Monkie Kid: Mommy Dearest

Shadow Evening

"A cloaked figure?" Macaque raised an eyebrow.

Macaque was sitting on the back porch of his home with Chyou, who wore her cardigan, a burnt orange camisole, white ankle-length pants, burnt orange flat shoes, and just like Macaque had her wedding ring around her neck, as the sun was starting to set. Macaque's home used to be in a shady part of the city, where most people would be hesitant to walk through, as the years passed it become more family-friendly as new homes, businesses, and families joined the area, with the expectation of their home and a few buildings this part of the city was almost unrecognizable now.  

"That's what Wukong said," Chyou leaned back in her chair. "They were on the school roof, but when Wukong went to check, there was nobody there."

"Interesting." Macaque hummed. "What's the situation with the teahouse?"

Chyou let out an exhausted and frustrated sigh. "Rotting wood, mold, bad pipes, and we have termites, hence the reason for the decaying wood."

Macaque and Chyou opened up a teahouse with a theatre where Macaque would put on his shadow plays as he told legends from long ago. They opened it after getting married and it became a successful business, letting them live a comfortable life for Daiyu and themselves. 

"Yikes." Macaque hissed through their teeth. "How long will the repairs take?"

"Two months at least." Chyou sighed.

"You'll think of something eventually," Macaque took a sip of his drink, "enjoy your days off for the time being."

"On the subject of work," Chyou continued the conversation, "when was the last time you headed to the Celestial Realm to do your job as the General of the Celestial Army?"

"I told them to contact me if they need me," Macaque answered casually, "with nothing being a threat in the Celestial Realm right now, so I do not need to be there right now."

"Do you know how difficult you are?" Chyou rolled her eyes.

Macaque flashed her a mischievous smile as he wrapped his tail around her waist. "I must not be too difficult, Gem. And even if I am, a woman as smart as you must enjoy the challenge."

"There are so many ways, I could respond to that," Chyou playfully retorted as she shooed his tail away from her. "Just know, you're lucky that I find this cute."

Macaque couldn't help that small chuckle that came after his wife's response. The playful banter was common in their marriage, it was harmless teasing that they both found amusing as well as a way for them to unwind on evenings just like this one. 

"Speaking of cute," Macaque changed the subject, "where's Daiyu? Is she home."

"She is," Chyou nodded, "she went to her room after dinner."

"Be right back Gorgeous." Macaque stood up from his seat. "I'm gonna check on her."

Macaque used a shadow portal to leave the back porch, making Chyou roll her eyes at his exit. 

"He's so dramatic." Chyou laughed to herself before taking a sip of her drink.

Daiyu's decorated with stars, moons, and crystals, painted in various shades of blue to get the feeling of a starry night sky; a large bookshelf filled with books with a reading nook and a few comfortable places to sit, and a little art corner for her. Daiyu was a smart young girl who had a love of reading, which gave her a wild imagination that led her to be creative too. Her room was perfect for someone like her. 

Macaque used his shadow portal to phase through her door, he had a soft smile at the scene in front of him. Daiyu had fallen asleep in one of her bean bag chairs with the book she must have been reading in her lap with her Macaque ragdoll in the bean bag chair next to her. Daiyu was more mature than most kids her age, it gave her the impression to act like an adult at times, especially at school, but Macaque seeing her like this, only cemented the fact that she was still a 10-year-old girl.

Macaque squatted down next to pick her up and move her into her bed, he used his powers to move the ragdoll next to her as he placed a throw blanket on her, and the ragdoll tucked under her arm. 

"No matter how big you get, you'll always be my little girl," Macaque whispered. "Goodnight, Moonlight."

Macaque kissed her forehead before phasing through the floor once again. 

The was had sun, even more, turning the even into the night. Chyou sat on her side of the bed reading a book as Macaque's head was on his pillow, getting ready to fall asleep.

"We have Tao's baseball game tomorrow," Chyou spoke up.

Macaque sat up in bed with an annoyed groan.

"Are you serious?" Macaque looked at her hoping it was a joke.

"Baby, what's the problem?" Chyou put her book down. "I thought you liked going to these games."

"The games aren't the problem," Macaque began to explain, "the dads that won't leave me alone are."

Macaque placed his head back on his pillow. "Those guys won't leave me alone."

Chyou rubbed the upper part of his leg, as a form of comfort. "I know Baby, can you at least try to bear with it?"

"I can try." Macaque sighed.

In the middle of the night, Macaque and Chyou were sleeping with Macaque having an arm over Chyou like they did every night. Daiyu was still sleeping in room, holding to her doll tightly when the sound of something falling in her room woke her up.

She sat up in bed and turned on her bedside lamp to see that the pencil holder on her desk had fallen over. Daiyu got out of bed to pick it up, passing the full-length mirror that was next to her desk. She squatted down to pick the holder and what fell out of it when she got a glimpse of Messenger's reflection in the mirror. 

Daiyu whipped her head around in a panic, only to see that nobody was there. Daiyu placed the pencil holder back on her desk before running out of her bedroom, to get Macaque.