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[ It's kinda like the difference of giving a kid praise or not after they do well in school, though Terry takes any praise and eats it up. ]

No, it's fine. Actually, I have a present for you.

[ Terry rolls to the edge of the bed and pulls out a box. He rolls back in under the blanket and hands it to Kido. ]

Merry Christmas, Kido.

Oh. Merry Christmas. I didn't expect...

[ Kido mentioned before, offhandedly maybe, about knitting a sweater for Terry so he wouldn't be surprised about what she gives him, but she didn't think he'd get her something.

Please be a cat.

Kido carefully opens the box... please be a cat please be a cat please be a cat ]

[ It's not a cat, but there are cat socks and a cat plush pillow. It's a foot long.

Also, assuming Kido is now on her stomach and opening the box instead of on her back, he gently takes her left hand and puts this on her ring finger. It's garnet, a January birthstone, that's embedded in there because-- ]

I'm glad that you were born, Kido. I'm glad that you're here... I wouldn't have met you otherwise.

[ He kisses her cheek. When Kido told Terry that she shouldn't be sorry for being alive or something similar to that, he was glad to hear it. And this is to reflect on that saying. ]

Thanks for supporting me all this time. I love you.

[ The rest of the month is going to be spent in these cat socks and the cat sweater Akira gave her.

When the ring's slipped on her finger, it feels like time slowed, a hissing whiteness between her ears that makes it hard to think or hear and so all she can do is focus on Terry's voice and ignore everything else- the pounding of her heart, the heat on her face, the twisting in her gut that's nerves or fear or butterflies telling her that she's got this wrong.

Silence settles for a beat after Terry stops speaking, and there is no "Will you marry me?" and that's when Kido can breathe again, because yeah, of course she got it wrong. Just because it's a ring on that finger... ]

...A promise ring.

[ She puts her arms around Terry's shoulders and kisses the side of his neck before pulling him close and closing her eyes. ]

I'll promise that: I'll always love you. I'll always support you, and I'll always be here for you. Thank you for being here for me too, and for loving me.

[ The way Kido says it sounds like a marriage vow, so Terry can't help but to feel really happy in saying that. There is no heart thumping in his chest because he doesn't have one, but if it did, it would surely be noticeable when Kido pulls him close. He wraps his arms around Kido and nuzzles the side of her head--taking in her warmth, her scent, and everything about her that makes him feel relaxed in her hold.

Speaking of which... ]

I'll always love you, Kido... even if I have to wait thousands of years just to see you again.

[ ... ]

I actually... wanted this to be something like an engagement ring, but... well, I... I wasn't sure if you wanted that.

[ Okay, so she was half wrong. Even hugging Terry like this, face buried in the crook of his neck and fingers curling on the back of his shirt, it feels a little like hiding- retreating, somewhere safe in the arms of somebody she knows would do everything to keep her safe. ]

I do, but...

[ but

but she's nervous, and maybe she'll always be nervous, tiptoe-ing into uncharted territory with somebody who also has no idea what the hell he's doing, and even though she knows there's no wrong way to do this, it's scary. It's so fast, it's scary. She's scared, and she doesn't know of what. Of giving her heart to the one person who will never die and leave her all alone, like so many people did before her? She can't understand it, and so just turns her head to press the side of her face against his empty chest and lower her arms to wrap more comfortably around his waist. ]

I want you to ask me when all of this is over. When everybody is free and happy and no longer have to live in fear... Until after we see all this through to the end, I wouldn't be able to focus or relax. I might not- [ ...live to see the end, but she's determined to, so she bites that fear down yet again. ] ...I want to be able to say yes without reservation. Is it okay to wait?

[ Understandably, this is a huge deal to both of them. It may not seem like it for Terry, who seems to do things out of spontaneity rather than thinking things through, but when Kido pauses at the "but", he his breathing stops for a second. After hearing her out, he relaxes a little more, quietly breathing out. ]

We'll definitely see things through to the end.

[ He gives her a slight squeeze in that hug. ]

I'll always wait for you.

I know.

[ 40k years and he still came back to her, and she never has to doubt that. She tilts her head up and kisses him on the jaw, smiling a little. ]

So kick the Daitengu's and the Kotengu's ass, and I'll marry you.

[ In case he needs any more motivation!!! ]

[ Terry honestly didn't need more motivation, but he does now and he smiles, looking down at Kido with a happy look on his face. It's warm under the blanket, in Kido's hug, but most importantly, the warm feelings that they share. He feels a genuine happiness bubbling up within him and leans in to kiss her. ]

[ Kido smiles into the kiss, soft and slow and now I fully expect a marriage proposal at the end of the game if they both make it out. Don't disappoint us. ]

[ Terry's kiss lingers a little until he pulls back for a second not so far, kisses again, and deepens it.

what is endgame when good end is in in march and true end is in july ]

[ She lets her eyes flutter shut at the kiss, feeling the way the warmth spreads across her face to touch her ears and down her chest, arms moved to loop around the back of Terry's neck so she can pull him on top of her and feel his warmth and weight over her. ]

[ There's a surprised blink, multiple, when he's pulled on top of her. He's a little startled, but tries not to fully squish her by putting his arms down by both sides of her head to hold himself up a little. Terry doesn't say anything after and resumes his kiss, licking a little at her lips during so that she can open her mouth.

He's trying not to think about how embarrassing this could be. ]

[ Same. And Kido's learning that the moment she starts being embarrassed about everything, she's going to pull back and run away and she doesn't want to do that anymore, arms pulling Terry down a little closer as she opens her mouth and feels her tongue run against his and it's a little weird. It's very— no, her brain is getting shut off right now, and she forces herself to think of nothing but Terry and what he's doing, soft lips on hers and a comforting weight on her chest, hand by her head that she wants to lean against but doesn't want to break off the kiss.

All this does is make her feel even more embarrassed than ever, but it's warm. ]

[ Terry leans his weight on his left arm so that his right hand can move up to caress the side of Kido's face in a loving gesture. Tongues brush against each other, intertwine, and lick before Terry breaks off the kiss, his head a little over Kido's, not too far apart, and gives her one more chaste kiss on the lips before kissing her nose, then her cheek--it continues to move in that direction until he gets to her ear and he lightly kisses that too. ]

[ Her head lifts just a little when his lips leave hers, chasing until she feels him kiss her nose, then her cheek, peppering her face with kisses until she feels hot breath against her ear and she can't help but let out a quiet noise of surprise, melting a little because Kido is just like Minato in this respect. ]

[ He lightly nibbles on her earlobe and tries to make it as quiet as he can since he's right next to her ear, but he can't help but to pant a little. Seeing Kido's face after breaking off the kiss was a little more than he bargained for, and he tries to distract himself from those thoughts by running his fingers through her hair--the same one that was caressing her face earlier. ]

[ The pounding of her heart can be felt in her throat when she swallows, in her ears, sensitive to the point that hot breath tickles and when she feels teeth run along her earlobe, that quiet moan escapes again despite her biting down on her bottom lip. She shifts her body a little under Terry's and lets her arms fall slack out of the hug, one hand trailing down Terry's side until it stops at the hip. ]

Terry-

[ The name slips out, slightly breathless, incredibly embarrassed, when Kido's eyes flutter open again and she moves her hand off Terry's hip to catch his hand running fingers through her hair. ]

Sorry, that was- never mind. I just... wanted to say your name.

[ Terry was slightly embarrassed, but upon hearing his name, his face gets red even further. The way she said it and how she admits to just wanting to say his name after feels like someone slammed him with the Feels Hammer 1000. When her hand slides down his side and then moves up to his other hand, Terry shakily breathes out as he rests the bottom half of his face into the crook of Kido's neck. ]

... I love you so much, Kido. I...

[ He pauses, trying to calm himself, but he feels so nervous already. ]

If... If you want me to stop, tell me, okay?

[ It helps not to look at each other, but feeling hot breath on her collarbone and Terry so close that Kido has no doubt he can feel her pounding heart in her chest, all she can do is close her eyes and duck her head and whisper ] I will. ...I love you too. [ in his ear, bringing their hands up so she can press a kiss to the back of his hand, lingering and breathing him in.

He smells like cinnamon. Sweet and spicy, the warmth of an oven with its door left open to heat the kitchen after it's finished baking, a red brick house filled with sunshine on hardwood floor and laughter ringing through white painted hallways, a comforting weight on the top of her head and a bright smile in front of her face that she wanted to protect forever...

He smells like home. And love. And happiness. And she wants to be those things for him too. ]

[ He might lack a physical heart, but if he did, it would also be pounding. It feels pressuring, and he really wants to do something, but it's held back by his wish to be gentle. He doesn't want to scare Kido, so he'll try to take it slowly.

Terry lifts his head a little to look into Kido's eyes, smiles, and kisses her lips again. It takes multiple kisses, first ones short, later ones lasting longer, until he finally decides to go in for a french kiss. Lips locking, tongues brushing against each other--his left hand brushes Kido's hair out of her face that moves to caress her face again. She's warm. He's warm. Driven by the desire of wanting to do more, he finally breaks the kiss and makes smaller kisses down her face, but this time he stops near her neck and litters that with kisses too.

Meanwhile, his right hand that brushed through Kido's hair starts to slowly move down her side. ]

[ It's slow, but painfully so, each kiss with the promise of more but all Terry does is move down to the crook of her neck where her heart jumps in her throat, where she has to swallow down any noise she would otherwise make when she feels Terry's hand trailing down her side. That she catches in her own hand, with laced fingers and a squeeze. This is about all she can handle right now. ]

[ There's a small smile on Terry's face as his hand doesn't go any lower, but keeps Kido's hand in his hold. He's starting to think he understands the boundaries that Kido has set. Though he wonders...

He grazes his teeth at her neck just to see her reaction. ]

[ Kido

laughs, because I'm terrible at keeping up romantic scenes and also this is really funny because ]

You're doing a terrible job convincing anybody of the whole "I'm not a vampire" thing.

[ That's all she's going to be thinking if he bites. ]

[ ... For that, he bites into the crook of her neck harder. ]

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