Chapter Text
Chapter One: Trip to the Late-Night Market
It was a night like all the others, or so Anya initially thought. She had a little trouble falling asleep, but it was more out of excitement than anything worrisome. Her life with the Forgers was absolutely perfect, and the one thing she dreaded, really, was that it could someday end. Aside from that, the young girl's situation at home was ideal.
(Her grades at school were another separate matter.)
However, something caught her attention and prompted her to open her eyes again. Her ears picked up on a few strange sounds escaping her adoptive mother Yor's room, which quickly led toward the bathroom. In and of itself, this was not strange: after all, perhaps she simply needed to use the bathroom.
What made Anya realize something was up was when Yor collided with a wall, causing a loud *BANG* around the apartment. She half-expected her father to wake up, but when it wasn't the case, Anya thought he was probably sleeping too soundly to hear. For a moment, she considered checking up on her mother, but after hearing the toilet flushing and the sound of water flowing from the sink, Anya convinced herself that her mom was okay, for now, at least.
Then, there was walking toward the kitchen. Anya's ears picked up on a cabinet being opened and something being pulled out. When she realized her mother was cooking, Anya had to admit she was scared. But perhaps she wanted to give breakfast another shot. However, making it in the middle of the night may have been pushing things too far.
"Yor? What exactly are you doing...?"
This was, undoubtedly, her father's voice. With his job as a spy, Loid often had to wake up early, so Anya was only half-surprised to hear him join Yor inside the kitchen, though the man himself seemed surprised to see his wife there.
"Making breakfast already? That is hardly the time for this, Yor," the young girl heard her dad tell his mom. "You should go back to bed for now. I'll handle breakfast in the morning. It's safer."
Yes, Papa's right: it's safer...
Silently, Anya walked to her door and peeked outside, seeing her parents walk toward Yor's room. A moment later, the little incident was over, and the pink-haired girl quickly returned under her bedsheets, hoping to get a few more hours of sleep before having to go to school.
The next day went along as usual. Granted, the Forger household had a particular type of craziness that possibly no other had, but it was a typical Forger family day. Things became strange when Anya was woken up from her peaceful dreams by her companion pet, Bond.
"Bond...? Is it morning already?"
Given the dark outside, Anya quickly deduced it wasn't the case. She could feel she had not slept for as many hours as usual, either. If anything, this was most likely the middle of the night.
The big white dog did not bark but turned toward the door. Anya was initially confused, but upon hearing some stumbling sounds from the hallway, she inferred this was what her animal friend wanted her to check out.
"Did Mama go to the bathroom again?" Anya asked Bond, though it could not give her much of an answer. She got into a seated position and adopted a thinking pose. I wonder what Mama is doing, crashing into the walls... I must investigate!
With that resolve, Anya thanked the dog and got out of bed in her pajamas, tiptoeing her way out of her bedroom and into the hallway. She approached her mother's room, where she could hear Yor snoring softly. Careful not to make too much noise, the young girl opened the door and poked inside. When she realized it was safe to come in – meaning, no one would catch her out of bed – she silently slipped inside, closely followed by her pet.
"Mama...?" Anya tentatively called out, ensuring her voice remained as low as possible. If her father caught her, there was no doubt she would get chewed out. Getting closer to the bed, she saw Yor plunged into a deep slumber. It appeared her mom was indeed the heavy sleeper Anya always thought she was. This was further confirmed when Anya gently poked Yor's head, prompting no particular reaction from the latter aside from a subconscious and low murmur.
Needless to say, Anya was not satisfied. She wished to know what her adoptive mother could be up to so late into the night and thus decided to turn her poking into slight pushing. Not enough to hurt, of course (she was a young child, anyway), but probably sufficient to cause her to wake up. It was the objective, at least.
"Mama, wake up," Anya whispered as she gently pushed. "Can you awake now?"
Unfortunately for her, this only made Yor snore some more and turn around under her bedsheets. This meant it was time to get serious. With a determined look on her face, Anya pulled back her mother's blanket, revealing her bare feet. Smirking childishly, she started ticking her soles, knowing for a fact this would wake her up!
In the end, it did not. Aside from a few chuckles, Yor remained fast asleep. Not to be undone, Anya pulled even more of the blanket, allowing her to see her mom's lime green nightgown and lower body. When she began to tickle Yor's belly, the pink-haired child hoped for better results.
"Bond, please lick Mama's feet! She needs to wake up!"
The fluffy dog got to work with a hearty bark and gave as much effort as possible. The attack on two fronts turned the giggles into all-out laughter, but there was no sign of Yor waking up yet, even through all that.
That was, until the young woman's eyes fluttered open momentarily, groaning slightly. Anya immediately perked up. "Mama! Are you finally awake?" she asked enthusiastically, happy to see her hard work was bringing in some results.
"Anya...? G-Good morning, sweetie..." Softly, the improvised mother patted her adopted daughter's head, ruffling her pink hair softly. "Zzz..."
With that, though, Yor fell into a state close to slumber once more. Sighing, the young girl put her hands on her hips in annoyance.
"You can stop licking, Bond," she told her pet friend, who complied immediately. Mama is going to fall asleep again! She needs to wake up for good!
"Zzz... I have work... don't I...?"
"No, no work, Mama! Mama has playtime with Anya now!"
"Zzz... play...?"
"Yes, Mama play!"
Anya could not tell if her mother was still awake, sleeping, or somewhere in between. Her answers did not sound very articulated, but the young girl realized this might have been her opportunity to win her mom over to her side.
"Zzz... Alright... play..."
With a nod, Yor, her eyes still closed, sat on her bed, prompting a smile on her little girl's lips. Anya was satisfied. After all, in this state, it seemed that her mother only required some convincing before she followed her every command.
"Mama, let's go play at the supermarket! Anya needs to secure her precious supply of peanuts!"
"Zzz... Okay... Peanuts..."
With grace equaling that of a robot, Yor stood up, her eyes still closed, and tried to walk over to the door, with Anya closely following after her. After bumping her head a couple of times, the young mother managed to stumble her way to the corridor but failed to turn before the next wall.
"Ow..." Yor mumbled, nursing her aching head while remaining fast asleep.
Anya pouted. "Mama! You also need to carry Anya to the supermarket! You walk too fast for Anya to follow!"
With a nod, Yor complied, picking up her beloved daughter like she was a sack of potatoes and seating her on her shoulders comfortably. Anya smiled as they began their trip. However, when they reached the living room, the young girl remembered something.
"Mama, we shouldn't be rude!" she told Yor. Meanwhile, Bond was still walking beside them, though Anya didn't think it was a great idea to let him tag along with them. Still, she knew her pet companion would enjoy the stroll. "Let's inform Papa that we're going outside to play!"
"Zzz... Right, tell Loid..."
With a quick 180 turn, Yor walked over to her husband's bedroom and slightly opened the door. The pink-haired girl could see her father sleeping soundly, though he did not snore at all.
"Zzz... Bye, Loid..."
"Bye, Papa!"
The blonde spy opened his eyes blearily, turning his head to the rest of the family. "Yor...? Anya...? Where are you two going...? Are you okay...?" The poor man sounded as tired as he was.
"Zzz... Supermarket... Anya needs peanuts..." Yor answered, giving her husband a nod. "I am okay... totally awake and... ready to go... An early walk... won't do me harm..."
Loid, even though he was not truly awake yet, was skeptical if his expression was any indication. Still, even if Anya could notice he wasn't convinced, he let them go.
"Okay, be back soon, though."
"Zzz... Okay, bye..."
With a friendly wave from the Forger daughter, Yor walked outside her husband's room and gently closed the door, not making a sound. As the family dog barked cheerily, Anya and Yor headed toward the door. Whatever it would bring, mother and daughter went out on their late-night adventure, their fluffy friend coming along, wagging his tail.
To be continued...