Chapter 335: The Magnolia Sheltered From The Storm

[FROLO]

The office looked like it had been that way for years. The walls had remained the same. A touch of black and grey, like all life mattered and didn’t matter at the same time.

He’d been here when it happened.

The day the white walls were cursed to be grey. The day the skies had turned red, and the only heart that mattered was shattered into pieces.

They’d tried to paint it anew, hoping to the gods that things would be better. But no amount of paint would cover the emptiness that had been there.

The kind that neither of them understood at the time.

He remembered when the first request had come.

"He needs us."

It had been so simple.

And he didn’t ask.

He never asked questions.

Just went where she told him they were needed.

Yet that day, inside the five-floor office building, he knew he would do whatever it took to make things work. To bring back the slightest ounce of life.

That he’d teach him how to live.

She had tried empathy, love, affection. Yet even then nothing had changed. She had rationalized the first time, but by the end she knew she had to look for someone to help.

Because she knew if she picked up arms, there would be no one to keep the balance.

She’d give up arms... so he could be the arms commander.

She’d stepped down... because she knew someone had to take up the bigger responsibility.

She was the only one who translated the world for them, and if she crossed over into the darkness, they would have nothing to live for.

"Nine and too dangerous to live alone," she had said.

"Then be the bridge. I’ll take care of everything else," he had assured her.

And he did.

Because in their world everything meant everything.

No tables left unturned. No one left to question anything. Just certainty and a life that needed to be protected for the longest time.

It was never supposed to be hard.

Maybe it was.

Maybe it wasn’t.

But time had changed so much.

Because the child he had saved, the child she and he had protected with everything. That child had grown up. That child was no longer a child anymore.

Not that he would ever see him as anything more than the child he’d read books for to sleep. The child who complained about the taste of butter while eating grease because he thought it’d make him more efficient.

That child...

He’d give up his life for that child.

Didn’t matter how much time he had left. Or even what the child had become. Or what the child represented.

He would always be like his child.

His favorite child, even if he was the only child he tolerated to this day.

The child he’d loved and still loved with everything.

The child he’d made sure learned how to breathe right before he learned anything else.

Now he was here.

The walls still grey. The building somehow ridiculously taller. The hints of black that terrified everyone. The place that had somehow become home for his favorite child.

Perhaps that was why he had come.

Had answered the call.

Had stayed watching for the longest time.

Because the thing about being a parent, no matter how much time passed, the child would always be the child.

Maybe a few things had changed.

His child had grown bigger. Stronger.

But he’d always still answer that call.

Always.

"This way, sir," the man in combat wear said to him, pointing him in the direction of an office on the empty floor.

The hallways on this floor had a light grey touch to it. The smell of paint was still obvious. He could swear the paint job hadn’t lasted more than two years.

But the fact that it was lighter than the other stops made him feel a bit better. Maybe his kid was finally learning colors.

He was starting to embrace life.

Was it worth it?

Would it be worth it?

He didn’t know.

But one thing he was certain of was that he’d never let the phone ring for long if the child called.

"You look rugged," she said when he passed her. She still looked the same way she had all those years ago. When she had reeled him into the job. When they had both realized it was not just a job for them anymore.

"Schizophrenia kicked my ass; be nice," he laughed, a sound that seemed so new to this floor.

And she pulled him into a hug, one that lasted a little longer. Then again, so much time had passed since they had last seen each other.

Contact hadn’t been allowed unless necessary; it was their rule.

Now they were in the same building. Holding onto each other like life had stolen so much from them. But they knew what they were getting into the first time all those years ago.

"Still running the schizophrenic joke all these years. If you eventually get diagnosed positively, do not act surprised," she laughed when they pulled back. The obvious toll time had taken on them was something that reminded them of how far they had come.

But time was a construct, wasn’t it?

"I’m too healthy for that. Besides, I can’t leave our child, remember?" he said like they had been the designated parents for years.

She smiled sadly at him, like she was trying to hold onto something more of what they had gotten through. But then he understood her.

It wasn’t easy the first time they had to watch him change.

It wasn’t any easier today either.

But eternal support was a pact they had made.

Besides, parenting had made their lives easy, or not. Still didn’t complain as much about it, yeah?

"Go... he’s waiting. We’ll have more time to catch up," she said, and he smiled at her again.

Then pulled her into another hug.

"We’re both here now. Don’t worry too much about anything," he reassured, and she just nodded.

"You always were good with your words," she laughed quietly as he stared at her, eyes still soft.

"Anything for my best girl," he said, brushing a stray strand of hair from her face.

"Go on," she insisted.

"Don’t be a stranger, zaychik," he said before he walked away, not oblivious to the little smile that played on her lips.

[Trans: Zaychik = Little bunny]

Gods, he’d missed that smile.

Then he walked ahead. The office that stared right at him. He knew his child wouldn’t have called if it weren’t urgent. He never did anyway.

So he knocked when he got to the door.

"Come in, it’s open," he heard the voice that he’d waited to hear for so long. For way too long.

And when he stepped into the office, he saw him.

His child.

Their child.

Didn’t matter who did what.

Or what got them here.

But he was here. Now.

"You’ve gotten so big," he mused as he stared at the boy before him.

He was taller now. Bearded. Had long hair. So many masculine features that should have told him that he’d grown up.

But still, he saw their child.

"You came," the boy breathed in relief, like a man who had been waiting for this forever.

It shouldn’t have been that heavy, but so much time had gone by. So much time.

"You called, my little Sergio."

"I’m older now, Rastenkin."

"You’ll always be my little boy with Anya. Always."

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[A/N]

## You might need to re-read Chapter 305 for more info on Rastenkin, or maybe his intro-ish...