MitsuKoko

MitsuKoko is the het ship between Mitsuru and Kokoro from the DARLING in the FRANXX fandom.

Canon
Mitsuru and Kokoro were in different FRANXX pairings at the start of DARLING in the FRANXX. They barely interacted with each other as they had little need to and shared no common interests. Mitsuru was sort of a lone wolf who often headbutted Hiro and Kokoro was a shy, quiet girl who was afraid to voice her opinions, usually just going with the flow.

After Mitsuru got traumatised by piloting with Zero Two, Kokoro started showing concern for Mitsuru's wellbeing, which Mitsuru brushed off, thinking she was just pitying him. When Squad 13 was rewarded with a short getaway at the beach, Mitsuru found the remains of an abandoned city and wanted to do some exploration. Kokoro voiced her fears of the place, to which Mitsuru coldly told her she didn't need to come if she was afraid and added that he couldn't guarantee anyone's safety. However, Mitsuru managed to save Kokoro from getting crushed by a falling bookcase in an old clinic later, implying he had been following her closely. He also noticed Kokoro had picked up a book about childbirth and reproduction - banned information but chose not to mention it.

During the Boys x Girls fight, Kokoro and Mitsuru bumped into each other at the greenhouse. Kokoro wondered if Mitsuru had an interest in flowers and proceeded to explain the 'language of flowers'. When she realised Mitsuru didn't seem to be listening she asked if he was going along in the fight, to which he replied he found the fight stupid and couldn't be bothered about it. Kokoro praised him for his bravery, stating it took a lot of courage to refuse to toe the line. As he walked to leave the greenhouse, Mitsuru found Kokoro kept the book from the getaway despite it undoubtedly being against regulation when it dropped out of her pocket. When Kokoro admitted she had indeed kept the book, Mitsuru didn't alert their caregivers about it, stating the book didn't involve him and agreeing to keep it a secret.

Whilst on a special mission to defend the S-Planning facility, Mitsuru collapses due to 'child fever' and puts Chlorophytum out of commission. Even after recovering, testing finds he and Ikuno's sync rate has dropped so low Hachi notes he could become a pruning target. This along with a few other factors led to Nana suggesting the option of a partner shuffle between the members of the squad. Even after promising to be Futoshi's partner forever, Kokoro volunteered to try riding with Mitsuru, shocking the entire team and bringing Futoshi to tears. As with his other squadmates, Mitsuru was unable to open up to Kokoro. On the first mission after Partner Shuffle, MitsuKoko's FRANXX (Genista) acted as rear support. However, they had problems fighting.

Fanon
It is a highly popular ship in the fandom, having reached first place in weekly anime popularity charts. It rivals FutoKoko.

Children
Series' finale shows Mitsuru and Kokoro have three children plus one on the way. Only one of them has their revealed name for now:

Ai
Ai is the firstborn daughter of Mitsuru and Kokoro. She is also the first naturally born child to the Parasites after APE's departure.

Ai is the Japanese word for "love" (愛). Mitsuru and Kokoro named her after this in honor of Hiro and Zero Two's relationship.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

PIXIV
 * ミツココ tag on pixiv.
 * ミツココ on pixiv encyclopedia.

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