto his side and facethe back of the couch before going right back to sleep.

It’snot even that late and he’s already asleep. Can you believe that? Iturned my head some to ask Pollux and he simply yawned. Exactly. Kidsthese days. I softly chuckled to myself, and Pollux nuzzled my cheekto feel the fur I had there. I pulled a blanket I had thrown over the back ofmy couch over Mk’s body and he unconsciously pulled it closer to himself.Cute.

Iwatched him for a few seconds to see if he’d wake up some, but when he didn’tstir again, I went to my bedroom to set Bai He and the boys down for bed.Setting them all down was easy enough, same with pulling the covers over them,but when I tried to leave the room, Pollux whined. I immediately turned aroundand started to gently coo to him to get him to stop.

Shush,shush, shush, it’s okay, it’s okay, what’s the matter buddy? I triedto calm him down and while his whining didn’t stop, he did quiet some. Hecurled into a ball and avoided making eye contact with me. I tried chirping tohim instead to see if he would be more willing to communicate with me that way.His whining quieted to a whimper.

Polly?Castor sleepy called out and crawled over to his brother to console him. Henuzzled Pollux’s cheek, nearly headbutting him in his sleep-addled state. Hewhined once more with his brother near, as if hoping to more effectivelycommunicate his concerns to him instead. For a moment I’d thought it worked.Pollux stopped whining once he’d explained, in a language I’m sure only hisbrother understood, and held his arm for comfort. Unfortunately, as Castor wokeup further, he started to whine too, albeit softer and it got Pollux startedagain. That’s just great.

What’shappening? Bai He groggily asked, slowly sitting up and rubbing hereyes.

Theboys are upset, and I don’t know why. I quickly told her in awhisper. I tried cooing and chirping to them since they seemed only a littlemore responsive to that than mortal speech. ‘It’s okay.’I tried to reassure them ‘It’sokay.’

Whathappened? Bai He patted their heads gently and they immediatelyleaned into her touch and clung to her.

Nothing!While I was still whispering when I exclaimed that, the tone of my complaintwas still very easily conveyed to the distressed boys who started to chitterlouder making Bai He glare at me. Sorry. ‘I’m sorry I didn’t mean it.’ I knelt down to the floor and restedmy chin on the bed to be closer to them. I whined apologetically to them andmanaged to quiet them down some. Macaque makes this look soeasy. I huffed. As I pondered what to do with the distressed cubs, myphone buzzed in my pocket. Uhoh. I choose to ignorethat for a moment, hoping that it’s not who I think it is, but then it buzzesagain. It’s probably him,isn’t it?

Areyou gonna get that? Bai He asked, sounding very critical of me.

Ina second. She narrowed her eyes at me. Okay fine I’ll checknow. I pulled out my phone and Bai He scooted closer to look at myscreen. So nosy.

Macaque:Hey dingus.

Macaque:How’s it going down there?

UH, I’ve got this, just be cool.

Me:Fine! Great even

Very inconspicuous.

Macaque:Are you sure?

Me:Yep!

Me:Relax, I’ve got this.

Me:Why?

Macaque:I was just checking in.

Macaque:I was going to send down a couple of things Chang’e and I cooked up and wantedto know if your table was clear.

Ohhuh, I guess we haven’t really eaten anything in a while, have we?

Me:Should be.

Me:Hey.

Me:For like no reason at all.

Me:How would YOU calm down a crying baby?

Macaque:Excuse me?

Macaque:Do I need to come back down there?

Me:NO NO NO!

Me:Everything is fine, it’s fine.

Doyou think he bought it? I asked, trying to fool myself, if only for afew seconds, that he was dumb enough to believe such a suspicious and obviouslie.

Thatwas sarcastic right? She looked and sounded very unimpressed with me.This time I knew it was pretty justified; this was not my best work. Unfortunately,it wasn’t my worst work either.

Guys?Macaque is texting me. Is everything…Why are they crying? I didn’tlike the judgment in his tone or the way he looked at me when he askedthat.

Idon’t know. Just don’t let him freak out, okay? He’s already been stressed enough,and I don’t want him cutting his break short because of this. We can handlethis. I attempted to convince all of us, but I was failing on allsides.

...Okay.I watched him text Macaque and after a beat, Bai He’s phone pinged. She checkedit without a moment of hesitation. Traitor.

Whatdid you say?

Ijust told him they missed him!

That…might not be too far from the truth actually. I started chirping tothem again, asking them if they missed their Baba. Their chittering quietedsome and Pollux sharply nodded his head. Poor babies. I beckoned them to me again, but they seemed reluctantto leave Bai He’s side. They’ve really grown attached to her, haven’tthey?

Awwthat's cute. I knew they missed him. Mk commented and joined us onthe bed. I continued to speak to them in the language only we knew.

‘It’s okay. I miss Macaque too, so does Bai He, buthe’ll be back tomorrow I promise.’I offered them my hand and Pollux slowly reached out to hold on to my littlefinger while Castor’s many ears folded back and curled up in Bai He’slap.

Okay,he says that we should get their blankie and Polly’s monkey first and then ifthat doesn’t work you sing to them. Bai He shared while still lookingat her phone.

Singwhat exactly? Not that I wanted to sing anything, but I think I couldbe persuaded for the boys.

Idon’t know. She simply shrugged.

Helpful.

Howbout we get their things and go from there? Mk suggested, getting usback on track to comfort the little ones still whining in distress.

Agreed.While I do that, Mk could you go check the dining table? I’m sure you knowwhere it is.

Uhsure thing.

Iwent back into my living room to look through the bag of things Macaque hadleft for the kids' comfort items while Mk ran off to get the food Macaque haddropped off for us. When we’d walked away, Castor and Pollux’s whining hadgotten worse, and I had to keep reassuring them the whole time I was outside ofthe room while Bai He did the same in the room.

Ireturned to them as quickly as I could and gave Pollux his stuffed monkey toythat was eerily similar to the ones branded in my vague image. He immediatelyhugged it close to him and buried his face in its plush synthetic fur and hiswhining turned to panting as if he was actively trying to calm himself downnow. As soon as I brandished their shared blanket, Castor snatched it from meand wrapped it around the two of them.

Don’tsnatch. I lightly scolded him, and he chittered a quick apologybefore pulling his brother closer and nuzzling him in Bai He’s lap. Iforgive you. Are you alright buds? I spoke barely above a whisper tothem and joined them on the bed. Pollux softly whined to Castor, prompting himto speak for his quiet brother.

MissMama. Yeah, wealready figured that part out, but it’s not like I could blame them. They were just cubs, cubs who’d gonethrough so much and were very attracted to their father. They were young andMacaque leaving them for weeks during the whole LBD drama must have made themanxious over extended or overnight trips they weren’t allowed to follow Macaqueon. That must have felt like forever in their short lives, and I could onlyhope that anxiety would lessen with age.

Imiss Baba too guys, but I promise he’ll be back tomorrow. Bai Hehugged them tight, and Castor put some of the excess blanket over her arm toshare with her.

Yeahand then he’ll shower you all with love and attention, I’m sure. He’s a big sapso I know he’s missing you guys too. I gave Pollux gentle headscratches and scooted a little closer to Bai He to get more comfortable. Hisears flapped just like his fathers did as he got more comfortable, and my heartsqueezed in a mix of love and guilt.

Promise?Pollux finally spoke for himself. His voice was soft and painfully hopeful. AllI wanted to do was hold him and tell him everything was going to be okay.

Ipromise. I’d gotten a little choked up when I told him that. All Icould think of was the sweet albeit sarcastic monkey I used to know and thepromises I’d made to him time and time again. I’d failed that man before, hurtus nearly beyond repair. I’d failed the cubs, Mk, and Bai He before too and Irefused to ever let that happen again. They could trust in me, and I wanted tomake sure they wouldn’t doubt that. They just had to know that.

Pollux'seyes bored deep into mine as he searched for any hint of falsehood in my claim.When he found none, he purred and pressed into my hand before poking hisforehead.

Kisses?He’d asked with a more open hopefulness which left me feeling warmer and moreaffectionate rather than overly protective.

Kisses!Castor adamantly echoed and patted his own forehead. These kids really knew how to play with myemotions huh? One second,they look so sad and helpless and the next they’re the adorable little guys Iknew them to be, and they were warming my heart.

Comehere. I fawned, opening my arms to them. They immediately chirpedexcitedly and climbed into my lap, ready to be scooped into my arms andshowered with affection. I gave them each a little kiss to the tops of theirheads then nuzzled their cheeks with my own.

BaiHe? Castor asked, pointing at her, likely wondering if she was goingto get any attention too.

OhI don’t really-

Idon’t think she’d want- We’d started to make excuses at the sametime. I knew Bai He didn’t like me that much and she’d probably beuncomfortable if I did that. Thankfully, we didn’t need to do that muchexplaining to them thanks to Mk.

Food’shere! He’d called out and slid into the room with a tower of boxed upfood in his hands. Castor was the first to move, enthusiastically howling atthe prospect of food and already climbing up Mk’s leg. Easy, easy!Mk warned, and he quickly moved to set the boxes down on the bed to keep fromdropping any of them on the floor.

Wellthat really got his mind off things, didn’t it? I had to admit, I wasfeeling a little put out by how quickly they’d moved on as soon as food hadarrived after all the fussing they’d done.

Yeah,but at least they’re not sad anymore, right? Bai He chuckled andpatted my back. I rolled my eyes at her halfhearted attempt to comfort me butsmiled nonetheless.

Yeah,yeah, you’re right. Still a little bummed though. I pouted, and sheonly laughed at me more. Shush you, eat your food! I gentlyshoved her by her shoulder with my tail and she started snickering.

Here,these ones are yours. Mk passed us the boxes with little doodles ofour faces on them along with handwritten notes to us underneath each picture. Icould tell that which were drawn by Macaque with ease. His picture of me hadthat rough charm I remembered fondly, and he’d made me look incredibly smug andobnoxious. I could only assume the other two were Chang’e and his clone.Chang’e’s drawings were bubblier and round by comparison, but she still made melook smug, yet somehow not obnoxious. Then there was his clone’s drawing. Itwasn’t a portrait like the others, but little scribbles of purple swirls thatcame out of a …is that aheart? With a quickglance around I was disappointed to find that the other lunch boxes had thesame or similar drawing on them, but only a little bit.

Thisis adorable. I said, mostly to myself while grinning so much it hurt.I’d find a nice spot for the drawings to hang in my shame temple later.

Thisis awful. Mk laughed, and I gasped in offense.

Benice! He worked really hard on these. I defended Macaque’s drawingsand scolded Mk.

YeahMk! I think they’re cute and I never get to see him draw stuff. BaiHe agreed with me and for Mk’s part he at least tried to suppress his laughterby snickering into the back of his hand.

OkayI’m sorry, it’s just so…unexpected? It’s just really funnyseeing parts of him that clash so hard with what he acts like ya know? It’sendearing.

Trustme, I know what you mean. Makes me think the big old softie I knew is still inthere somewhere. That guy isn’t buried that deep down in there eithergiven all that I’ve seen him do recently. It makes me think I won't have tokeep missing that part of him. Reading the notes that were left, reaffirmedthat wistful thought of mine.

Dear Doofus,

Thanks again for watching the kids and forconvincing me to still come and see Chang’e. I didn’t realize how much I neededthis until after I got here. I hope they aren’t giving you too much troubletonight. I really appreciate you doing this for me and I’m glad that I cantrust you with this and that you’re trusting me. Maybe after we brutalize thatcreepy f*cker, you and I can catch up properly and we can actually talk thingsout for once. See you tomorrow Peaches Wukong.

Mytail thumped on the bed as I read his message over and over again. He wanted tomake up with me, hecalled me Peaches!Sure it was on accident, but he still did it. I felt warm and fuzzy all overknowing that we were on the same page, and I had to wonder what else hewas hoping to get out of this. All the possibilities of rekindling ourfriendship and I got a little ahead of myself thinking of what else we couldpossibly become. My daydreams were dampened by Chang’e’s note.

Sun Wukong,

I’ve heard a lot of things about you from MacyBaby. Some good, some bad. I know we met not that long ago, and I’ve heard allthe stories and I gotta say, he could do better, but I’m still rooting for you.Even though you were a dick and don’t take cooking seriously, he really caresabout you so I hope you two can work things out. You two sound so cute in hisstories of your good old days and I just want him to be happy.

P.S.

If you want anything more, you’re gonna have tomake a move, but maybe after my new little nieces and nephews are safe.Congrats on the kids too!

P.P.S.

I’m the best friend now, so if you hurt him orf*ck this up, I will turn you into a nicely seasoned kebab.

I…did she just threaten to eat me? Even though I knew she couldn’t kill me;it was pretty disturbing to think about her trying to eat me whilesimultaneously encouraging me and him to be more than friends. I had no ideawhat that could mean. I knew they were talking about me from this, but what hadbeen said? Clearly, she knew about our more complicated past together or atleast enough of it to know that there were romantic feelings between us, evenif I didn’t fully understand those feelings until it was too late. She also hadto know where things had soured given her very direct threat if I messed up andyet she still says she’s rooting for me. Even with the threat, it felt good toknow someone knew so much, knew him so well, and still believed we could workthings out.

Thefinal note from his clone was shorter, but it still made my smile painfullywide and got a soft puff of laughter out of me.

Dear Peach Butt,

It’s good to see that dumb smiling face of yoursagain, so don’t do anything reckless to hurt yourself okay? I still care aboutyou jerk and I’d miss you if anything happened.

-Shadow Clone Macaque

Myeyes felt a little wet after that one and I had to swallow down the swirl ofemotions it left me with to keep the others from catching on. It feltbittersweet to read it, having it literally spelt out to me that he cared, butknowing that it was his clone who said it. I knew their feelings were one andthe same, but I kinda wish it came from him instead. That and it had me alittle worried he knew how my plan with the samadhi fire would have gone if ithad actually worked the way I wanted it to. I didn’t even want to ask him toclarify because I do not want to talk about it if he really did know. Still, itmade me happy, and I’d be saving all of the notes in my pocket until I couldput them in my shame temple later.

Thesewere really sweet. I once again spoke aloud to myself more thananything, but everyone made sounds of agreement when they heard me. I finallyopened up my lunch box to see what they’d made for us, and we discovered thatthey were all personalized for our tastes. For me there was a nice variety ofsliced fruits, fried veggies, and a small portion of grilled fish that I wasalready indulging myself in. Wanna do something for him after we eatfor when he gets back?

Yes!Bai He cheered around a mouthful of food.

Hemade some dessert for us too. Mk added, in a similar state.

Afterdessert then and after that I should probably get you guys to bed for real thistime. I tousled Pollux’s fur affectionately and they cooedhappily.

Iwas glad they were all in a good mood now and the food and plan to do somethingnice for Macaque only made things better. I already had an idea of what I’ddraw for him, but the writing part might be a challenge. My handwriting wasn’twhat it used to be and I’m not the best with words so maybe it should just besimple. Maybe I should just reassure him and tell him I’d love to get to talkthings through with him? Yeah, that could work, now all I have to do is figureout how to say it. Though that could wait until after dinner.

Chapter 24: Early Morning

Chapter Text

Macaque P.O.V.

AfterI’d sent our food down to the mountain, Chang’e, my clone, and I spent a fewmore hours catching up and dissecting my love life before retiring to the guestroom she kept just for me when I came over. It was completely covered inpillows and plush blankets, it was perfection.

Chang’eand my clone joined me in bed and cuddled up against both my sides and under myarms. It was a welcome comfort after becoming so used to having company while Islept and after the conversations we’d had. Talking about Wukong and the creepyf*cker stalking my child had been extremely draining on and I would thoroughlyenjoy sinking into the security being here brought me.

Uphere, no one could reach me or harm me. None of my enemies could reach me and Ididn’t have to put on a show to preserve my reputation or persona. I could beas big of a weirdo as I wanted to be up here and no one but us would know. Itwas the type of comfort that I used to associate with the mountain, but even then,I’d felt the need to put on a tougher front when anyone, but Wukong was around.I don’t think I’ve found anywhere but here that has left me feeling sounburdened.

Unfortunately,that feeling would be gone as soon as I went back down to earth. Where I’d haveto face the convergence of my past and my present. I still had so manyapologies to make and resentment to let go of and a hollow husk of a person to murder. It almost made me regret making a dealwith that witch, but if it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have had the chance tomake amends or to forge so many new bonds that have lasted lifetimes. Iwouldn’t trade that for the world.

Iheld them both tighter and I took a deep breath to calm my racing mind to forcemyself to sleep. When I wake up next, I’ll get to see my kids again and theycan tell me all about whatever adventures they had with Wukong. Hopefully,they’d all be in one piece when I got back.

Wukong’sP.O.V.

Aftercrafting our messages for Macaque for tomorrow, setting the boys down for thenight had been much easier than it had been the first time. They insisted thatI tuck them in and give them more forehead kisses like Macaque did for themevery night. Castor did fuss a bit when I didn’t do the same to Bai He, butthankfully Mk stepped in to take care of it instead, once again saving us fromhaving to explain why she doesn’t particularly like me.

Mkhad taken his place on the couch again and this time I got to tease him as Icovered him up with the blanket and I tousled his hair instead of giving him akiss on the forehead like the little ones. He’d only complained a little beforeyawning and quickly drifting off to sleep again.

Withthem all finally asleep, I got to work actually cleaning up for once. I rinsedoff the lunch boxes and put them away in the bag Macaque had initially broughtover, cleaned up all the pencils and arts supplies Mk had pulled out for us touse and put them all in one place, then finally arranged all our messages forwhen Macaque returned. I hoped that he would like what we’d made for him,though I was already pretty sure that he’d love whatever his kids made forhim.

Evenwhen I was done with everything I needed to do, I didn’t feel tired. I feltlike I needed to keep watch over them and make sure they were safe untilmorning. It gave me a sense of purpose that reminded me of my journey days. Itwas a bittersweet memory now, but in a way, it felt like I was showing them mylove. It felt like that was the best way I could show my love for them. For now,I think that will be enough, but I did want more. I want to be more than justthe guy that keeps them from dying and I knew I got that eventually with mycompanions, but I didn’t want to wait that long. The cubs were still very young,and I wanted to be a bigger part of their lives. As hard as it would be, Iwanted to go through it for them. I held plenty of time before Macaque got backto work up the nerve to ask him what I really wanted out of this.

Istayed awake for hours watching the little ones. I even had a few clonespatrolling to be extra thorough. They would communicate with the little ones ofthe mountain that were still awake or just barely waking up to see if they sawanything suspicious. It may have been extensive, but I wasn’t going to take anychances with the little pups.

I’dbeen patrolling the outside of my home when I’d felt something shift in the airof the mountain. I could tell that someone had appeared on the mountain, but Ididn’t feel any malintent that would have been right at home for that true creepshow uh…now that I thinkabout it I’ve got no idea what that not mayor guy’s name is…it doesn’t matter. Whatever was here now felt familiar,cool yet comforting, like the evening breezing in spring.

Icould feel my muscles relax, knowing that I wouldn’t have to prepare for afight. I knew exactly who was here, and where I’d find them. It’d only be ashort walk from here to find them.

MacaqueP.O.V.

WhenI woke up next, I couldn’t be sure what time it was. It was always so hard totell when I was up here. No matter how much time had passed since I’d closed myeyes, I’d already decided to go home when I woke up so that’s what I was gonnado. With a breath my body dispersed into shadow and reformed standing at thefoot of bed so I wouldn’t disturb Chang’e or my clone from their sleep. Sheworked hard and deserved to get as much sleep as possible before going back toher busy job. As for my clone, I could use the illusion of getting more sleepthan I actually did. I had a strong feeling that I’d be losing a lot of it foras long as my kids were in danger.

Igathered the few items I’d brought with me and the offending toy that hadcaused me way more embarrassment yesterday than I may have felt in my entirelife. I’d need to find a good spot to keep this and my other toys somewherewhere no one but me would ever find them. For now, this little menace would becoming with me. As good as I’ve been feeling since my complete resurrection, Ididn’t want to waste the energy portaling it from the moon to my dojo with myother toys. Gods I hatedhow that sounded in my own head.For now I’d keep it tucked away in my inside breast pocket and try not to thinkabout it being pressed against me even if it was in a box. That didn’t sound any better, ugh.

Macaque?Chang’e called out, sleep slurred and drowsy.

I can feel you groaning from here. His voice was just asgroggy as hers as they rolled over in bed and pulled the blankets over theirhead.

Wereyou leaving already? She sluggishly sat up and rubbed the sleep outof her eyes. I tried not to let how sad she sounded get to me too much. I wasalready planning on doing better to keep up with her and everyone else.

Yeah,sorry, but I gotta get back to my kids. It was lovely seeing youagain. I made my way back over to the bed to sit beside her. Sheslowly shifted in bed to lean against my side, and I put my arm around hershoulder and bumped heads with her.

Itwas great seeing you too…Promise me you’ll visit more often? Shelooked up at me with those sad lonely eyes of hers. My heart broke for her, andI gently squeezed her arm and pulled her closer.

Ipromise. Now that I’m finally settling down, I’ll have plenty of time to spendwith my friends. My kids have to build a solid relationship with all theiraunts and uncles too of course. I tried to brighten her mood, thoughnothing I said was false. Just like with my other friends, I wanted her to bein my life and in my kids' lives. She was important to me, and I needed her toknow that.

Youmean it? Her tone turned up with hope, and I softly kissed the furrowof her brow.

Yeah,I do. I’ve missed my favorite gossip buddy. I gently rocked the twoof us from side to side.

AndI’ve missed my favorite broody monkey. She chuckled and wrapped me ina side hug.

...I’dargue with you, but I did do a little brooding up here didn’t I? Ipouted, getting more giggles out of her.

A little he says. My clone grumbled still trying to burythemself in the pillows and blankets.

Quietyou! I smacked them with my tail, and they only grumbled at me.

It’sokay Mac. Your brooding is endearing…Think you’ve got any time to spare for aquick breakfast?

Hmmm,maybe a minute or two.

I’dspent 30 more minutes than I’d planned to stay after waking up, but it was niceto relax with Chang’e for a bit longer and talk about something other thanWukong. It was cute hearing her gush about the good parts of Mk’s arrival onthe moon and her bonding experience with Pigsy. I even offered to bring himwith me from time to time if they were both okay with it.

Bythe time I portaled back down to the mountain, I was far more at ease than I’dbeen when I left. When I arrived it was still dark out and I’d appeared on anoh so familiar cliffside that overlooked the beauties of the mountain and openocean. I breathed in the warm night air and breathed out another wave oftension then looked back in the direction of Wukong’s home. My ears twitched asI listened carefully and heard the sound of their peaceful slumber inside.Another sigh of relief leaves me now that I know they’re safe. With thatassurance, my gaze drifted back to the cliff side. I could use a few minutes to myself I thought to myself as I made my wayover to it to sit and take in the view.

WukongP.O.V.

Ittook me all of ten minutes to reach the cliffside I’d frequently been sharingmore and more lately. I hung back in the tree line when I caught sight of the monkey,I’d expected to find waiting there sitting with their legs dangling over theedge. He wasn’t wearing any of his glamours from what I could tell since hisears were all on full display. They always looked so beautiful in the gentle moonlight,and I couldn’t help but stare. Then their head slowly turned to look over theirshoulder at me with a soft smile on their face.

Ifelt frozen in place as my heart skipped a beat. He looked so soft and prettylike this and he was sending such a sweet smile my way. I don’t know whatpathetic sound left my body, but I knew Macaque had no problem hearing it fromthe soft chuckle they let out that had my heart doing flips. Silently, theypatted the ground beside them in invitation then turned their eyes back overthe edge. Hesitantly, I accepted their offer and dropped my own glamours in theprocess. I wanted to sit right beside them, but I wasn’t sure how much I couldpush my luck, so I left a respectable distance between us.

It’sa beautiful night, isn’t it? I nervously asked, trying tostrike up a conversation.

Sureis. Did the kids give you much trouble? They turned back to me withthat same soft smile on their face that was doing terrible things to heartright now. Why is he sopretty!

OH!No, no, not at all, I mean sure they were a little uh fussywhen I tried to put the cubs to bed, but other than that they wereperfect. Their smile sharpened to have that smug knowing edge Inormally saw it with. Uh, you look pretty relaxed. Did you have a goodtime with Chang’e?

Yeah.We talked all for hours just catching up about this and that and we talked sh*tabout this guy I know. They grinned mischievously, wide enough forhis smile to crinkle the corners of his eyes.

Youwere talking about me, weren’t you? I pouted, and he failed to stiflehis snicker.

Nowwhy would you think that? Their shoulders shook from their mirth, andI rolled my eyes to feign annoyance. I’m just glad that he’s finallyrelaxed.

Let’scall it a hunch. I played along and was rewarded with more of theirgiggles.

I’dsay it was a pretty good hunch. Obviously, you weren’t the only one we talkedabout, but you sure came up a lot. They leaned over to bump shoulderswith me, and I felt their tail flop over to rest on top of mine. I didn’t knowwhat was happening right now, but I wasn’t going to question it. Not when theystayed pressed against my side and no doubt listening to my heart race.

Atleast some good things I hope. I still couldn’t keep the nervousnessI felt out of my voice. In fact, I think it only got worse from their closeproximity and soft demeanor. Then they had to go and nuzzle into my shoulder.Later I’m sure he will just blame this on being tired and call it a moment ofweakness at best, but right now I’d enjoy this as much as I could, hopefullywithout him thinking any deeper about the way he made me feel.

Mostlygood things I’d say. It really got me thinking about where my life is at rightnow. Their arm wiggled into the space between mine and my body andhooked itself around mine. He pulled back only a little bit to look me in theeyes with a tenderness that made me feel like I was about to explode. What’s happening? What’s happening? What’shappening? What is happening!?Despite that sick freak still f*cking with us, I feel like I can saythat I like my life. Even without that f*cker looming overhead, I’ve still gota lot to work out, but I’m making progress and I like the people I’m lettingback into my life…I like that your back in my life. I knew I wasstaring at them with impossibly wide eyes. That I should say something, that Ishould reciprocate because I do love that he’s back in my life too, but all Icould hear was ringing in my ears as my nerves were officially fried. I feltcompelled to do something though and I blurted out what I could manage. Blurtedout what I’d been wanting to tell him since I learned those kids were also myown.

I-II WANNA CO-PARENT! I shouted in his face as my own was lit ablaze.They flinched back at the sudden loud noise, but they didn’t let go of my armor move their tail away from mine, though their ears did fold back to shield themselffrom any more of my sudden outbursts.

Huh?They eked out in their dazed state. Their fur had fluffed up and their face hadturned even redder than it usually was. I didn’t give myself time to dwell onthat or them time to recover. I turned toward them more fully and took boththeir hands in mine, startling them more.

Iwant to co-parent! I don’t wanna be some guy who just pops in every now andagain and I don’t wanna be some deadbeat either. They may not need me, but Iwant to be a part of their lives!

MacaqueP.O.V.

What the hell is happening right now!? Whydid this feel so intimate? He doesn’t need to be holding my hands right now forthis! And co-parenting? I was already struggling to keep it together so far anddid this have to happen right after my talk with Chang’e?! There’s so muchgoing on I can’t deal with this right now!

I-I,can we maybe talk about this after they’re safe? You’re already gonna behelping me with them, right? So can we put a pin in hashing out thedetails? My voice came out way higher than I wanted and I’m sure Iheard myself squeak. It’s not like he’d asked to be with me. Co-parentingobviously implied us sharing the role of parents without the relationship.That's why it’s co-parenting instead of just parenting right?

Isthat a yes? His hands squeezed mine tighter and he leaned closer tomy face. He looked so determined it was difficult to look him in theeyes.

Wukong.I summoned all the resolve I had inside me to keep my voice from wavering.If this keeps up any longer,I might faint from all the blood rushing to my head.

Macaque!It’s important! I could tell he was getting frustrated by my evasion.Good, I can handle that, but this subject matter is killingme.

UghWukong, I’m not a monster so I’m not going to keep you from them, but those aremy kids first! If I was being honest, this was starting to get on mynerves too.

It’snot my fault I didn’t know about them until recently! He pushedcloser to me, baring his teeth at me.

Wellit’s not like I could have told you or even knewbefore! I pushed back at him, butting my head into his.

Look,all I want is to be their dad too. Is that so wrong? He was growlingat this point, and I met him right where he was at.

No,but you can’t expect them to accept you as their other dad right away. It’sbeen two years! I haven’t even been around their entirelives and then there’s Bai He! I seriously doubt she’d be happy with youpopping by my house whenever you feel like it. It’s already pretty f*ckingannoying as is.

Wecan have a schedule!

Iam not doing joint custody with you! Those are mybabies. You can’t just-

Excuseme. Hate to interrupt, but you two woke the cubs with your screamingmatch. We both turned our heads to look behind us and found one ofWukong’s clones standing in the tree line. I always had a hard time detectinghis clones since they don’t have a heartbeat. I didn’t even hear them coming.This one did seem familiar to me though. Maybe it was the way they kept staringat me.

Arethe boys alright? I stood up then dusted myself off and straightenedmy clothes. I felt something slide under my clothes, but I didn’t hear anythingdrop.

They’refine, they’re just antsy looking for you two. Another clone is with them rightnow. They spoke to me softly and kept eyeing me with this weird lookalmost like they were trying to be flirt-

Ohit’s you. I groaned in disgust. This was the clone I caught minemaking out with that one time. I looked down at my shadow and sure enough myclone had partially summoned himself. I could see their eye and my scar in themwhich helpfully reminded me to put my glamour back on.

Beena while. As soon as they knew that I was aware of which clone theywere, a smirk appeared on their face, and they shot a wink my way. Disgusting.

Notnearly long enough if you asked me. I’m surprised to see you.Thankfully, I haven't seen them since that incident.

Youweren’t around when he summoned us so there was no need to worry about meembarrassing him. So good to see you both. His eyes drifted down tomy shadow, and they blew them a kiss, making my shadow blush and me recoil infurther disgust.

ThenI’m shocked that you’re still here since, as you can see, I’m righthere. Back before our falling out, this guy would actually fluster mefrom time to time, but it never affected me the same as it would if it were thereal Sun Wukong. Now this guy only felt like he was mocking me.

Ithink it’s because the big man is a little distracted by that little box youdropped there.Huh?

Huh?I looked back at the real Wukong and saw that he was still sitting on the edgelike he was frozen in place. I looked over his shoulder and felt my soul exitmy body. Not only was he holding that box,but he’d taken off the lid and saw what was inside in its own partiallytransparent container on full display. The MonkeyCop dild* that Spider Queengave me all that time ago. Underneath was a tagline that read MonkeyCop, here to save the day and your nightwith his Monkeyco*ck!

Ican’t breathe, I can’t believe I was so careless. I knew I should haveteleported it the second I got here. I shouldn’t have waited for a singlesecond. Stupid, stupid,stupid!

Mac?His clone tried to tease me, but the second he spoke my soul returned to me andI screeched at a pitch I didn’t even know I was capable of. In my panic Ipulled my foot back and kicked Wukong in the back as hard as I could off theedge of the cliff. He flailed as he fell, and I summoned a different cloneafter him to take back that cursed item and bring it to me to send to my dojowith my other toys. GodsI seriously needed a better place for those!

You!I whirled around to his clone again and growled. Not one single word. Doyou understand? Their grin broadened and gestured with his hand thathis lips were sealed. I didn’t trust him, but I didn’t have a lot of timebefore Wukong got back so without wasting another second I opened a portalunderneath me and transported myself outside of Wukong’s little shack.

Iwanted to give myself a few seconds to compose myself before facing my kids andI didn’t need them catching on to anything being off about me. My plan would beto surround myself with people that wouldn’t be an appropriate audience forwhatever deeply humiliating conversation that cursed items presence would bringto delay the enviable. Wukong had enough sense not to talk about those kinds ofthings around children.

MACAQUE!I heard in the distance once he’d recovered. I was already out of time, and Imay have rushed inside faster than necessary, raising the suspicion of no onethankful since Mk looked to be out cold on Wukong’s sofa. Thank goodness.

Mama?Castor called before peeking around the edge of the doorway to Wukong’s room.Their face lit up the moment he laid eyes on me and his ears flapped with joy.My own ears did the same upon seeing how happy he was to see me again aftersuch a short time apart.Mama! He raced over to me as I kneltdown and opened my arms to him for a big hug. He leapt into my embrace andnuzzled his face into my neck, tail wagging all over the place with enoughforce for it to hurt a little bit. Mama, Mama, Mama! Hisexcitement was practically radiating off of him in waves and it filled my heartwith so much love I honestly couldn’t understand how, not that long ago, Ididn’t see them as my precious baby boys.

AwI missed you too baby. Were you good for Wukong?

Mhm!Super good! They cooed and squeezed me tighter.

Theywere pretty good. Another one of Wukong’s clones came out of his roomwith Pollux in his arms and a groggy Bai He wiping the sleep out of her eyesstanding behind him.

SoI’ve heard. As I made my way over to them a loud crash came fromoutside and I probably only had a few seconds now.

Whatwas that? Bai He asked, suddenly far more awake. The noise evenmanaged to rouse Mk from his slumber.

Probablyjust the wind. I shrugged it off and listened to Wukong’s rapidlyapproaching footsteps. With every five steps he took I took one toward hisclone to take the sleepy Pollux into my arms and kiss Bai He on her forehead.

Thatdidn’t sound like- The door swung open, swiftly cutting Bai He offand startling Mk so badly he fell off the sofa with a thud.

Wukong!So glad you could join us. I do believe it’s still pretty early so we could allget some more shut eye, or I could get started on making you guysbreakfast. I looked at him crookedly from over my shoulder and glaredat him with murderous intent, daring him to say something. He glared back at meand threatened.

Thisisn’t over. Then pointed an accusatory finger at me.

I’mnot sure I know what you mean. I would do everything in my power toavoid being alone with him for as long as humanly possible.

Diduh, did something happen? Bai He questioned, looking between the twoof us.

Nope!I’ve got no idea what he’s talking about. So, breakfast orsleep?

...CanI have a hug first? She fidgeted with her fingers and gently rockedin place.

Ofcourse! I’ve missed you guys so much. I knelt down again andrepositioned the boys in my arms so I could pick her up too so we could allhold each other tightly.

Wemissed Mama! Castor purred.

Imissed you guys too. I nuzzled all their cute little faces and gavethem all forehead kisses, making them all giggle and squirm in my arms.

OH!We all have made something for you! Bai He exclaimed and wiggled herway out of my grasp to rush past me to search the room.

Ahright I almost forgot. I put those over here for safe keeping. Wukongjoined her and produced several sheets of paper from a safe little nook in hisT.V. stand. She excitedly took them from him then rushed back to me to presentthem to me proudly.

Aw,what’s this? I once again repositioned the boys to hold them in onearm so I could gingerly pick them out of her hands. From what it looked like,they were drawings with cute little notes on them. I sat on the ground so I couldshuffle through them more comfortably. The first one was obviously Bai He’sfrom the way she loved to sign her work along with the image itself. It was ofthe four of us together holding hands with a speech bubble going ‘I love youbaba’ and my heart squeezed.

Wewanted to do something nice for you, for when you got back.

You’rethe cutest little things in the whole wide world. I gave her anotherkiss on her forehead and ruffled her bedhead with my tail making her chucklelike a fiend.

Islowly went through the rest of them. The second one was clearly Castor’s andhe’d drawn me in a way not dissimilar to the way I’ve drawn myself in the pastwith exaggerated features along with Wukong and Mk carrying all of themprotectively. I couldn’t make out any of the words he’d written on, but I’msure it was sweet. Pollux had only drawn me with what looked like the sunbehind me as I stood with my arms out as if I were going in for a hug.Underneath was far more legible text, but still pretty rough like a toddler’shandwriting, that read ‘Warm’. It looked weirdly holy which made me a littleuncomfortable, but it was still a nice drawing. Next was Mk’s drawing ofeveryone from his group and my little family together with big smiles on ourfaces with the message of ‘You’re doing great! We’re here for you!’ with twothumbs up. He was a good kid. I could only hope he stayed that way.

Finallywas Wukong’s drawing. The moment I laid eyes on it I felt my entire beingsoften. It was of all of us sitting on that oh so familiar ledge watching thesunset on the horizon. The hues of soft oranges, pinks, and purple were exactlyas I remembered them whenever we’d watch the sunset together. I couldn’t helpnoticing that he’d drawn the two of us stilling beside each other with Mk onhis other side and Bai He on mine. It filled me with that same reminiscentfeeling seeing it tonight had filled me with and well, call me sentimental.

Ithink we should watch the sunrise together. I used to love the views from hereand I want to share that with you guys. It always felt so surreal and couldalways calm me down.

Doesthat mean I’m not going to get breakfast? She pouted, and Isnickered.

Ithink we’ve got enough time for Macaque and I to snag some fruit before thesun’s up. At some point Wukong had made his way over to me andplopped down beside me to toss an arm over my shoulders.

Ah,how bout one of your clones does that and you grab up some blankets? It was alittle chilly outside. I saw right through what he was doing, and Iwouldn’t fall for it so easily. Besides, I’d be more comfortable ifone of us was still with the little ones.

That’swhat we’ve got Mk here for. I didn’t need to see Mk to know that oncehe’d heard everything was okay, he’d fallen back asleep. That boy really neededto get some more sleep.

Letthe kid rest. He’s more than earned it. Now go get those blankets, if youwould be so kind. We stared each other down, silently arguingwith our eyes.

Didyou two get into a fight or something? Bai He questionedsuspiciously, looking between us.

Nothingwe can’t resolve later. I didn’t want to lie toher, but she didn’t need to know all the details of what was and wasn’tdiscussed.

Fine,I’ll go get the blankets…There’s a note on the back by the way.Wukong huffed as he stood in order to find some extra blankets and asked hisclone to gather some fruits for us. I was half sure he would just walk into a differentroom and make some blankets from his hair, but the kids didn’t need to knowthat either.

Whenhe’s out of sight I flip around his picture to read his letter. His handwritinghad gotten pretty damn sloppy, but I could still read it with ease.

Dear Macaque,

I would love to catch up with you onceeverything’s settled down. I was pretty suspicious of you when I first heardyou were going around making amends, but now I’m so glad you’re back. I’m soproud of you and I can’t wait to hear all your stories. Oh, and to tell you allof mine. There’s a lot I want to talk to you about and I really hope you’lllike what I have to say. You mean a lot to me and I’m really glad you want mearound and trust me enough to watch your cubs. We can talk more soon.

Lo From Wukong

Ireread his message a few times. I couldn’t help the stupid smile that spreadacross my face that grew every time I did so. It was sweet and something abouthis clumsy handwriting made it even more endearing. He always had such anuncanny ability to worm into my heart, especially when I didn’t want himto.

Youcan’t read it either? Bai He asked while she looked over my shoulderto attempt to read along.

OhI can. I’m just making sure I read it correctly. It’s actually a nicemessage.

Really?

Yeah,he can be nice when he wants to. Maybe I’ll give the chance to talkafter all. I’m not gonna tell you what it says though.

...Isit spicy?

Wheredo you learn these things from? And it’s not spicy,it’s just sweet. I was going to tuck it into my inside chest pocket,but instead I safely portaled them away to my home after remembering how poorof an idea that was only minutes ago. Don’t worry about it. I wannaknow what you all got up to while I was gone. Did you have a goodtime? Bai He’s eyes sparkled with joy as she jumped into recountingeverything that happened to me.

Aswe trekked to the cliff’s edge, with all the kids already in their clothes forthe day, Bai He continued to excitedly tell me all the little things they did.I was none too happy to find out that they went inside my old home, but I toldher that I was proud of the control she managed to have over her powers inorder to temporarily open the barrier protecting it from entry. I’d asked herdiscreetly if she’d open my desk drawer and breathed a sigh of relief when shesaid no. I might have died on the spot if they’d found all those unsent loveletters to Wukong. I’m sure I was absolutely disgusting sap in all of them andthe shame and embarrassment would be too much for me. The only balm for knowingthey’d gone into my house was hearing about how reminiscent Wukong had been inthe stories he’d told them about us. Once she was finished, I excused myself tohang back and talk to Wukong privately about him entering my house, hoping theproximity to the other’s will still keep them from bringing thatup.

Whydid you bring them to my house? I whispered into his ear as we brokeup the rear of the group.

Tobe honest I didn’t think that would happen. Why did you have that thing on you or at all! He whisper shouted back. Unfortunately,I’d miscalculated, and escape became impossible when his hand fisted in theback of my clothes, keeping me in place.

Itwas a very insulting gift from Spider Queen, okay!? Can we not talk aboutthis? I whisper shouted back.

Why’dyou keep it? He argued back, and I sputtered something completelyincoherent to anyone including myself.

Canwe please not talk about this! You know for a second,I was considering telling you, you could co-parent, but if this is gonna bewhat you talk about around my kids then maybe you shouldn’t. Icrossed my arms and faced away from him.

Youwere gonna say yes? His grip loosened, and his hand gently pressedinto the small of my back. The warm pressure of his hand on me sent a shiverdown my spine.

...Yourletter was very sweet, and the boys do seem to trust you quite a lot. Maybe itwouldn’t be so bad to have some extra help with the kids. I slowlyturned back to face him, but my eyes looked anywhere but his face.

Doyou mean it? He bumped his snout against my shoulder.

Ifyou keep talking like that it’ll almost sound like a proposal. Yetagain my ears burned a bright red.

Macaque.He whined softly. It’s like he knew what that sound would do to me as my earsfolded back in embarrassment.

Okay,okay yes you can co-parent now can we please just watch the sunrisetogether? I pleaded, wanting this to be over.

Ofcourse! Wukong shouted, pulling everyone’s attention to us as hewrapped in his arms. Killme.

Getoff of me! I pushed him away by his face while I tried to wiggle outof his grip.

Gasp!Flirting. Bai He snickered.

AwI knew you two cared. Mk teased us.

Ugh,I just got back! Can’t I have one morning of peace? Having enough ofthis, I dragged Wukong down into a portal and managed to separate myself fromeach other whilst we were in the void. I tossed him out behind the group andmade myself reappear in front of everyone. Look, I can see thecliff! I rushed ahead to set up some of the blankets so the kidsweren’t stilling on the hard ground. Just as they were approaching, I could seethe very beginnings of the sunrise. Hurry up, it's starting!I sat down on the blankets and rapidly patted the spot beside me.

Thekids put some pep in their sept as they joined me on the blankets. The boysjoined me first, leaping onto my back to climb it and peered over the clifffrom the safety of my shoulders. Then Bai He sat to my right and tucked herselfunder my arm to cozy up to my side. Followed by Mk who plopped down on my leftwith a pouty Wukong in tow.

Didyou wanna switch places? I heard Mk teasingly whisper to Wukong. Istifled a laugh so they wouldn’t suspect that I was paying attention to themeven though I’m sure Wukong knew I could hear them.

Whywould I want that? I watched him cross his arms like a huffy childfrom the corner of my eye.

Noreason. Mk snickered. I felt a swirl of pride for the kid watchinghim mess with his mentor with ease. I gave him a little pat on his back with mytail and let it drop behind him. I stiffened slightly at feeling Wukong’s tailagainst mine and tried to move, but his tail moved to loosely coil around thetip of mine, keeping it in place. I glanced at him once again from the cornerof my eye and found his eyes staring back at me. His tail squeezed mine and Ibroke eye contact to admire the sunrise with my loved ones, not bothering tomove my tail again.

Together,bunched up and warm amongst the blankets and pleasant company, we watched asthe inky sky was softened with the very beginnings of purple and orange as thesun began to rise from the ocean. Beams of light shot high into the clouds and grewin intensity as the sun rose from its long slumber to grace the world with itsbeauty. As it glowed, red entered the sky as the oranges grew more vibrantwhile the purple spread only to disappear within minutes, overtaken by thesun’s radiance. It was beautiful, just as I remembered it, but now, evenamongst my family, there was a twinge of pain in my heart looking at it afterall this time.

Asthe nostalgia faded, I took note of everything that was off in this momentcompared to the past. I could still hear the sounds of the animals waking upwith the light of day, but there was no longer the sound of monkeys and cubslike ourselves joining the chorus. That homey feeling and comfort I feltknowing that they were safe and sound, happy among their family and friends wasgone. For a moment, the silence was deafening, but there was another keydifference. I no longer felt jealous of those families, having what I couldonly dream of and memories of my own little family beginning our day sweetenedwhat was once a bitter emotion. So much had changed, between us, about themountain, about the world, yet here we were, still able to watch the sunrisetogether.

It’sso beautiful. Bai He curled up further as she hugged my sidetighter.

Yeah,it sure is. I pulled her closer with one arm around her and squeezedmy hand on her shoulder protectively.

Inever thought I could have this life then. Despite it all, I think Mihou wouldbe proud of what I’ve made for ourself. Maybe it’s not exactly what they’dpictured, but I think it’s close enough and just like the sunrise, it wasbeautiful.