Flower! Flower! Flower!

It’s really really really really you!

I’d know that smell anywhere!

I’m going to give you so many big slobbery kisses cause I’m so happy to see one of my Daddies!

No! You’re not getting out of the big slobbery kisses, I’m going to pin you down and keep you forever and ever because now I’ve got Puff back and Panba is safe you’re just an extra bonus treat on top of everything else.

Oh, wait, did I just blow you’re cover? Oopse! I’m sorry!

But I loves you too much and this means that we can go home right?

“Ugh, Hero let me up you silly sod,” Flower complains as he pushes himself upright and pulls playfully at my ears, “Seriously! What are you like?”

“Jongdae?” a voice whispers in surprise and the next second Flower is up and running towards Puff and Panba, wrapping them into a great big hug and seemingly forgetting that potentially we’re in a big dangerous situation but that’s happy humans for you.

I make to go back to the pair when I notice that one of the men in the big brown coats is pointing a gun towards Jintao and Heechul.

That’s not a good thing, cause they’re my friends and these strangers are scaring them.

Bark! Get away from Jintao and Heechul!

“Hero?” Flower asks, turning away from his fussing for a second and seeing me standing in front of the two figures he doesn’t know barking at the guys with guns and it’s clear that he’s completely confused as to what is going on.

Jintao tell them that you helped me?

Jintao just looks at me bewildered and stammers something but it comes out as nothing short of an odd noise and my ears raise in surprise. Heechul barks the same noise but a bit stronger and why can’t I understand them anymore?

I could until a moment ago…what’s happened.

“Hero, come on, come over here,” Flower says signalling to me hurriedly.

No Daddy Flower. Not until you make the bad men stop pointing guns at my friends!

Puff blinks and suddenly raises his head, “Oh Jongdae! Let those two go. They’ve been helping Hero and Sofia.”

Flower looks at Puff confused, “How can you know that?”

“They turned up with them and the one with the dark hair returned Sofia to me,” Puff says calmingly, “Hero was leading them around and he’s being protective of him too so you know that they can’t be bad. Hero doesn’t look after bad people.”

Nope. Bad people get their butts chewed by me!

Flower looks even more confused than he did before but Puff gives him the cute puppy dog look and he groans before signalling the men off with a wave of his hand. Immediately I drop my aggressive stance, though I’m watching them cause one wrong move and I’ll be biting fingers off, and instead turn to hug Jintao who quite frankly looks as if he’s about to pass out.

He’s curled up on the floor, all pale and sickly and this isn’t right at all.

Nosing at him, I can tell that Jintao has gone all ice and that’s wrong.

What’s wrong Jintao? You are warm!

Heechul lets out a cry and kneels next to the boy, babbling away in the crazy talk that I can’t understand and making a fuss like his favourite toy in the world has been completely destroyed. He bundles Jintao into his arms and wet stuff is leaking from his eyes as he rocks the boy back and forth but I can’t understand him.

Daddy Flower! Do something! Jintao is my friend and he shouldn’t be a floppy cold ball!

One of the men with a big red cross on his arm comes across and I know he’s the one who helps when people are sick. I wish we had Rainbow here, he’d fix Jintao in an instant but knowing him, he’d be already lost and we’d be in big trouble.

But Heechul is panicking and he’s yelling loudly in the same strangeness that both of them were babbling in before and he won’t let the man with the big red cross anywhere near Jintao even though I know he just wants to help.

A little golden thing appears in my line of sight and startles everyone, even me and I’m supposed to be the calm one here and the little winged thing dances about for a few seconds and then pops! Gold dust goes all over the place, onto me, Jintao, Heechul, the man with the big red cross, Flower who’s approaching rapidly and a few of the men around us too.

“What was that?” I hear someone say but suddenly Heechul yells and bats away the hand which is trying to reach for Jintao.

“No! Leave him be you monsters!” I can understand him again! Yay!

Heechul is desperate to keep Jintao safe, as if he’s some kind of very ill puppy, that much is clear but I just don’t know how to tell him that the man with the big red cross will help him.

“Sir, we’re trying to help,” the man with the big red cross says, I’ll call him Cross from now on to make it easier to say, and begins reaching for Jintao once again, “If I can get a look at him then I may have something that could save him.”

“You moron!” Heechul all but screams, clearly he’s a very frightened puppy right now, “He’s used up his catra in order to get us here and there’s nothing you can do about it! The stupid fool has all but killed himself to help someone without thinking about it!”

“Catra?” Cross asks, looking towards Flower in the hopes that he can explain.

Heechul glares, “How stupid are you? Catra is the stuff that gives him the powers he has! He’s not supposed to use it the way he’s been doing so and the bugger hid it from me! Jintao, you fool! You bloody fool! You didn’t need to sacrifice yourself for some strange creature and a baby! I’ll never be able to give you back what you need….”

More wet stuff is leaking from Heechul’s eyes and Jintao is now not responding in the slightest and he’s not even smelling right.

With determination, I move forward and nose at him once again before settling onto his legs and lower chest cause he needs warmth and love and something because he’s really not right in the slightest.

Cross scans through a paperless book and taps at the screen a few times before suddenly blinking, “Micronites.”

“What?” Flower asks before I can raise my head.

“Micronites,” Cross says as he starts digging into his bag, “We came across them on another case a few months ago where we found twins who had similar but different powers. Basically, they’re little cells that inhabit the body and provide the power of time control and ability manipulation. They’re fascinating little organisms but really sought after cause they only live in the host body to provide the power but what was interesting was that these twins could share their micronites between one another and therefore replenish and cause more to grow.”

Flower blinked, “But how does this help?”

“They called them Catra as well but we couldn’t track their home planet,” Cross says, digging around, “I’ve got a synthetic version of it here somewhere but I don’t know how much it’s going to…”

“Hold that thought,” Puff suddenly says, appearing with Panba whom he hands to a surprised Flower and then he pats my head before smiling.

Lightly he grabs hold of Jintao’s hand and grips it harshly.

For a few seconds, there is nothing, next to no response and I’m just about to start whining at Puff for whatever this strangeness is when there comes a groan from Jintao.

Heechul jumps in shock and practically drops the other but Puff is there, holding tightly onto Jintao and I can feel him getting warmer by the second. What’s this? He’s getting all better?

Jintao’s eyes slowly creak open the longer he resides in Puff’s arms and now I’m looking at the pair of them, they are the exact same! I thought that they were just really similar before but they are two of the same puppy.

“I’ve got you,” Puff says slowly when Jintao tries to move his arm, “I’m sorry I left you for so long.”

“Z….Zi…Zitao?” Jintao asks slowly, coughing harshly before cuddling closer, “Finally…found…you.”

Jintao goes all floppy again but this time from sleep and Heechul is the first to move towards the pair, fingers running down the side of Puff’s face before he pulls them both into a tight embrace as if he too had missed them all.

I’m confused right now.

Panba pulls lightly on my ear though and smiles brightly towards me, “Daddy family!”

Flower stares in shock towards Panba, as I’m sure that everyone else does but she just laughs and throws some more of the gold dust around which sparkles brightly and I can already smell a change in the air.

Methinks I’m going to have to look after this puppy extra carefully from now on.

Shaking his head, Flower turns and starts giving out orders to the men who came with him in order to check the location is secure and that the ship is prepared for our departure.

I leave him too it, I’m not a commander doggy and I’m so tired that I just want to curl up and go to sleep.

It’s sure to be interesting when we get home.

Oh, daddy Flower! Can we take Heechul and Jintao home with us? Cause they’re really good puppies and the big dogs here are meanies who need a good bite on the bum.

“Yes Hero, we’re taking them back with us,” Flower responds happily, “And no you can’t go around biting anyone’s bottom because that would be naughty of you.”

Aww but Daddy Flower, I promise that I won’t leave a mark. Just a little nip.

“No Hero you can’t…” Flower trails off and stares towards me in shock and suddenly I realise that he responded perfectly to me as well.

Panba giggles once again from Flower’s arms, “Doggy talk! Sofia do that!”

Right…just what is going on here? 

authors babbling:

once again I'm sorry about how long it took to update this, life has been kinda crazy and with Nanowrimo coming back into the picture followed by my Christmas Challange it's liable to get even busier so my updating will get a little slower. Not that it's particularly fast at the moment. However we're in the final legs of this story and boy am I already getting ideas for even more so don't worry Hero will be having more crazy adventures once this is done. 

Right now though I'm going to actually get up and get myself sorted as I want to try and clear off some story stuff before I got to roleplay today

Hope you enjoyed and I'll catch you on the next one