Kikidori strolled down the dimly lit halls of the castle, his usual nonchalant expression masking the strange swirl of emotions inside him. It was quiet—eerily so. The chaos of the past weeks still lingered in the air, and the losses hung over everyone like a shadow.
When he reached Yumi's room, he paused, his hand hovering over the door. He hadn't really talked to her since he'd been back. Sure, they'd exchanged words, but not *really* talked. He knew she was dealing with a lot—Elnora's death, the destruction of her college, the war, *his* death and resurrection. It was a lot for anyone, let alone a 20-year-old still trying to figure out life.
Kikidori sighed and knocked on the door. "Yumi? You in there?"
There was a long pause before her muffled voice replied, "Yeah, come in."
He opened the door to find her sitting cross-legged on her bed, surrounded by papers and sketches. Her black hair was a mess, her eyeliner smudged, and her face looked pale. She had her headphones around her neck, and her eyes flicked up briefly before returning to the sketch she was working on.
"You good?" Kikidori asked, leaning against the doorframe.
Yumi shrugged, not looking up. "Define 'good.'"
He walked in and sat on the edge of her bed, careful not to disturb the chaotic pile of papers. "I mean, are you eating? Sleeping? Not plotting to jump off anything again?"
That made her glance up, a small smirk tugging at her lips. "You're such a dick, Dad."
"Hey, I'm just checking," he said, raising his hands defensively. "You've been through a lot. I mean, *shit,* I've been through a lot, and I'm me."
Yumi set her pencil down and leaned back against the wall. "I'm… fine. I guess. I don't know." She picked at the corner of a page. "It's just weird, you know? Everything's gone. College is gone. Cerberus is gone. Elnora's gone. You were gone." Her voice cracked on the last word, and she quickly looked away.
Kikidori's chest tightened, but he kept his tone light. "Yeah, well, apparently, I'm too stubborn to stay dead. You can thank whatever glowing jackass brought me back."
Yumi let out a soft laugh, wiping at her eyes. "Cerberus wouldn't have wanted us to be sad, though. He'd probably just bark at us until we fed him or something."
"Yeah, that little shit was always hungry," Kikidori said with a small smile. "Rest in peace, buddy."
They sat in silence for a moment, the weight of everything hanging between them.
Finally, Yumi broke the silence. "You think things will ever go back to normal?"
Kikidori tilted his head. "Define 'normal.'"
"You know… not this," she said, gesturing vaguely around her.
He shrugged. "Probably not. But who the fuck wants normal anyway? Normal's boring."
Yumi snorted. "Yeah, I guess you're right."
Kikidori reached over and ruffled her hair, earning a half-hearted swat from her. "You'll figure it out, kid. You're my daughter, after all. You've got this."
"Yeah, yeah," she muttered, but there was a small smile on her lips.
As Kikidori stood to leave, he paused at the door and glanced back at her. "Hey, Yumi?"
"Yeah?"
"I love you, you little emo gremlin."
"Love you too, you old bastard."
He chuckled and closed the door behind him, leaving her to her sketches.
The End of Chapter 3