Epilouge: Memory

Aira walked into the house, worn out and ready to take a nap. It was just her luck that Hisagi had been sick today, and being the lovely Captain she was, she let him stay out without having to do paperwork. But guess who ended up having to do it for him?

Yeah, that's right. Aira.

When she opened the door, she saw a little girl with short red hair and an everlasting smile on her face running down the hall.

"Mommy!" She screamed.

Aira smiled and opened her arms for her daughter.

"Hey, baby." She swept the toddler up into her arms and swung her around. "What did you do today?"

"Daddy took me to visit Rinrin-chan and Kurodo-kun!" She smiled. "It was fun! Kurodo made himself look like Daddy, it was so funny!"

"I bet it was." Aira laughed. "Where is your Daddy?"

"He told me not to tell you!" She put a finger over her lips. "It's a secret."

"Oh, it is, is it?" Aira put her child on her hip and used her free arm to tap her finger on her chin. "What if I...tickle-attack you!"

She used her free arm to wiggle her fingers in her little girls side, making her laugh and squirm.

"Are ya gonna tell me now?" Aira teased her. "Are ya? Are ya?"

"Mommy, I'll tell you! I'll tell you!" She laughed and sighed when Aira stopped. "You almost made me pee in my pants, Mommy."

"That's what Mommy's are for." Aira giggled. "Now, spill."

"Daddy's in the back yard on the patio." She said. "He said to try and keep you away from back there for a while, so I was going to take you upstairs to my room! But, now you've figured it out..."

"Yes, I have." Aira placed her baby girl on her feet and pushed her gently towards the stairs. "Now, it's late. Run up stairs and get ready for bed."

"Okay, Mommy!" She ran towards the stairs.

"I'll come up there and tuck you in in a minute, okay?" Aira called after her.

" 'Kay, Mommy!"

And then she was gone.

Aira sighed before turning to walk towards the back yard patio. When she got there, she peeked through the door slightly.

When she opened it all the way, she saw Nova whirl around with wide eyes to look at her. She leaned against the door frame with a smirk on her face.

"Hey, there." She greeted him.

"Hi." He mumbled.

Her eyes caught the table, the way it was set perfectly and the candles yet to be lit. There was a bottle of wine and two chairs. She gasped and walked forward.

"Nova..." She whispered.

"I take it Kioku didn't get the chance to drag you up to her room?" Nova asked.

"Nope." She smiled, shaking her head. "The tickle-attack was all it took to get her to tattle on you."

"Figures..." He sighed.

"Nova..." She repeated, wrapping her arms around him, she hugged him tight and kissed the hollow of his neck. "You remembered."

"Happy aniversary." He said brightly, holding her. "And of course I remembered."

"Well, you didn't last year." She pulled back. "And the year before that..."

"Yeah, well..." He shrugged. "I said I was sorry."
"And I forgave you." She smiled. "Now, kiss me, stupid."

He chuckled before leaning down to press his lips to hers. She tilted her head when he opened his mouth to get better access as he pressed his tounge against that one spot in her mouth that made her shiver.

They'd gotten accustomed to this. Every kiss helped them learn more, how to please the other more.

Nova's hand cupped her neck as his other arm pulled her even closer. With thier bodies fitted to each other, Aira tangled her fingers in that soft red hair she loved so much.

When they pulled apart, neither of them could breath. Aira giggled when she saw Nova's face was flushed.

"It never changes..." She said as she touched his cheek.

It made him blush even more.

"You silly Super Nova." She kissed him softly one more time. "We've gotta go put our daughter to bed. Then we'll come out here and have a nice dinner. And then...who knows what will happen?"

She smirked, causing to scratch the back of his head with that cute grin on his face.

"Any way I can convince you to skip dinner?" He asked.

"Of course not." She said innocently. "You went through the trouble of making it, so I'm going to enjoy it."

"Fine." He sighed, before following her inside.