Xiaotian was an easy baby to handle. Usually he was very willing to go along with his parents. He was a giggling bundle of fluff that was rarely, if ever, angry. But today, today…Xiaotian was feeling a bit squirmy. He didn't know if it was the cold air of winter sipping through the cave, or the fact he wasn't able to see his starling friend because of the change of season, but he felt a little bit gloomy.
“Come Xiao! Don't you want to have fun with your sister.” Encouraged Savage, she was standing in the cave with her tiny arms outstretched. Usually Xiaotian would answer the call with an excited chirp, but today he just curled on the doorstep, becoming a ball of fluff.
“Maybe he just doesn't like the cold.” Shrugged Rumbled. Today was the first day of winter. Usually Flower Fruit Mountain was stuck in eternal spring, but Wukong felt like giving more seasons. And thus snow fell down.
Savage and Rumble were excited about this. They wanted to dive in the soft white blanket and mess with each other. But they quickly realized that their baby brother wasn't as excited as them. Wukong was watching them with his arms crossed behind his head. They looked cute all bundled up in their winter clothes. Macaque was preparing hot tea for them inside, like the considered tiny dad that he was.
“It's okay guys, the lil bud can watch you and have fun.” Hummed Wukong, he walked towards his son and crouched down next to him. Xiaotian peeked from his fluff and crawled towards him with a whine on his lips.
Wukong melted. How cute. He picked up his son and put him on his lap. The lil guy curled on his belly, tiny paws clenching at his clothes.
“But Pa! I want to play with Xiao.” Mumbled Savage with a pout.
“We can't force him to like the cold, Sav.” Gently hummed Wukong. Savage pouted, she promised to cuddle her baby brother later on and played with her twin.
Wukong smiled and looked down at his bundle up son, he messed with Xiaotian tiny feet, pulling at his lil toes, and gained some sweet giggles in return.
“Everything is okay there?” Asked Macaque, he appeared in a flurry of shadows with cups of hot tea, some tiny, some big.
“Mm, lil guy just isn't a fan of the cold. Thanks for the tea, moon.” Answered Wukong. He picked a cup of tea, Xiaotian immediately perked up at the source of warmth. Wukong chuckled and lowered the cup near his son. Xiaotian put his tiny paws against the cup. “You like that, mm?”
Xiaotian chirped happily, he quickly fell asleep curled around the warm cup of tea, in his Pa's lap.
Monkeys courting. Babies being devils. Sanzang being kidnapped. A normal day.
Wukong didn't like the place they reached. Bramble Ridge, as it was called, was full of mist and odd whispers. The forest was veiled by an aura of deceit that pricked his skin. Nonetheless, Sanzang was tired, and everyone was looking forward to resting. As such, they decided to stop here.
“What are you even afraid of, Monkey? There are no traces of humans, let alone beasts here.” Snorted Bajie, as always eager to mock his elder brother.
“Aren't you being a bit over-precautious?” Tentatively asked Wujing. It was no secret that since Wukong confessed to Macaque, he became even more protective, if it was possible, of his tiny family. Wukong huffed, well as long as he was here, even if the forest was haunted, he could deal with it.
The great sage looked down at his heart-pocket, Macaque and the cubs were resting there, protecting themselves from the cold mist, curled together in a cute pile of fluffiness.
“We stopped?” Asked Macaque. Both cubs peeked from their dad's belly and looked up with wide curious eyes. Wukong cooed at his family.
“Yeah, Ao Lie is making the fire.” Macaque nodded at that, he climbed out of Wukong's pocket, the great sage carefully took him and put him on the ground.
Once they were put down, Savage leaped off Macaque's arms and ran on all-four around the camp, her tiny paws were soon full of mud, same with her tiger skin kilt. She was faster and faster these days. Wukong was excited for when she would try to walk on her own two feet.
“Well, that will be a delight to wash.” Sighed Macaque as he watched her daughter roll around in the mud. Rumble was put down from Macaque's arms too. These days, Wukong and Macaque were trying to make him walk on his own. Rumble looked up at them with a pout, he didn't like to walk on muddy floors, especially when he could be cradled.
“Come on, bud. You can do it.” Encouraged Wukong with a nod. Rumble pouted harder, he looked up at the great sage with puppy dog eyes. He lifted his chubby arms and tried to reach for Wukong, looking cute.
“Mrrp.” Chittered Rumble. And because he knew his parents loved it he added some incomprehensible blabber “waaa.” Contrary to his sister, Rumble didn't blabber a lot, he only did it when he wanted something.
“Awww” Cooed Wukong, he was about to cave to his son's whims but Macaque stopped him.
“Wukong, can you search for food please?” Asked the black-furred monkey with a soft smile. Wukong fur fluffed up and he nodded frantically.
“O-of course! Anything you want!” Squeaked the great sage before scrambling to satisfy his mate's wishes. They were still in the early stages of their relationship where they wanted to do everything the other wished. It was especially the case with Wukong. He became overly clingy. Macaque was more one for words. He was too embarrassed to do this sort of thing in public. But he was whispering honeyed words to the other all night. It began with “You look great today” and before he knew it he found himself writing full stanzas for Wukong.
It's been one week since their confession, and they were both in the thrall of the honeymoon phase.
Macaque crouched down before his son and playfully flicked his snout. “Now you can't use your Pa to get out of this. Come on, blossom, just walk a little.” Rumble sneezed because of the flick and glared at his dad. He pouted harder but he knew his dad wasn't as weak-heated as his pa. The cub let out a grumpy “mrrp” and began to slowly walk on all four.
Macaque cooed at him “That's good! You did good. You need to exercise those lil paws of yours once in a while.” The black-furred monkey picked up his son after a few minutes of crawling and walking. Rumble was pouting, he wiped his tiny muddy paws on his dad's chest.
“Mm, I should have seen this coming.” Winced Macaque as he looked at the pawprints on his chest.
Wukong came back at this moment with a huge pile of fruits, as tall as a pinetree. Macaque sweatdropped, he didn't ask for this much.
“Here I got food!” Proudly chirped Wukong as he showed off his enormous pile. He wanted to impress Macaque!
“You idiot Monkey! What are we gonna do with that much fruit!” Groaned Bajie.
“Eat them, what else?” Huffed Wukong.
“Well at least we're gonna eat well.” Cheered Wujing, always the one seeing the positive.
“Oh, he got dragon fruit too! Nice.” Added Ao Lie with an approving nod.
“Courting monkeys are the worst.” Grumbled Bajie as he pinched his eyebrows.
“You only say that because you have no mate, Piglet.” Mocked the great sage with crossed arms.
“At least I did not pine for litteral centuries.” Sneered Bajie. Both monkey and pig glared at each other.
“Let's not fight!” Interrupted Sanzang, he was trying to reach the lil devil who climbed in his headdress. Recently, Savage decided she wanted to explore Sanzang's headdress. It was big and shiny, and how could she leave it unexplored? Macaque sighed, he could already imagine all the muddy pawprints on the monk's headdress.
“Excuse me, great sage?” All the pilgrims stopped and turned towards the newcomer. It was an old man with a plate of steamed cake. “I am a local Deity of this forest, I welcome you here. But I'm afraid the only thing I have to offer is this plate.”
Bajie reached for the steamed cake, eager to eat them, but he was stopped by Wukong who grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and dragged him back.
“A local Deity?” Wukong frowned and scrutinized the old man, his smell screamed demon. “Who do you think I am? Get out of here!” Wukong grabbed his staff and swung it at the old man.
The demon clicked his tongue and transformed into mist, blinding everyone. He whisked away Sanzang and left quickly. Once the mist disappeared the pilgrims looked around and realized their master wasn't here anymore.
“Master!? This demon!” Growled Wukong. Macaque squeezed Rumble tightly, he paled once he realized Savage was on Sanzang's headdress.
“Savage was with Sanzang!” Fretted the black-furred monkey, Wukong paled before tightly gripping his staff, his daughter was in danger.
Meanwhile, Sanzang was transported to a hall with numerous other persons who all pretended to be righteous. They began to talk about poetry and philosophy. “Well, I've seen weirder.” Muttered Sanzang.
The monk grabbed his headdress and picked Savage, the tiny monkey peeked from the monk's fingers and looked around with wonder. “You stay still, alright?” Fretted Sanzang. Savage chirped, excited, and began to pawe at the fingers holding her. She wanted to explore! “Oh boy.” Sweatdropped the monk.
Sanzang managed to gold the tiny cub for one minute. It was an achievement in itself. But then he blinked and she disappeared. The monk yelped and looked around, panicked. He smiled tightly at the man around him talking about poetry and looked for his niece. He found her on the head of someone called Apricot Immortal, a young woman with luminous starlike eyes. Sanzang nervously approached the woman, she beamed at him.
“This is a great day isn't it?” She purred with delight. Sanzang gulped, his eyes darted to Savage, who was pawing at the women's hair. Luckily, Savage was so tiny her paws felt like feathers hitting you.
“Yeah, the greatest of days.” Gulped the monk. The next minutes were one of the most embarrassing of his existence. Clearly the young woman was trying to seduce him, which was already awkward because of his buddhists belief, but he had to pretend to be receptive to get ahold of his niece.
“You know you have great eyes.” Praised Apricot Immortal.
“Thanks. They're natural?” Replied Sanzang. How did people even flirt these days? He pretended to chase a fly and tried to reach for Savage, but she skillfully avoided his fingers and remained on the woman's head. The monk was at the same time frustrated by his niece slipperiness and impressed by her agility.
“You know I've been so lonely in recent years.” Sighed Apricot Immortal. “I long for company.”
“Well, huh, I'm sure you'll find it. Someday who is not today.” Awkwardly replied the monk, he patted the woman's head and grabbed his niece before she could run away. Savage squeaked in frustration. The monk then bid his farewell and walked away, as stiff as a board. He didn't know where he was but he needed to get out of here.
All the other guests began to encircle him, and Sanzang clutched Savage harder, not letting her out of his sight. But before one demon could do something, the roof of the hall was ripped off and a giant monkey made of smoke and shadows peered down at them.
Sanzang paled. Well this has been a great life. Savage looked up at the giant and chirped in delight, she lifted her chubby arms and tried to reach for it.
Luckily, the giant turned out to be Macaque and the demons, who were in truth tree demons, were all dealt with.
“I didn't know you could do that.” Muttered Sanzang as he watched Macaque fret over his daughter. Squishing her cheeks and looking all over her. Wukong was fretting alongside him.
“It's a new thing.” Answered Macaque once he was sure his daughter was fine.
“You should have been there, Master. Wukong became all flustered when Macaque transformed.” Giggled Ao Lie.
“Ao Lie!” Squeaked Wukong with red cheeks.
The pilgrims snickered at their brother's embarrassment.
+ cut scenes
Macaque *worried dad mode* *become giant of shadows*
Wukong : 😳, that's kinda hot
Sanzang *looking at the giant* : 😭 I'm dead
Savage *looking at the giant* : 😆 Dad!!
Rumble *refusing to walk* : I am a precious monkey and I refuse to be dirtied by mud 😤
Wukong was unable to find sleep. He was lying in his bed, eyes trailing on the window. The sun was peeking from the somber sky, signing the end of this turbulent night. His lil family was fast asleep at his side. Wukong sighed and looked their way. His husband and two cubs were curled around the baby they found atop of the mountain's highest peak. The lil guy was sleeping soundly, nestled with his two cubs , his chest undulating peacefully.
Wukong intently observed him. His light-colored mask was the same shape as his, perhaps even rounder. His fur was darker than his, somehow reminiscent of Rumble sandalwood colored fur. He looked like a sweet piece of chocolate. Wukong's eyes fell on the side of his head, resting on the baby’s four fuzzy ears. It was rather obvious that somehow this baby was linked to both him and Macaque. It was rather difficult to even conceive how something like this happened.
Both him and his husband never intended for this to happen. They didn't even know how this came to be. As far as he knew, Wukong never did anything that could result in this, nor did Macaque. So how did both their energy somehow combine to create this sweet little thing? Someone else had to be involved in this. Even if he didn't like it, Wukong knew the only ones with enough power to do something like this would be the gods. Wukong wasn't fighting with Heaven, not anymore, but still the idea of them being somewhat involved in this was worrying.
As he was lost in his musing, the lil baby woke up. He yawned widely, eyes veiled by a thin, glossy surface. Wukong looked down at him and briefly smiled.
“Big yawn, huh.” He hummed. The baby perked up at his voice and looked up, he chirped excitedly and reached for him with his tiny hands.
Wukong chuckled, he leaned down so the baby could paw at his face. The lil paws tracing his skin were soft and squishy, he couldn't help but sneak one or two kisses on them, making the cub giggled.
“Hey, bud. You might want to tone it down a bit. They're still sleeping.” Whispered Wukong as he pointed at the tiny monkeys curled around the cub. The lil boy blinked and followed his gaze, he stared in wonder at the tiny monkeys and softly touched them. Slowly, the cub let his chubby fingers trail in Macaque's fur. The tiny warrior purred, still deeply asleep. The lil baby chirped excitedly once he heard the purr, looking up at Wukong with stars in his eyes.
“Heh, he's a cuddler.” Snorted Wukong. The baby scouted closer to Macaque and tentatively touched him, when he saw that Macaque wasn't bothered he grabbed him with his chubby paws and brought him closer, squishing him tight.
Macaque was awakened by the manhandling. “Hey, baby.” He mumbled with a slurred voice when he saw the lil guy holding him tight. The baby chirped and nosed his head happily, he soon brought Savage and Rumble too in his arms.
“Looks like you're quite the cuddler too.” Chuckled Wukong as he curled around the baby.
Macaque rubbed his eyes and settled comfortably against the baby's chest, listening to his rapid heartbeat. “Wukong… I…” Muttered Macaque as he glanced up at the baby. The lil boy was softly nosing Savage’s head, familiarizing himself with her scent. Macaque cooed at the sight, eyes shining with fatherly love.
Wukong looked down at his husband and immediately understood what he wanted. The great sage gulped and looked at the baby. This was a huge decision, and there were a lot of things left unanswered, but as he glanced at those innocent golden eyes he felt himself melt.
“He needs a name.” Sighed Wukong as he cupped the sweet boy's cheeks, the baby leaned in his touch with a giggle. Macaque immediately lightened, tail wagging.
“He's as soft as a cloud.” Hummed Macaque as he nosed the baby's chest, searching for the perfect name.
“A little cloud, huh. Then how about Xiaotian” Proposed Wukong as he kissed the baby's forehead. The cub giggled, feet kicking in glee.
“He's not little for me.” Snorted Macaque. “But Xiaotian is perfect.”
Wukong smiled, he brought the baby in his arms and curled around him, encircling his lil family. “Our Xiaotian.” He mumbled as he pressed his forehead against the baby's.
+ cut scenes
MK *see tiny monkeys* : I must hug them! 🤩
Wukong : Is adopting another kid really wise? 🤔
Wukong *see MK giggling cutely* : He's my son now 😌
Wukong was fuming with anger. His blood was boiling with repressed rage. He longed to let it go. To let it explode. But he held on.
Winter had just begun to peek from its slumber when the pilgrims reached the kingdom of Bhiksu, re-named the Young Master City by the villagers. Many things were odd in this city. It was strangely empty and young boys no older than a few years were kept in geese coops. Wukong didn't like this. Everytime something was amiss, it meant some fiend was causing chaos beyond the scenes. He saw more troublemakers in this journey than he ever saw in his entire life. He swore to take vacations after this. Because even for him, who was the master of chaos, it was beginning to be too much.
They soon learned that those boys were sacrifices. Apparently, the King was sick, touched by an unknown disease, and his father-in-law made him believe that 1,111 young boys hearts would lengthen his life.
Wukong wanted to beat this so-called father-in-law to a pulp. As a King, protector of a tribe, protector of pups, he found this revolting. As a father of two cubs, he found this to be the cruelest thing someone could ever do.
“Did we get them all?” Asked Wukong as he secretly carried the young boys out of the city. He made a flurry of clones to help him. Macaque was on his shoulder, ears fanned out to localise all the babies.
“Yeah, that was the last.”
Wukong sighed in relief, he looked down at the darling boy snuggled in his chest and smiled. He brushed aside the bangs falling on his forehead and gave him to his clone. Geez. Having cubs of his own really made him soften up with children.
Macaque and Wukong got back to the rest of the pilgrims.
Bajie was running after Savage, the lil devil stole some pieces of fruits, she was old-enough to eat something else than milk. Savage jumped on Sanzang and hid in his neck, she looked up at the monk with puppy dog eyes.
“Aw, come on Bajie. She can have a little snack, no?” Cooed Sanzang as he patted the lil devil.
“Master, she's manipulating you.” Huffed Bajie as he regained his breath. Savage was a fast one.
“But the piece she took is so little.” Argued Sanzang as he looked at the tiny crumb of peach Savage was holding.
“It starts with the crumbs and it ends with her devouring our entire stock.” Replied Bajie.
“She wouldn't eat our stock Bajie, she's too tiny for that, aren't you?” Cooed the monk as he took Savage in his hands. “I say you can eat that crumb.” Savage chirped in delight while Bajie grumbled about “niece privileges.”
Meanwhile, Rumble was nestled in Ao Lie’s hair. The dragon-horse mane was one of the fluffiest around when the monkeys weren't here, and Rumble, as a bed-seeker, claimed it as his personal bed when the arms of his dad weren't avaliable. Ao Lie didn't mind. More often than not he would answer Rumble's mrrps with his own set of odd noises.
Wujing was settling the camp and folding their clean laundry, he perked up when he noticed the two monkeys.
“Everything went alright?” Asked the river demon.
“Yeah… We still have to confront the King tomorrow though.” Answered Wukong, he will not let that poor excuse of a King slaughter children like that.
The confrontation with the King did not begin well. As expected, the father-in-law was a demon in disguise, Wukong recognized him at one glance. The demon told the King that Sanzang's single heart would replace the 1,111 young boys hearts. Wukong gritted his teeth, he disguised himself as Sanzang to fool the demon, while the true Sanzang along with Macaque and the cubs were hiding behind a pillar.
Wukong plan was simple, really. He’ll cut open his belly, fool those people with numerous hearts and then grab the demon to beat him and reveal his true appearances. He didn't account for his daughter to chirp like mad the moment he put the knife on his belly. He had hoped Macaque would take the cubs and prevent them from seeing this, but, really, his daughter was just too slippery. Wukong, disguised as Sanzang, turned towards Savage. He tried to look reassuring.
It was alright.
This was nothing but an act.
Pa wasn't going to be hurt.
But Savage was one stubborn monkey, she refused to back down. She paced a lil before rushing towards Wukong and climbing on his shoulders. She clawed at his cheeks in frustration. Clearly not understanding why her Pa was pointing a knife to his belly.
“No, Sav. Baby. This is alright.” Mumbled Wukong, quietly enough to not be heard by the rest of them.
“There is something on the monk's shoulder.” Noticed the fake father-in-law.
Savage looked at the disguised demon. And somehow, she must have made the connexion that he was the one responsible for this, she growled at him. Wukong was about to reassured her and hide her form view. But then Savage eyes glowed bright and a laser shot out of her pupils. It hit the demon and broke his disguise.
Wukong was at the same time very proud and very confused. Savage just chirped in satisfaction.
“Huh, good job baby!” Congratulated Wukong. He broke his own disguise and took his daughter in his hands. “You did good, yeah. And it's your first power!!! That's something! My girl is growing! Look at you being all tough now.” Cooed Wukong, Savage appreciated his pets and leaned in his touch.
It was rather easy to convince the King after the demon's disguise was revealed. The pilgrims were able to resume their journey peacefully. At night, after Macaque put the cubs to bed, he turned towards Wukong and glared at him.
“You and me need to talk.” He growled with barely restrained anger.
Wukong gulped. He was in trouble.
Both monkeys went to an isolate place. Macaque mentioned for Wukong to shrink, which the sage did without complaints.
“Look Mac, I know you're mad because I was going to be hurt and all, but it was for the-” Macaque didn't let him finish. He punched him square in the face.
Yeah, maybe he deserved that.
“IN FRONT OF THE CUBS!?” Shouted the black-furred monkey. He began to pace, throwing heated glare at Wukong every now and then. “You were going to cut your belly in front of the cubs!?”
“I thought you would shield them and-”
“What if Savage saw you huh!? What if you didn't stop and she saw her own father cut his belly open!? Did you think of this?”
Wukong winced and withered at his mate's glare.
“I'm sorry… I didn't… I thought…”
“No you thought nothing! I already told you when you cut your head to face the fake Daoist that I didn't want you to hurt yourself like that. And now you do it again? I don't care if your immortal Wukong I don’t want you to-” Macaque stopped and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Promise me you will never do this again.”
Wuking gulped, he stood up and walked towards his mate with a lowered tail. “I promise.”
“If you break this promise, I swear I'm gonna beat you to a pulp myself.” Growled Macaque.
Wukong hugged him from behind, Macaque didn't hug back.
“I promise, moon.” The black-furred monkey softened at the nickname, he patted Wukong's arms reassuringly.
“You're still in the dog house buddy.” Added Macaque.
+ cut scenes
Bajie *watching Mac drag Wukong away* : Oh this is karma 🤭
Sanzang : I will pray for his soul 😔
Wukong *doing something reckless that will harm him*
Savage : not on my watch 😡
Fun fact : Savage was glued to Wukong for three days after that. Rumble too, even if he didn't see clearly what happened he still feel his sister distress over their Pa.
+ I did some doodles of the cubs
But Like first time I ever tried to draw digitally, it's so hard 🫠
Macaque woke up form his long nap and recieve a lot of cuddles!
Macaque was plunged in a thick darkness. He didn't know how much time he spent there. But sometimes, he would hear distant chirps echoing around him and feel soft fur brush against his body. He felt good. He felt safe. He woke up at the dawn of night. Under the pale light of the full moon. Macaque opened his eye and winced, something was throbbing with pain on his face. He raised a hand and grazed his left eye, it was tightly bandaged. He waited for a few seconds until his sight was clearer. Then he looked around. His babies were cuddled around him. Savage was sprawled on his chest like a starfish. She snored without a care in the world. Rumble was curled around his neck, his lil face pressed under Macaque's chin. He looked quite peaceful.
Macaque felt a huge weight fall out of his shoulders. He reached for his pups and softly brushed them. He cupped Rumble's face, the cuddle bug immediately leaned in his hand. Macaque caressed the edge of his mask with his thumb. He then petted Savage, she babbled in glee and leaned in his touch. This cute lil babble mouth. Macaque felt his emotions bubble inside of him. He wiped away his tears and brought his babies closer. He was glad nothing happened to them.
The black-furred monkey looked up when he heard a snore, he was greeted by Wukong's drooling face. The three of them were laying on the sage's heart-shaped patch of fur. Macaque smiled at the sight. It was almost… endearing in a way. The black-furred monkey sighed with rosy cheeks, gods, he ought to control his feelings better. It was a miracle in itself that Wukong noticed nothing at this point. He really wasn't subtle for this sort of matter.
Macaque nosed his babies, taking in their scent. As much as he wanted to see their eyes blinking open, he didn't want to wake them up. For now, basking in their warmth and presence was enough to fill his heart.
At the first ray of light, Savage wiggled around. She yawned and slowly opened her lil eyes. She stilled once she noticed Macaque.
“Hey there, firecracker.” Chuckled Macaque as he booped her nose. Savage blinked several times in stupor before exploding in joyous chirps. She gripped Macaque's face, her tiny hands clutching his fur with all her might, as if she was afraid he would disappear if she let go. Macaque leaned in her touch and nuzzled her. She pawed at him, trying to fill her lil hands with as much of him as she could. Her chirps woke up her brother.
Rumble groaned, unhappy to be awake this early, but his angry “mrrps” ceased when he noticed Macaque. The pup stilled, very much like his sister, and then reached towards him with his tiny hands. The fingers clenched and unclenched in a desperate attempt to grip any piece of him they could. Macaque took his lil fingers and nosed them. Rumble shook and almost wept in delight.
“Shh, I'm here now.” Cooed Macaque, maybe unconsciously, his pups avoided touching his bandaged aera. He was glad for that. It still throbbed. He nuzzled his babies, muffling their wet chirps in his fur, wiping away the shine veiling their eyes. He was here. He purred, something he didn't do often, to appease them. The vibration shushed them, they nuzzled closer to him, pressing against his neck, their lil hands unyielding in their clutch, and purred too.
Sun Wukong was woken up by the sounds of purring. He blinked open and looked down. Very much like the pups, he stilled for a brief instant, before erupting in unadulterated joy.
“Macaque! You're awake. How are you? Do you need anything? Does it hurt? You-” Macaque cut the sage before he ran out of breath.
“I'm, huh, mostly okay. A lil bit tired.” Nervously chuckled Macaque. Wukong nodded, hanging at every word passing his lips. He brought a shaking finger towards the lil monkey, Macaque patted the fingers, an attempt at comfort. Wukong smiled, his whole face brightened up, as if blessed by the sun. He scooped up the tiny family and brought them to his face. He pressed them against his cheek and nuzzled them.
“I'm so, so, so glad… I was afraid you… it’s been half a week.” He mumbled with a strangled voice. Macaque patted Wukong cheek and wiped away the tears forming in his eyes. The pups also put their tiny hands on the golden monkey cheek, their fingers sinking in his fur. Savage tried to reach for his nose but she failed and returned to his cheek. It felt as light as a butterfly caress. Wukong wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.
When the rest of the pilgrims awakened, they all fretted over Macaque and made sure he was okay. Sanzang asked at least a dozen questions on his wound and if he needed any more healing. Ao Lie fretted over him and the babies, covering them in headpats. Wujing asked if he needed anything and brought tiny blankets and the babies’ toys. Bajie prepared his favorite broth and served him a bigger portion than usual.
As he was sipping his broth, his cubs still latching to him, Macaque felt like, even if his left eye was blind, he would make it through. He had a lot of people to help him after all.
“You're staring an awful lot.” Joked Macaque as he turned towards the great sage. Sun Wukong startled, he scratched his neck in embarrassment, the tip of his ears reddening.
“Well… huh… I wanted to tell you something. But I think I'm gonna wait until tomorrow.”
“Why is that ?” Asked the black-furred monkey with a tilted head.
Sun Wukong's eyes fell on the pups, still buried in Macaque's neck, and he smiled. “Well, you just woke up, so everyone kinda needs their fill of Macaque. Especially those two lil gremlins. I'll wait tomorrow to steal you away.”
Macaque raised an eyebrow at the vague phrasing. What did he mean by stealing him away? The black-furred monkey averted his eyes, he felt his heart beats a little bit faster. God, he really ought to get this feeble organ under control. Macaque buried his face in his cubs to hide his reddening cheeks.
+ cut scenes
Savage *buried in Macaque's fur* : This is my place now and I will never leave 😠
Rumble *buried in Macaque's fur* : the perfect bed, 😌
Wukong inner thoughts : Should I confess right now? 🤔
Wukong *seeing the cubs latch on Mac like he's their lifeline* : Aww 🥰, okay maybe tomorrow
Savage *pawing Wukong's cheek* : Why is Pa face so big? I can't reach his nose to boop him! 😠
Rumble *pawing Wukong's cheek* : My fingers are sinking in all this fur. Is Pa a floof quicksand? 🤔
The monkeys goes on a date and the pilgrims are on babysitting duty
Wukong was leaning over the cubs’ crib, playing with the pups. Savage was looking up at him with excitement, pawing at his huge fingers in glee. Rumble was clutching his Wukong doll tighter, sometimes leaning in the soft touches of his Pa, rubbing against the pad of his fingers to have more pets.
“Come on, buds. Repeat after me, Pa.” Cooed Wukong, trying to coax his babies. It was his new pastime. He wanted more than anything to hear his pups’ first words.
“Aaaa.” Babled Savage.
“Pa.” Corrected Wukong as he booped his lil firecracker.
“Aaa!” She repeated with a lil blep.
“Pa, busy bee, Paaaaaa.”
“Aaaaaa.” Giggled Savage as she began to chew on his finger. Wukong sighed in fondness and let her do as she pleased. He then turned towards Rumble. It was always more difficult to make him blabber. He usually stuck to his mrrps langage. But the great sage learned that if he drowned his son in pets and snuggles the lil guy would be more willing to indulge him.
“Come on, puss-pouts, do it for me, say Pa.” Cooed Wukong as he petted the lil guy. Rumble slowly blinked up at him, he yawned, still drowsy from his nap.
“Aa.” Muttered Rumble.
“Pa.” Repeated Wukong.
“Wa.” Chirped Rumble, he then buried himself in his doll. Tired after so much effort.
“You're still trying to make them talk?” Chuckled Macaque. He was not far from the crib, crushing leaves to replenish his vials in different powder and medicine.
“It's a lost cause.” Snorted Bajie, he was reclining on the grass, arms crossed behind his head. Wukong huffed, he threw a glare at the pig demon.
“Well, I believe in them.” Replied the great sage as he got back to his cooing.
“We'll resume the journey tomorrow morning.” Informed Sanzang, he was dutifully polishing his staff with a wet cloth.
“I'll take the first watch tonight.” Hummed Wukong, he was not feeling very sleepy anyway.
“Actually, why don't you go out with Macaque for the evening? You guys are new mates and you don't have much time alone together.” Proposed Wujing. Bajie, Sanzang and Ao Lie perked up at the proposition. Both monkeys had been very… insistent in their courting as of late and it was becoming bothersome, for the lack of other terms.
Bajie still remembered the time Wukong brought back an outrageous amount of fruits only to impress his mate. It was hell to cook.
Wujing remembered when he got slapped by a demon's weapon because Wukong wasn't paying attention to the fight going on, instead looking back at Macaque every minute.
Ao Lie remembered when Macaque messed up the braid he was weaving in his hair because he was distracted by Wukong cooing at the cubs.
Sanzang remembered the night he stayed awake because of the two monkeys giggling and whispering sweet nothing to the other, believing no other heard them.
Gods, if those two could calm down their courting after one date, it would be great.
“What about the cubs?” Asked Wukong. He wasn't against spending time with Macaque but leaving the cubs didn't seem right.
“We'll babysit!” Replied Sanzang.
“You're sure?” Asked Macaque, he knew how tiresome his babies could be, especially Savage.
“We've never been surer.” Assured Ao Lie. Wukong considered the proposition. If he was honest, spending alone time with Macaque sounded great. Not that he didn't like his pups or his brothers. But… it would be great to have some quality time with his new mate.
“W-well, we could if you want to?” Tentatively asked Wukong as he glanced at the black-furred monkey. Macaque stopped grinding his leaves and nervously scratched his neck.
“Why not?” Replied Macaque. Wukong's tail wagged without his consent, the sage cursed and tied the unruly limb to his hips. Macaque snorted, he found it cute.
The great sage summoned his cloud with a flick of wrist, Macaque climbed on it and settled comfortably. Both monkeys left following the winds.
“Now we gotta be careful with the cubs. Especially Savage, she's slippery.” Warned Sanzang, he knew this from experience.
“How hard is it gonna be to babysit two brats?” Scoffed Bajie.
Ao Lie leaned over the cribs and winced. “There is only one in there.” All the pilgrims turned towards the crib and face-palmed. Rumble looked up at them innocently, as if his sister wasn't missing.
“This is gonna be a long night.” Sighed Wujing.
Meanwhile, both monkeys were admiring the starry sky. Macaque was sprawled on Wukong's chest, nibbling on the fruits the sage passed along to him. Perhaps it wasn't as romantic as it could be, but it was nice. They talked about silly things. Indulging in their more cheesy side now that they were alone.
“You know, your eyes are like rubies.” Mumbled Macaque as he looked up at the sage. Wukong snorted.
“You always become more cheesy when no-one is watching.”
“It's not my fault. You should stop being so cheesy-worthy.” Playfully huffed Macaque.
“Oh it's my fault now?” Smiled the golden monkey.
“It's always your fault.” Teased Macaque as he stuck his tongue out.
“You lil gremlin!” Chuckled Wukong, he took Macaque in his hands and began to tickle him. Macaque shrieked with laughter. Trying to wiggle out of Wukong's fingers in vain.
Wukong took pity on Macaque after a few minutes and stopped tickling him, instead he patted him on the head. Macaque smirked and kissed the tip of Wukong's fingers. The great sage flushed and glared at his mate. “You-” Grumbled the sage but he stopped himself. He got a devilish idea. The golden monkey brought Macaque closer to his face and smooched his head.
Macaque yelped and fluffed up, caught off guard by the affectionate gesture. “That was foul play.” Grumbled Macaque.
“Everything is fair in love and war.” Hummed Wukong.
They spend the rest of the night playing and talking. Basking in the other presence. When they got back to the camp, they found the pilgrims in a pitiful state. Sanzang was covered in mud, Wujing was removing twigs stuck in Ao Lie's hair and Bajie was on the floor, dead to the world around him.
Savage and Rumble were in their crib, peacefully sleeping, looking like angels.
“I don't think I even want to know.” Snorted Wukong.
+ cut scenes
Bajie *when Savage disappeared* : Where is she!? How is she so fast? 😧
Savage *hiding in the dark. Preparing to jump on one of them* : 😂🤭🤭
Sanzang : I didn't think baby monkey laughter could sound so ominous, but here we are. 😅
The twins first feeding!! The monkeys are in love with their babies
Macaque was obsessed. He didn't glance away from his babies since they bloomed. He was overwhelmed by so many feelings he didn't even know what he was truly thinking. The only thing he knew was that they were perfect, and they were his. The black-furred monkey was on Wukong's heart-shaped patch of fur. The Monkey King was reclining on his cloud, he had taken off his shirt after dirtying it with his tears. The twins bloomed a few hours ago, as such the pilgrims decided to stop traveling for today and take a well-deserved break.
Macaque eyes were a bit swollen. He cried the second one of the twins chirped at him. Right now, they were both in his arms. Familiarizing themselves with the feel of his fur and the sound of his heartbeat. He took off his shirt to hold them as close as possible, his lil girl and his lil boy were comfortably cuddled in his arms. The most adventurous cub was pawing at his face, tracing the lines of his visage with her tiny lil hands. Macaque kissed the tips of her fingers every time they neared his mouth, the cub giggled each time, her voice as clear as a wind chime. Macaque eyed her tenderly.
She had bright fur, the same color as the embers of a fire, with swirls of red on her back, dancing like flames. Her eyes were like rubies, it reminded Macaque of Wukong's eye color under all his glamor. Her mask was clearer than her fur, it was like the color of a peach. It was framed like a heart and ended in two spikes on each side of her lil mouth, making the illusion of fangs. Her tail was very long, it clumsily swayed in-between her tiny feets and tangled with her legs. Macaque was trying to untie it from her legs but she giggled and squirmed around, tangling herself with her tail even more each time he managed to untangle her. Macaque snorted at her behavior.
“You can't stay still, can you?” Softly cooed the black-furred monkey. Wukong, who was watching the scene with wet eyes, laughed along.
“You want help?” Whispered the great sage, his voice so unbelievably soft. Macaque hesitated for a bit before nodding. The golden-furred monkey was very slow. He approached one of his fingers and softly brushed the lil girl to distract her. The cub giggled and pawed at the huge finger that poked her with glee, she bit it happily, loving the feel of fur in her mouth. It didn't hurt at all for Wukong, her fangs were tinier than a kitten's. “You're a lil savage aren't you?” Cooed Wukong. Macaque hummed and used this chance to untangle her daughter, he smoothed her long, long tail and wrapped it around his wrist to prevent it from being tangled again.
“Savage… I think that's a good name.” Smiled Macaque. He then turned towards his precious son. He was even tinier than his sister and was trying to merge with Macaque chest's fur, gripping it tightly. “Hey, baby, dad wanna see your face.” Macaque tried to coax his son but the stubborn lil guy huffed and pushed Macaque's fingers away, he wanted to sleep more!
The sleepy lil guy had a darker fur than her flaming sister. His fur was dark like walnut wood and he had golden swirls on his back, ressembling golden clouds. Macaque cooed at him for long minutes. The lil guy finally huffed and looked up at Macaque with a pout and sleepy eyes. He had a deep red mask shaped like wings (similar to his own) which ended with two spikes on each side of his mouth, very much like his sister. His eyes were made of gold, softer than his sister, and veiled by a thin layer of sleepy tears.
“Hey my lil sleepy guy.” Macaque kissed his son's forehead. Contrary to his sister, he didn't giggle, instead he made a rumbling-like sound, something ressembling a “mrrp”. “You're a rumbly guy.” Laughed Macaque. Wukong's eyes fell on the lil rumbly guy and he smiled. He patted the tiny cub's head with the tip of his finger. He was surprised when the baby boy gripped his finger and used it as a pillow. The cub huffed and pressed his tiny snout in the fur. He was so satisfied with his new pillow he purred, the sound made his whole body shake.
“Definitely a rumbly guy. “ Snorted Wukong. “Lil Rumble.”
Macaque like the name, Rumble.
Rumble and Savage, his precious treasures.
“Guys, we're back.” Both monkeys startled at the voice. They were so focused on the cubs they forgot about the pilgrims.
“You were out?” Asked Wukong.
“Can't believe you didn’t even notice it.” Snorted Bajie with a mocking smile. “Not even a day that they're here and you're already obsessed.” Wukong rolled his eyes in annoyance.
“You choose names?” Excitedly asked Ao Lie. He approached the babies and cooed. Not too close though, he didn't want to frighten them.
“This lil adventurer is Savage.” Presented Macaque as he tried to tear his daughter away from Wukong’s finger, she seemed to really like chewing on it. “and this lil purring guy is Rumble.” Added Macaque as he patted his son, who was still buried in Wukong's other finger.
“Beautiful babies.” Praised Wujing with sparkling eyes.
“We went looking for a village with the alms bowl. We got some fruits and milk for the babies.” Informed Sanzang as he took out the bottle of milk. Macaque eyes lit up when he saw the milk. He had to feed his babies!
“Oh, brothers, look in the outside pocket of our bags and bring me the lil wooden bottles I carved.” Demanded Wukong. Wujing nodded and went to fetch the lil bottles.
The great sage knew Macaque didn't have any milk. He was a male after all. So he created a lot of lil wooden bottles with silk tied at the end of it for the babies to feed on.
“You made that?” Asked Macaque with a huge smile.
“Yeah.” Nodded Wukong, he blushed when he noticed Macaque's smile. The great sage took the milk and poured it in the lil wooden bottles, a few drops were enough. He then tied the silk at the end of it and passed them to Macaque.
Macaque took the bottles. He didn't really know how to do this but he'll do his best. He coaxed his lil girl to his chest and brought the bottle close to her mouth. Savage looked up at him and tilted her head in confusion. Ah… yes, he needed to show her how to use it, how stupid of him. Macaque brought the bottle to his lips and sucked on the silk, drinking a few drops of milk. Savage watched him with round eyes, her lil ears twitching in interest. Macaque lowered the bottle to her again and let her pawe at it in wonder. Then Savage brought the bottle to her lips and sucked on the silk, her eyes widened comically when she drank her first drops of milk and her long tail wagged in delight. She sucked loudly, clutching the lil wooden bottle tightly, as if it was a treasure.
Macaque eyes widened when he saw how fast her daughter was drinking. In two blinks she already ended the bottle and demanded more.
“A lil glutton.” Chuckled Wukong as he refilled the bottle.
Rumble was a bit harder to coax, he glared at his bottle suspiciously, as if it would bite him if he dared suck on the silk. His sister was the one to help him. She frowned when she heard his lil “mrrps” of dissatisfaction and pushed the bottle on him. Rumble's chest ended up being a lil moist. The rumbly cub gasped and glared at his sister, she giggled while still suking on her bottle.
Rumble frowned and tried to pawe at his sister in frustration but she was too far. He huffed and stopped, tired by his tentatives. Macaque managed to finally coax him after he tired himself out and Rumble sucked on the silk with a grumpy face.
They both burped after being fed and curled in Macaque's chest. Savage was sprawled in his arms like a starfish while Rumble was curled in a tiny ball of fur. Their lil snores echoed softly in the air. Macaque looked down at them and wiped away the tears nipping at his eyes. The wind softly ruffled the two cubs and lulled them peacefully, singing melodies in their tiny ears, taking them to the land of dreams.
+ Cut scenes
Sanzang *warning the monkeys* : we're going to look for food.
The monkeys *focused on the twins* : 🥰🥰 chirps !
Sanzang : they're not listening are they? 😅
Ao Lie : Nope
Rumble : How dare you spill milk on me?? 😮
Savage : You're too slow 🙄
Rumble : This is war 😠
Rumble *after trying to pawe at Savage and failing* : Hmph, you're lucky for now. 😤
