A/N: Are we ready? Are you team meister or team weapon? Let's see!
~ Stitches – 3 years, 6 months ~
Well, the new kids in the E.A.T. class have settled in nicely. It's a bit different to having the others around, but that could just be because they're new and don't know their way around yet.
Stitches is a lot more active now, and she's excelling. She's inherited her father's intelligence, and she's already begun to read. It's gorgeous, and Stein relishes in not having to read any of the 'Princess Sparkles' series anymore.
Stitches sometimes tried to read the paper, and there's nothing funnier than her making up stories because she can't read some of the words.
Stein and I have been together for four years now. Four whole years. Time flies, hey?
Oh well, I'd better go. I've got a fantastic set of cramps at the moment.
The joys of being a woman, I tell you.
I'm not looking forward to the day that Stitches starts going through it. Poor Stein, is all I can say. Oh, I've got a terribly cruel smile on my face now. Stop it, Marie!
Marie x
"She's awfully quiet." Stein said, glancing over to the door of his daughter's bedroom. Marie was in a near catatonic state on the couch, a heat pack on her lower stomach.
"She's fine." Marie said, closing her eyes. Stein sighed.
"You should really be in bed." Stein said. Marie glared at him.
"I am not moving from here ever." Marie said, closing her eyes once again. Stein recoiled slightly.
"Fine, fine." He said. However, her statement was contradicted when they heard Stitches exclaiming from her room. She sounded… angry. And not usual angry. Really angry. Stein stood quickly and Marie followed him. They staggered slightly when the cries of anger turned to screams. Stein rushed into the room and stopped when he saw the sight.
"Marie, you need to get in here." Stein stepped back slightly, his face solemn. Marie stumbled over to the door and was also shocked at the sight.
"Oh my…" Marie began. Stitches turned to them, her face plastered in horror.
"Mama! Papa! Make it go away!" she said. Stein knelt down next to Stitches and took a deep breath in.
"You were right." Stein said, sitting on the ground and pulling the severely shocked Stitches onto his lap. He took her arm in his hand; well, it was half her arm.
The other half was unmistakable; a slate-like hammer.
"Stitches, when did this happen?" Stein asked, softly.
"Make it go away! Make it go away!" she exclaimed, Stein having to hold onto her arm so she didn't hit him. Marie looked down at her daughter who was crying and in shock.
"Stein, bring her out onto the lounge. I can't get down there." Marie said. Stein nodded and picked up Stitches, who grabbed onto him tightly. They walked out to the living room and Stein sat Stitches down next to Marie.
"Honey, you have to tell Mama this truthfully. When did your arm go like this?" Marie asked. Stitches snivelled and looked up at Marie's identically coloured eyes.
"W-Well, I was playing d-dolls, and my doll, she wouldn't stand up, and I tried, and I tried, and she wouldn't stand up, and I-I got so angry and…" Stitches cried. Marie nodded and placed her hand on top of Stitches'.
"Honey, it's okay. You're like Mama. You're a weapon. And that's okay. But what I need you to do is calm down. You have to stop thinking about your doll. Because that's the only way that your arm is going to go back to normal." Marie said. Stitches fretted, tears still trickling from her eyes.
"Come on, baby. You've gotta take a deep breath. You've gotta forget about your doll. Breathe with me." Marie said.
She took Stitches' hand and took a deep breath in and a deep breath out. Stitches began to breathe with her and, eventually, in a flicker of blue light, her arm turned to normal. Stitches began to cry once more and fell into Marie's arms.
"W-What happened?" Stitches asked, quivering in Marie's arms. Martie held her close and kissed her on the top of the forehead.
"You're a weapon, sweetheart. Like mama. Mama can control when she turns into a weapon. But you… you're only little, right?" Marie asked. Stitches nodded.
"So, when you get really angry, you can't control it, but you turn into a hammer. Exactly like Mama. All you've gotta do is be really careful and, when you feel like you're getting really angry, you've gotta calm yourself down." Marie said, quietly. Stein just watched on in silent admiration at his partner's composure. Stitches nodded slightly, still snivelling.
"D-D-Does that mean I'm... I could hurt people… Mama, I don't wanna hurt people!" Stitches exclaimed. Marie shook her head.
"No. Honey, you won't hurt people. We're all going to make sure of that." Marie said. Stitches nodded, still shaking. Stein walked over to Stitches, kneeling down in front of her.
"You're going to be fine. I promise you that." Stein cradled the back of his daughter's head. She nodded, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"I'll put her down for a nap." Stein told Marie.
Marie nodded and watched as Stein tried to soothe the frenetic little girl, obviously doing so successfully as he walked back out of the bedroom without any screaming or crying. He sat down next to Marie, his arm wrapping around her shoulder and resting on her thigh as she leant against him.
"Are you going to say 'I told you so'?" Stein asked. Marie shook her head.
"She's so young…" Marie sighed.
"I know, but, it's better that we find out now. We can talk to Shinigami-sama. He'll know what to do about it." Stein said.
"I was nine before anything happened to me." Marie sighed.
"Well, you dealt with Stitches extremely well." Stein said.
"I tried." Marie sighed.
"Well, if that's how you're going to deal with the important moments in her life, then you can do all the important talks. The sex talk, the 'no boyfriends until you're thirty' talk… the list goes on." Stein smirked down at Marie. Marie rolled her eyes and smiled.
"I don't know what I'd do without you." Marie said.
"Well, you wouldn't have a three and a half year old daughter, that's for sure." Stein said. Marie raised an eyebrow.
"You never know, I might have." Marie asked.
"Oh, you've got men lined up to provide you with children, hey?" Stein asked. Marie giggled slightly.
"I've got contacts." Marie said, crossing her arms and smiling smugly.
"Oh, well, that's reassuring." Stein smirked. Marie laughed slightly, before wincing at a cramp. Stein laid her down on his lap and began to stroke her golden hair.
"I hate being a woman sometimes." Marie remarked. Stein chuckled slightly.
"I can't respond to that without sounding insulting or completely stupid." Stein said.
"Good. Don't talk. Make pain go away." Marie mumbled. Stein raised an eyebrow.
"How am I supposed to do that?" Stein asked.
"Don't know. Just fix it." Marie replied. Stein shook his head.
"I can't do that." Stein shrugged.
"You doctor. You make things better." Marie smiled slightly.
"I can't fix your gender, Marie." Stein remarked.
"You know, I hate men sometimes." Marie joked, crossing her arms.
"My sincerest apologies for not having ovaries, Marie." Stein said. Marie opened her uncovered eye.
"Well, it's obviously your fault." Marie said. Stein smirked and nodded. Marie sat up, slid herself off of Stein, sat down on the couch next to him and kissed him on the cheek.
"I love you." She smiled.
"I love you too." Stein smirked. Marie went to lean over and kiss Stein again, but stopped halfway and closed her eyes tightly, gritting her teeth.
"Cramp." She winced.
Stein and Marie were laying in bed, Marie holding a hot water bottle to her abdomen in slumber. Just as Stein was drifting off to sleep, he heard rapping at the door. He switched on the light and looked over at Stitches, who was standing at the door with her little toy rabbit.
"Stitches?" Stein asked, rubbing his eyes.
"Uh, Papa? C-Can I sleep with you and Mama tonight? B-Because I don't want my arm to go all… funny." Stitches said. Stein sighed and nodded.
"Come on." Stein said, slipping out of the bed and walking over to Stitches, picking her up.
"Thank you, Papa." Stitches said, quietly, nuzzling into Stein's hold. Stein laid her down next to Marie and sat himself down next to her.
"You alright there?" Stein asked. Stitches nodded before looking up at her father, eyes wide and fearful.
"Is my arm going to hurt me?" Stitches asked. Stein shook his head and rested his hand on his daughter's shoulder.
"No, Stitches." Stein said. Stitches blinked twice before rubbing her eyes.
"B-Because you won't let it hurt me?" she asked tentatively. Stein nodded definitively.
"I won't let it hurt you." Stein said, turning the light off and laying down next to the still worried little girl.
"You sure?" Stitches whispered. Stein nodded.
"Yes. Now, you've got to go to sleep." Stein said. Stitches nodded and curled up, one arm keeping a firm hold on the t-shirt he was wearing.
"Keep me safe, Papa." Stitches whispered. Stein looked down at her and placed his hand at the back of her head. Marie's eyes opened ever-so-slightly, and she gently rubbed circles into Stitches' back. Stein glanced over at her before looking back down at his daughter.
"Always, Stitches. Always."
A/N: So, Mjolnir blood runs thick :D Our baby is a weapon :D
Just a little note in case you've not read Stitches, this is in reference to Chapter 27. Basically, Marie thinks that their daughter will be a weapon, Stein thinks she won't be and will end up being a meister. So that's where the whole "Aren't you gonna say I told you so" comment comes from.
