TINY TROUBLE! •*⁀➷ Saja Boys➳Fem! Child! Reader

❁ཻུ۪۪♡ ͎. ｡˚ SEVEN

"Broccoli," he corrected.

"Broccoli," you said, and didn't combust. The aura didn't wobble. Somewhere, Mystery marked an invisible checklist.

Romance squeezed your shoulder. "Perfect. Now two steps of small talk. 'Hello, I'm new here. Where's the bathroom?'"

You blinked, round (e/c) glistened with innocence. "But we're in a living room."

...Adorable.

Romance caught himself thinking silently and then smiled. "Acting."

You delivered the line with such sincere panic about bathroom locations that even Jinu's mouth twitched. You were getting it—the delicate art of sounding like a person with normal pee priorities.

── ·𖥸· ──

Baby's Heat & Heal:
"Recovery Is Training, Too"

Baby had swapped the volcano flight for... dumplings. Steam curled from a bamboo basket. "Endurance isn't only heat. It's bounce-back. Hot, then soothe. Push, then comfort." He set a small bowl of miso in front of you.

"Sip. Feel."

You sipped. Warm salt. Gentle. Your aura, which had been dancing on a wire all afternoon, settled into a softer glow.

Baby hummed, content. "Good. Now a whisper of spice." He flicked in the tiniest drop from a bottle. "Taste the edge. Don't jump off it."

You tasted. The heat kissed your tongue and stepped back. You smiled.

Baby tapped your sternum lightly. "That's how you manage it in a fight. Kiss the edge. Don't dive."

"Like soup," you said.

"Like soup," he agreed, happy to share your culinary philosophy.

Baby wasn't sure how making dumplings would help you trick the Huntrix, Maybe she can win their hearts over with cooking?

It was a funny thought, winning a hunter's heart through food? Now that's comedy.

Then he did something wild: he taught you to make dumplings. Your tiny hands fumbled the wrappers, tore two, folded one that looked like a sleeping mouse. Baby applauded like you'd invented food.

When the basket finished steaming, he set the ugliest dumpling on a plate with ceremony. "For the chef."

You took a careful bite. Delicious. Your eyes went huge. Like a cat with catnip huge. Baby preened.

By the time Jinu stalked by to critique something, he paused, saw you and Baby and the steam and the calm, and said nothing.

── ·𖥸· ──

Mystery's Shadow Thread:
"Needle and Thread"

The balcony again. The sky bruised from orange to indigo. Mystery held out a length of black thread.

"Pretend it's your shadow," he said. "Wind it around your fingers. Loosen. Tighten. Tie a knot. Untie it."

You did, tongue peeking out in utter concentration. The "knot" you made looked like a spaghetti accident. You tried again. And again. On the fourth try, it formed a tidy loop.