Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/ works/6444682. Rating: Explicit Archive Warning: Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Major_Character_Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage Category: Gen, M/M Fandom: K_(Anime), Gangsta._(Manga) Relationship: Isana_Yashiro/Yatogami_Kurou, Adolf_K._Weismann/Yatogami_Kurou, Adolf_K. Weismann_&_Neko, Isana_Yashiro_&_Neko, Adolf_K._Weismann/oc, Adolf_K. Weismann_&_oc, Adolf_K._Weismann_&_Kushina_Anna, Adolf_K._Weismann_&_Alex Benedetto, Adolf_K._Weismann_&_Kusanagi_Izumo, Adolf_K._Weismann_& Klaudia_Weismann, Adolf_K._Weismann/Tatara_Totsuka Character: Adolf_K._Weismann, Neko_(K), Yatogami_Kurou, Klaudia_Weismann, Alex Benedetto, Isana_Yashiro, Josepha_M._Weismann_(oc), Berthold_C._Weismann_ (oc), Gunther_Adlersflugel(oc), Kusanagi_Izumo, Kushina_Anna Additional Tags: Crossovers_&_Fandom_Fusions, Past_Underage_Sex, Underage_Smoking, Non- Consensual, Rape, Rape_Aftermath, Sexual_Violence, Violence, Violent_Sex, Depression, Suicide_Attempt, Suicidal_Thoughts, Gay_Sex, Gay_Male Character, Graphic_Description, Vomiting Stats: Published: 2016-04-03 Updated: 2016-07-07 Chapters: 3/? Words: 4212 ****** Neverending Nightmares ****** by ArgentumPhilosophus Summary Adolf K. Weismann is known not only for his genius, but also for his bright, warm smile and cheery disposition. Loved by his clansmen, the former Immortal King has settled nicely into his new life with his self-made family. What isn't widely known, however, is that the king's smile is but a mask, and horrors he'd kept suppressed for years are starting to break it. What will his first two clansmen see when the mask finally shatters? Will the painful memories, the nightmares that plague him nightly break their king? [Set post-second season, includes a slight crossover *Alex Benedetto is from Gangsta, but I roleplay on tumblr with a sweet Alex who has a K verse where she's a Silver and a strain, and serves as Adi's right hand*, ocs and buildup to AdiKuroh. Based off of my own headcanons on my rp blog, plus shared headcanons and interactions with my favorite partners. Enjoy!] Notes *PLEASE NOTE THAT THE CONTENT OF THIS STORY IS VERY VIOLENT, VERY TRIGGERING AND HAS THE POTENTIAL TO GIVE YOU NIGHTMARES, THERE IS A REASON THAT IT'S NAMED AFTER THE PSYCHOLOGICAL HORROR VIDEO GAME! PLEASE DO NOT READ THIS FAN-FICTION IF YOU ARE HEAVILY TRIGGERED BY ANY OF THE SENSITIVE TOPIC MATERIAL STATED IN THE TAGS!! BE SAFE AND PROCEED WITH CAUTION.* If you've got a stomach of iron, please turn off the lights and enjoy. {None of the characters belong to me, and this rendition of Alex Benedetto belongs to my dear reginaiism on tumblr. I apologize for the short prologue, I might go back and fix it.} ***** Prologue; A Fear of Slumber ***** “Shiro, you need to sleep…” a gentle, beautiful voice rang out in the cool evening air, along with the soft padding of her feet against the cement of the balcony outside the Silver Clan’s small dorm room. A delicate, ebony hand reached up to rest on the king’s shoulder. Slowly, Adolf’s head turned, tired silver eyes meeting concerned cyan. There were rings under his eyes, his skin even paler than usual. He’d avoided sleep ever since he’d returned to his clan six days before, and the king’s right hand was worried .  “Alex, you know why I don’t want to...I can’t..What if I scream, I can’t let them hear…They’d wake up... ” Adolf replied, his voice hoarse with exhaustion. He didn’t want Neko, or Kuroh to see how weak their king truly was. He wanted to keep up the facade of strength and cheer as long as humanly possible. “ Please, Shiro. They’re starting to notice that you’re tired...I know you’re scared of the nightmares, but you have to rest, you can’t go on like this. You know I’ll be right next to you... ”The strain replied, gently rubbing the elder’s back. Alex Benedetto was a strain that Adolf had picked up in Europe during his year with the Lieutenant with the power to heal, and cast a powerful shield with her angelic singing voice. It was her that the professor trusted with his secrets, and just about everything else. She was his right hand, and the only one who knew the full extent of Adolf’s fears, his mental problems, and his horrid history. When the king returned in his new body, they’d purchased a bigger bed for the small dorm room so his whole clan could fit comfortably in a bed together (as Neko and Alex preferred to sleep at their king’s side, there was no room for a second bed, and Adolf refused to let Kuroh sleep on the floor despite his protests).This was a blessing, in a way, because in their usual positions, Alex was close to the king in case of a nightmare, where she’d need to remove him from sight until his perturbation eased. Extinguishing the cigarette he’d been smoking on the balcony ledge, the king finally acquiesced to his songbird’s supplications, allowing the curvaceous woman to lead him inside, shutting the glass door behind them. Kuroh and Neko had already fallen asleep, their forms rising and falling with their slumbering breaths. Adolf gazed in longing at the obsidian haired male sleeping peacefully, Alex shooting the king a sad look; She naturally knew of her king’s woes on that situation. The German only smiled, patting her head gently, messing up her dark locks slightly. The two slid into bed, the king situated in between Alex and Neko (as the latter preferred to sleep beside ‘her Shiro’). Slender, dark fingers running through Adolf’s silver locks soon soothed him to sleep, but not without the anxiety he felt of nightmares he was sure were soon to come... ***** Abandoned by God ***** Chapter Summary The Silver King drifts off to sleep, but instead of dreaming pleasant dreams, Adolf is thrown into his worst nightmare. Many years ago, life as he'd known it had been shattered. The memories still haunt him, torture him until he breaks. It is times like this, when Adolf needs his right hand's support more than anything... Chapter Notes *PLEASE NOTE THAT THE CONTENT OF THIS STORY IS VERY VIOLENT, VERY TRIGGERING AND HAS THE POTENTIAL TO GIVE YOU NIGHTMARES, THERE IS A REASON THAT IT'S NAMED AFTER THE PSYCHOLOGICAL HORROR VIDEO GAME! PLEASE DO NOT READ THIS FAN-FICTION IF YOU ARE HEAVILY TRIGGERED BY ANY OF THE SENSITIVE TOPIC MATERIAL STATED IN THE TAGS!! BE SAFE AND PROCEED WITH CAUTION. THIS CHAPTER IN PARTICULAR HAS AN ABUNDANCE OF TRIGGERING CONTENT, INCLUDING RAPE, VIOLENCE, BLOOD, VOMIT, IMPLIED SUICIDAL THOUGHTS, CHILD ABUSE AND CHILD RAPE. AGAIN, PLEASE CONTINUE WITH CAUTION.* If you've got a stomach of iron, please turn off the lights and enjoy. {None of the characters belong to me. Another pretty short chapter, but I might come back and tweak this one too. I hope to make the next chapters longer, but I'm glad to finally finish this one!} It had been a quiet night in the Weismann household; young Adolf had been seated on his mother, Josepha's lap on an aged, wooden rocking chair, entertained by the child’s older best friend, Gunther, who was waving a small stuffed dog in front of him and making little barking sounds, which amused the silver-locked little boy to no end. Klaudia was playing a game of chess on the floor with the father of the two, Berthold. The children weren’t all that old at the time, Adolf was only seven, Klaudia ten and Gunther twelve. A sharp knock on the front door stopped all five of them instantly. Adolf’s parents had given each other confused looks, as neither adult had been expecting company that night other than Gunther, and he was right in front of the snowy haired Weismann matron, holding little Adolf’s hand, the latter seeming slightly unnerved by the sudden change. “I’ll get it, Josepha. Stay with the children.” Berthold finally spoke up, his deep, soothing voice calming Adolf slightly. Crystal blue eyes had looked up into the beautiful rubies of his wife’s as he rose from the floor, his footfalls loud, but somehow reassuring to the children as he left to see who could possibly be calling on them at such an hour. They believed if there was any threat behind the thick, wooden front door; it couldn’t possibly get past a large, sturdy man like Berthold Weismann, not ever. Ten, tense seconds passed before the door opened, and voices could be heard. Suddenly, a loud bang can be heard, along with a yowl of pain from Mr.Weismann and heavy liquid splattering against the walls and the floors. Josepha bristled slightly, holding Adolf close to her in fear, Klaudia shaking with fear on the floor, her baby-blue eyes watering. The silver-haired little boy in question turned to Gunther, his silvery eyes wide with panic. “Gunther, take Klaudia and get out of here!” Adolf ordered, but the elder boy shook his head, golden curls bouncing with the moment. “No, Adi!! I won’t leave you here!! I’m staying to protect you!” he protested stubbornly, refusing to leave the little boy to the wolves. “Please, Gunther! Klaudia needs you right now, protect her! Get her out of here, bring her to my grandfather!!!” Adolf pleaded with the elder boy. Gunther shook his head, as the mayhem in the front room continued. “But I can’t, I can’t leave you!!” he replied, his voice cracking. “GO, GET OUT OF HERE! PLEASE!! YOU HAVE TO SAVE KLAUDIA” little Adolf shouted, spurring Gunther on. The eldest of the children quickly picked the shivering Klaudia up off the floor, tears welling up in the crystal blue eyes of the twelve year old as he threw the eldest of the Weismann children over his shoulder and ran off. They poured down his cheeks as Klaudia screamed for her mother and little brother, and he quickly jumped out the window, carrying the crying little girl away from the brutality behind them. Josepha, as if snapped out of a trance, quickly rose from the couch with little Adolf in her arms in an attempt to flee as well, but this attempt was thwarted quickly. Berthold’s assailants; two bulky men with hideous, dark mustaches and beady eyes burst into the sitting room, pulling out a pistol and shooting at Josepha’s left ankle, which spurted bright red blood soon after. The snowette screeched in agony, falling to the floor with Adolf.   “Mother, Mother!!” Adolf cried as Josepha shuddered in pain on the floor, entrapped in her embrace. The smaller of the two stepped forward, yanking the injured woman away from her son as she yelped in pain. “Mother!” Adolf cried as he tried to go after her, but the bigger of the two had come up behind him and roughly shoved the little boy down onto the floor, his tiny face smashing into the floorboards with a painful crack, chipping one of his front teeth and cutting his lip. Blood oozed from the wound as the man continued to viciously beat the tiny boy, forcing him to watch his comrade assault Josepha. Adolf watched in terror as a sharp blade tore into both his mother’s clothing and flesh, causing the woman to scream in agony. Blood splattered onto the floor from both victims, desperately trying to reach for each other. Mrs.Weismann wailed in pain as her rapist forced himself inside her, violently grabbing, stabbing and beating her as she sobbed and screamed. Adolf couldn't quite understand what that monster was doing to his mother, but he knew she was in pain, and it horrified him. His vision was blurring slightly from the pain he was enduring, not even being able to tell anymore whether the man was beating or stabbing him. The small boy felt a wave of cold hit him as his shredded clothes were torn from his battered body, and the man rose from the ground and stepped towards the fireplace. Adolf didn't realize what was happening until he heard his mother plead with the man not to hurt him. Adi screamed in agony as he felt the poker from the fireplace, red hot from exposure to the flames, come into contact with his skin. The little boy writhed on the floor as he was repeatedly burnt by his assailant, and it felt like forever before he finally stopped. Adolf's silver, tear filled eyes started to blur again as he heard his mother scream. “PLEASE, I BEG YOU, DON'T!!! HE'S ONLY A LITTLE BOY, PLEASE!!!” she begged as little Adolf registered a metallic sound coming from behind him. He had no idea what it was, but he knew it had to be worse than the torture he'd endured thus far from the sound of his mothers frantic pleas. In an instant, what was left of Adolf's innocence was mercilessly, callously ripped from him; Adolf's eyes shot open and he howled in anguish as he felt something large force it's way inside of him from behind and his groin was savagely groped by his rapist. Adolf sobbed and wailed in pain as the assault continued, blood further staining the floor beneath him. The little boy watched as the wooden beads of his mother's rosary, saturated in her blood clattered to the floor and tears ran down her pale, bloodied, bruised face. “Why has God abandoned us?!” ---- Adolf shot up in bed, biting his tongue to stop himself from screaming. Panting heavily, he looked over at his three clansmen to check and see if they were still asleep, and much to his relief, they were, soundly. Careful not to jar any of them, the king slowly crawled out of bed vertically, cautiously placing both feet on the ground and rising slowly from the mattress to prevent as much creaking from the bed springs as possible. Adolf carefully tiptoed across the room and into the bathroom, collapsing in front of the toilet and promptly, violently vomited into it. Tears ran down his cheeks as the stream of sickness stained the white, porcelain bowl, and he broke into a cold sweat. It hadn't taken long after for his mother to succumb to her wounds. At the last minute, Berthold had managed to use what was left of his life to shoot down the monsters, then crawl over to his dying wife, and traumatized son. Josepha had crawled over to Adolf, holding the shocked and battered seven year old close to her and Berthold as the two of them laid dying in a pool of their own blood. They'd asked him to take good of his sister, and the small boy had promised to keep her safe and loved. By the time Adolf's grandfather arrived, his son-in- law and his daughter had already passed on, his traumatized grandson still cradled in his mother's arms. Little Adolf hadn't spoken to anyone for almost a year after that, the two Weismann siblings having moved in with their Uncle Abraham, Josepha's brother, and their elder cousins. Just remembering that night from Hell made the German sick, made him hate himself so much. He would have considered right there and then, to finally end his suffering, had he not suddenly felt a pair of warm, soothing hands pull his silvery locks away from his face.  "Shiro, I'm so sorry. It was that nightmare again, wasn't it?" Alex whispered, her voice heavy with sadness. Adolf nodded before another wave of nausea hit him, another stream of sickness spewing into the toilet. The buxom woman pressed her face against his neck, fighting tears. She knew about what he'd dreamed already, he'd told her long ago of the night his parents, and his innocence had been cruelly stolen away from him. "Is there anything I can do?" she asked as his vomiting finally stopped. Adolf shook his head, and Alex helped him off the floor and to the sink. Picking up a washcloth and wetting it with warm water, the beauty started to gently wash the sickness, sweat and tears from his face as he washed his hands, the king shivering as he tried to relax. "Alex, I can't take it anymore. I just want it to be over." he shakily told her, breaking the silence. Alex put down the washcloth and wrapped her arms around her king's waist.  "Shiro, oh Shiro...Don't talk like that. I need you, we need you... Neko, imagine how heartbroken she'd be if she lost you...Please, you're all we have, all I have. And Kuroh...You should have seen him when your soul left that boy's body, when we thought you'd died for good...Shiro, please don't think like that." she gently said to Adolf as she lead him back to bed. Settling down once more, Alex pressed a soft kiss to her best friend's forehead, running dark fingers through his hair again. "Shh now, try to go back to sleep..." she murmured, trying her best to soothe the king. She began to hum a soft lullaby, praying that this time, his dreams would be beautiful, happy ones. "As the evening fast approaches, And I pray for you And the night ahead... I wish only the very best for you, As I lay you down to bed..."   ***** Dreams of Paradise Part One; First Dream and Revelations ***** Chapter Summary Adolf dreams of a life he longs for, but cannot have. Fear rules his being, of a curse he believes already took two lives. Unable to cope, he takes drastic measures. Alex tries her best to soothe her kings woes, but will it work? What else will we learn about the Silver King in this chapter? Continue to find out more about the king, his clansmen and a secret romance between two clans! Chapter Notes Wow! Long time no update! This chapter took me awhile due to insecurity and lack of muse, but it's finally met my standards! A quick shout out to the story's first comment, sent in by jeliared3! I was over the moon when I first read it, and wanted to personally thank this person for such a sweet comment! It truly made me so happy when I received it, as I am honestly inseccure about my writing sometimes, especially with descriptions, and it was so reassuring to hear that my work is well received so far! So here's to you, jeliared3! Your kind words helped me finish the chapter! Sorry it's so short again, they always look so much longer in the document.... Here's to hoping the next one isn't a short one! WARNING, BLOOD AND SELF HARM TRIGGERS AHEAD. READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION, I DO NOT WANT TO MAKE ANYONE UNCOMFORTABLE, SO PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE TURN BACK IF YOU HAVE THOSE TRIGGERS. THANK YOU. If you're in the clear, please enjoy! Warm rays of sunlight caressed the king’s cheek, gently urging silvery eyes open to greet what seemed to be a new day. The first thing Adolf noted, was that the walls weren’t the colorful, digitally enhanced ones of the Silvers’ tiny dorm room at the high school island; they were the cream, forget-me-not dotted wallpaper that decorated the master bedroom in the home in Prague, the one that Alex had chosen from a catalogue as it was being renovated. The second, was that there was a warm, mobile weight on his chest, a person, and his arms were around them. When the king looked down, it took everything in him not to cry with pure joy ; it was Kuroh, the young man who’d been his protector when he’d lost his memories and had been framed by a monster who’d devastated so many lives and stole his body, the man who Adolf had fallen absolutely in love with...and here he was, nestled contently, safely in his king’s arms, shoulders rising and falling with each slumbering breath, head laid over the heart that wholly belonged to him. God, Kuroh looked so beautiful ; his long, obsidian locks had been let loose from his ponytail, spread across his back and over his shoulders. His porcelain skin glowed in the morning light, looking almost the same shade as Adolf’s much paler complexion. Dressed only in what seemed to be a peachy colored silk top- and-shorts pajama set adorned with lace details (possibly purchased to appeal to the king’s taste for pretty men in women’s clothing), Kuroh was a vision of beauty. His gaze continuing to scan over his love, he noticed something that made his heart nearly leap out of his chest with gleeful surprise; on each of their left ring fingers sat wedding bands, Kuroh’s adorned with shimmering diamonds and Adolf’s pure silver. They were married , he was actually married to Kuroh . Adolf absentmindedly ran his fingers through silky strands of black hair, which seemed to bring his beloved wife out of slumber, Kuroh’s sparkling blue eyes slowly fixing upon the elder man.   “You’re up earlier than usual, is something wrong?” Kuroh inquired, voice slightly hoarse, lithe fingers gently smoothing silvery locks of hair from his husband’s face, his own beautiful features contorted into a look of concern. The king could only chuckle, leaning up slightly and pulling Kuroh further up, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead, arms resting around his darling’s waist. “How, my beautiful Mrs.Weismann, could anything possibly be wrong when I have you in my arms?” he asked playfully, kissing the same spot again before his wife raised an eyebrow, gently flicking his husband’s forehead. “I have told you time and time again; I already let you get away with calling me your wife, but I draw the line at ‘Mrs.’.” he replied, but before anything else could be said, the king captured his Kuroh’s lips in a sweet , yet needy kiss. The feeling of the knight’s lips moving against his own felt even better than flying, overwhelming euphoria coursing through his veins. The second they parted, Adolf gently stroked Kuroh’s cheek. “You’re beautiful, Kuroh...I love you so much…” he murmured,smiling brightly when Kuroh kissed his forehead. “I love you too, more than anything.” the knight replied. Everything was perfect, so perfect …   And then it ended. The king opened his eyes, truly this time, to Neko’s face looming over him, smile bright and cheerful. “ Shiro! Shiro, it’s morning! Kurosuke and Ally made breakfast! ” the strain chirped, hopping out of bed as Adolf sat up, offering Neko a small smile. “ Okay, I’ll be there in a second. ” he replied as he gently patted her head, Neko purring happily before bounding over to their small table, bouncing up and down with joy as Alex and Kuroh set the food on the table. The professor hid his sadness well, slipping out of bed to join his family. The only one who didn’t even seem close to fooled was Alex, who knew her king too well for him to be able to hide anything from her, her eyes wandering to him every so once and awhile as the Silver Clan enjoyed their breakfast, Kuroh and Neko already getting into a small quarrel over the feline’s enduring lack of table manners, her nightgown lightly speckled with grains of rice. Within the hour; Kuroh had left to do the grocery shopping for the week (as feeding four people, one of which was near constantly hungry was rather difficult), Neko had changed (thankfully the king’s right hand had convinced her to do so in the bathroom this time) into her uniform and headed off to class, Alex was cleaning the mess from breakfast and Adolf was in the shower, as on most days, his lessons didn’t start until ten thirty. Sitting on the floor of the shower, the king had curled up into a ball, hugging his knees to his chest as he cried silently, his shoulders shaking, having been clean for the past ten minutes. The bittersweet dream had practically ripped his heart right out of his chest. So beautiful , it had been so beautiful ; what the king wanted more than anything , but could never have, he didn’t deserve to be with someone so pure , and perfect like Kuroh. And besides that, being with the king could cost the knight his life. Thanks to the terrible luck that seemed to radiate from him, Adolf had already lost two lovers; his darling Gunther seven decades ago, and the lover no one save Anna and Alex knew he’d had, Tatara Totsuka. The very man who’d been assassinated that fateful December well over a year ago, the event that had instigated the Ashinaka Island Incident. Once the Silver King had regained his memories, and realized he’d lost another lover, his heart had shattered once more, having spent the weeks after crying near-non-stop. When he realized that he was falling in love with Kuroh, he’d vowed to never act upon it, to spare Kuroh from suffering the same fate as his two previous loves. Looking up through saturated locks of silver hair, the king’s eyes fixed on a razor blade, one that had been effectively concealed under his two hundred dollar bottle of body wash in the shower caddy. Adolf reached up with a long, pale arm, pulling the razor from it’s hiding place, examining it closer as he debated on distracting himself from the emotional pain with physical pain and fear. Sharp metal had just barely sliced through the king’s skin when he was interrupted by the soft, melodious voice of his right hand and confidant.   “Shiro, it’s just the two of us now...Won’t you tell me what’s wrong? You seemed so unhappy at breakfast…” she said, her eyes widening when she heard the telltale, metallic ‘plink’ of a razor being dropped on the bathroom tiles. “Shiro!!” she exclaimed, bursting into the room in a panic, pulling the curtain back to see her king sitting on the shower floor, blood oozing from a fresh cut over the veins in his left wrist, gazing up at her with startled silver eyes, bloodshot from crying. “A-Alex!” was all the king could choke out as she grabbed his uninjured wrist, not caring about his state of undress, as she pulled him from the shower. The sight of her king deliberately hurting himself was something she simply couldn’t ignore. Pulling the dripping elder onto a chair in the tiny bathroom, Alex wrapped a towel around Adolf to afford the man some dignity, placing her scarf over his eyes to prevent him from seeing the blood before pulling the first aid kit from the cabinet. Keeping her eyes lowered, she set to work on tending to the self inflicted wound. After a few tense moments of silence, the strain gently squeezed her king’s fingers.   “...Why, Shiro? What happened, to drive you to this ? Did you have another nightmare? Please, tell me what’s wrong...” the strain pleaded softly, her heart aching from seeing her king, her savior, the only family she had in so much emotional agony that he’d use his hemophobia to distract from it. Another moment passed in silence before the king spoke up.   “It wasn’t...It wasn’t a nightmare, not at all. It was a good dream, so beautiful...But it’s just that; a dream...Gott, Ally...He and I...We were married, Ally...We were married.” he replied, choking on the last few words before tears slipped past the silver and purple material of Alex’s scarf. Alex wrapped her arms around the elder, squeezing him tightly. No wonder he was in so much pain. Alex knew, she knew how much her king wanted to be with their clansman, with Kuroh . How much he believed he didn’t deserve to be with the knight, how afraid something bad would happen to him if he ever acted upon those feelings. He felt old, unworthy and perverted for falling for Kuroh. “I’m so sorry, Shiro. If only you’d told me sooner….” Alex replied, kissing her king’s cheek. The strain felt guilty for not realizing her king’s deep distress sooner. Gently patting her head, Adolf stood to get dressed, Alex taking the hint to step out for a moment. The dark skinned woman looked down when she felt something furry rub against her heel; it was Gumdrop, the kitten that had belonged to her king’s deceased lover, Tatara Totsuka. Ever since he’d regained his memories, he’d been caring for the little tabby, the only physical piece he had left of the second man he’d ever loved. The rest was only film and pictures saved to his private database, nothing he could hold in his hands that would bring him back to the happy time he’d spent with the red clansman. Neko was the only other of the three of them (save herself) that knew of the kitten’s true origins, as the younger strain herself had not originally been honest about her relationship to their king. Apparently, the two had found each other much sooner, so Neko had gotten to know Tatara, and Gumdrop early on. Neko had forged some of the memories she’d initially revealed to the elder, so he wouldn’t have to deal with the death of his lover so soon, while there were so many people after him, while he had no idea who he was. It had torn the king apart, when his true memories, of Tatara and Neko had resurfaced. The first thing he did when he regenerated was demand that the late Gold King retrieve little Gumdrop. Ever since, the kitten rarely ever left Adolf’s side, the only physical attachment she had left of her owner. Since Tatara had been cremated, there was no grave to visit, nothing tangible for either of them save each other. Alex didn’t hesitate to pick up the anxious kitten, who the strain could tell had sensed the king’s pain. The woman tried to soothe the kitten the best she could, but nothing seemed to work.   “There there, Gumdrop. He’s okay, really…” she cooed to no avail, but thankfully the second Adolf exited the bathroom, fully clothed, the kitten had leapt into whom she considered her other owner’s arms. The king was quick to cuddle the kitten, gently reassuring her. “Hi there... I’m alright, little one. I promise. Would you like to come with me?” he asked gently, to which the kitten mewed happily. “Wait, Shiro! Are you sure-!” Alex interjected worriedly, but was interrupted by another gentle pat to the head. The king chuckled softly as the kitten perched on his shoulder, briefcase in hand. “Don’t worry, Ally! Everything will be fine! You’ll see!” the king replied with what Alex knew now to be false cheer.   She knew better, that the king’s day would not go well, in his emotional state. Concealed kitten or not, Alex knew her king would be unwell in the hours to come.   Please drop_by_the_archive_and_comment to let the author know if you enjoyed their work!