Of Heart and Mind
This was one of those rare moments when the whole family was together in one place.
Ralph honestly neverdidsee himself as the type to become a dad, but then again he didn't honestly see himself doing half of the stuff he had in the past two months or so at all. The cybrid had found a way to arrange a playdate of sorts for Rick, Renard and Renate that didn't end with the much larger, much bigger cy-bug overwhelming the other two; they had met together at Fondue Falls- a rather appropriate spot, Ralph felt, despite the warm chocolate pool nearby that ran deep enough to come up to Ralph's small front legs.
He'd actually chosen to soak in it for a while as the three played various games, either ones they'd learned from the Sugar Rush racers (like tag, hide and seek, and red-light-green-light) and some make-believe (Queen Renate and her subjects, The Evil Cola Beast vs. the two knights, and Explorer). He honestly could -and would- sit there all day watching them.
Next to his medal, all this time with them had really changed his attitude toward the three; Renard had begrudging acceptance; that thing was clearly a cy-bug at heart, but it was a good listener, so he couldn't complain too much. Renate certainly had a gift, and proven to be more like Morgan than Ralphora cy-bug, and her demeanor seemed to be almost deceptive of what she was. Rick still had something to prove, something to show about himself, but the cybrid was still open, protective and even caring for the little orange critter.
If Calhoun or any other space marine -or anybody- tried to take that away from him, they'd be in way over their heads. "Gotta love kids," He sighed to Morgan, his head rested on his bulky arms as Renard played a sort of head-butting game with Rick while Renate watched, "am I right?"