hoO BOY HERE WE GO

let's put this in a simple sentence: school is a bitch. i've only been in school a month and a half and i only have one A lmao

plus colleges and stuff. like i have to start applying soon and getting my future in order and wow idk what to do honestly

bUT I DECIDED TO UPD8 TODAY because it is casey's birthday! yes, miss cassia jane egbert was born today, the 19th of september, 2016. like if npnl were real she would have actually been born today. as in this particular installment takes place in 2018 woah what is this

lol hope you like it :P

-Wednesday, March 6, 8:27 am / John & Vriska's House-

"Bye, Vriska! Love you!"

"Love you too, John! Have a great day at work!"

John closed the front door behind him as he left. Vriska habitually watched as he climbed into his car and backed out of the driveway, eventually disappearing down the road.

As soon as he was gone, Vriska turned around. "Okay, Peanut," she said to Casey, "you and Mommy are going to have a really fun day today, alright?"

"Yeah!" exclaimed Casey from the living room as she threw a small stuffed pig in excitement. "Do what?"

Vriska smiled and joined her daughter on the rug. "We are going to visit Un—" She stopped herself before smiling. "—Aunt Tavros and his kid, okay?"

Casey laughed. "Tavvo!" she squealed. "Yay!"

"Okay, well, Peanut," Vriska told the toddler with a smile, "Mommy's going to get ready, okay? Stay right here and I'll be right back."

"Okay Mommy!'

Vriska flashed Casey a smile once again before getting off the rug and making her way upstairs, making sure to close the childproof gate behind her.

I hope Tavros is doing okay, Vriska thought to herself as she began to put on her makeup for the day. Ever since the egg had been born/laid/whatever, the two had barely spoken. She was sure he could have been wrapped up with trying to find a job, or trying to get along with the near-irreconcilable trolls he was living with—not to mention the whole parenting thing.

She finished doing her eye makeup and was debating on whether or not to do her hair, but ultimately decided on just throwing it into a quick ponytail before getting dressed.

After throwing on her most presentable yet comfortable clothes, Vriska headed downstairs to gather Casey and her things before heading over to the trailer park. "Okay, Peanut," she announced, closing the gate behind her, "are you ready to go—"

Casey had disappeared from her spot on the rug and was nowhere to be found in the living room. "Um," Vriska simply said to herself, heart pounding faster. "Peanut? Where are you?"

Vriska checked every nook and cranny in the living room before moving on to the kitchen. "Casey?" she called over and over, opening every cabinet and door for a sign of her daughter.

Casey was not in the bathroom or the office, either, and by this point Vriska was beginning to get worried. I should have taken her upstairs with me, she thought, beginning to criticize herself as she moved into the laundry room.

Fearing the worst, she opened the washer and dryer, only to be greeted by sopping wet clothes and nothing, respectfully. "Goddammit, Casey," Vriska mumbled, "where are you?"

"Find me!" a tiny voice exclaimed from the corner, and Vriska went over to the hamper and snatched a few towels out of it only to see her daughter's smiling face. "You win!"

"Cassia Jane Egbert!" Vriska sighed, lifting Casey out of the basket. "You scared me!"

Casey laughed. "Very fun!"

"Scaring Mommy isn't fun, Casey," Vriska strictly told her daughter. "Come on. We're leaving."

"We play there?"

"Only if you don't play hide-and-seek without telling me."

-10:03 am / Evergreen Forest Mobile Home Community-

Vriska turned her car onto the dusty dirt road and continued down the drive until she came upon the trolls' trailer. "When we get out, hold Mommy's hand, okay?"

"Okay!" Casey exclaimed from the back seat.

Vriska parked the car in the closest thing she could call a driveway and quickly got Casey out of the back seat before locking the door. Really, the only reason why she was uncomfortable in the trailer park was because she knew Gamzee lived there. Gripping Casey's hand as gently as she could without losing firmness, Vriska led Casey up to the front door of their destination and knocked on the door.

The door opened and the two were greeted by Tavros, who was cradling a long, baby-sized egg in his arms. "Hi Vriska," he said softly, smiling as he stepped out of the way to let the two Egberts in. "Nice to see you."

"Is...everything okay?" asked Vriska cautiously. Though he had always been soft-spoken, Tavros was speaking abnormally quietly, especially for the fact that he was currently sharing a trailer with two other trolls—one who had a tendency to be not exactly quiet—and an egg. "You seem...quiet."

"I talked to Terezi, and she said the egg should be hatching soon," he told her in a near-whisper, glancing down at the egg. "I don't exactly know when; it could be any moment."

"O...kay." Vriska closed the door behind her and led Casey to the couch. "Did she ever come over?"

"No, she never called back and then I told her not to. I decided I wanted it to be a surprise."

Vriska scoffed. "That's no fun."

A door squeaked open from somewhere in the trailer and Nepeta entered the condensed living room. "Hi!" she exclaimed, immediately going towards Casey and picking her up.

Casey giggled. "Nepa!"

Nepeta smiled and sat down on the couch, placing Casey in her lap. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"We just wanted to come over. Nothing to do." Vriska sighed. "Yeah, Terezi has been really busy or something, I don't know. She hasn't been answering my calls and I never see her."

Tavros frowned. "That's weird. She seemed really excited about the egg, and then she just never called back about it."

"Huh." Vriska stared at the floor and pulled her phone out of her purse/Casey's diaper bag. "Um, I'm going to use the bathroom. Watch Casey for me."

She immediately went into the tiny bathroom and locked the door behind her. Stepping into the shower and closing the curtain behind her for safe measures (even though the door was locked), Vriska unlocked her phone and began furiously texting at Terezi.

We need to talk, she wrote.

Less than a minute later there was a reply. About what? :?

Vriska sighed. Um. How do I put this.

Yes?

You've...8een acting weird, I guess?

She could practically hear Terezi scoff from her side of the line. Acting weird. Okay.

Just meet me for lunch sometime this week, ok8y?

If she had had a flip phone, she would have slammed it shut, but she made do with her iPhone and just stuffed it into her pocket. "Um, Vriska?" a voice shakily called from the living room.

"What?!" growled Vriska, irritated with the overall situation as she left the bathroom. "What is it?"

Tavros held up the egg, which was visibly shaking in his arms. "Uh...I think it's hatching."

All emotions were temporarily pushed aside as Vriska rushed to her ex-boyfriend?'s side. "Um," she stuttered, trying to find the right words as she scrambled for a blanket. "Tav, uh, I don't mean to freak you out, but I have no idea what's going to happen."

"What do you mean? Were you not there when Casey hatched?"

At the mention of her name, Casey threw her arms up into the air. "Me!"

Vriska ignored her daughter's outburst and continued. "Tavros, humans don't come from eggs. The moment Casey came out of me she was alive and breathing."

Tavros stared at her. "Oh, fuck."

The egg continued to shake in his arms as he laid it down on a blanket Vriska had dug out from underneath the couch. "What do I do?!" Tavros squeaked, trying his best to hold the egg still.

"Just keep doing what you're doing!"

Vriska and Tavros watched the egg intently as it continued to shake on the blanket, eventually beginning to roll around. Nepeta would have been watching as well, if Casey weren't wiggling in her arms and trying to play.

A small crack appeared in the velvety shell and slowly began to grow as the two adult trolls watched attentively. A small leg poked its way through the crack and wiggled around, followed by another and another as more cracks began to form.

Tavros' eyes widened in awe as the grub's butt wiggled out of the egg, trying its best to push aside what was left of the shell. Eventually it tumbled out of the egg's remains and flopped down on the floor.

"Tav," Vriska gasped, "it's gorgeous."

"It's a girl," he said with a smile, slowly reaching down to pick up the grub. "Regina."

The grub's face was entirely Gamzee's, and was honestly a little off-putting to Vriska. The fact that anyone as terrible as Gamzee could have a near-identical clone—even one that was a girl and a totally different blood color—scared her a bit. However, she had small, delicate versions of Tavros' horns, and already seemed to have his overall pleasant demeanor.

"Look at her!" Nepeta squealed. "She's so tiny!"

Casey, however, was not as impressed. She furrowed her brow and scrunched her face up. "Ew," she commented. "Bug."

"Regina is not a bug, Casey," Vriska reminded the toddler, glancing at Tavros to make sure she got her name correct. "She's a baby, like you were. Katrina used to look like that."

"Katrina pretty."

Vriska rolled her eyes and looked back at the grub. "Don't listen to Casey, Tav," she laughed. "Regina's adorable."

Tavros beamed, proud of his offspring despite the circumstances in which she was produced. "Thank you, Vriska. I think so, too."