A little over two weeks later, the engineers at Card Castle were busy in the room that was now officially reserved and confirmed as the room of King and Queen's future child. They were building the necessary pieces of furniture.
All of the corresponding wood that the pieces of furniture were made of had been sanded thoroughly and painted a very specific hue of blue two days beforehand, to make sure that they were all suitable enough to serve as actual furniture parts.
"There" Tobias sighed as he put his screwdriver down and wiped the sweat off of his forehead with his right tentacle arm, "that's that." He just finished building the barred frames of the wooden baby bed. "Are they symmetrical enough, though?"
"Of course they are, Tobi" a Head Hathy named Duncan replied with a nod. "You measured everything so perfectly, no need to change anything about it at all." He came closer to the frames to check them. "And those plug holes are just perfect, too! Not too big so that no little fingers will get stuck or hurt there."
"Phew, I'm so glad I didn't mess it up this time."
"How so? Last time you helped to build the furniture for Clover, you didn't mess up either."
"But my confidence was significantly lower back then. Remember how I consistently hit my tentacle tips with the hammer?"
"Goodness, I indeed do! You were so nervous since you never even built baby furniture beforehand back then. But you did keep on going despite those thick bandages on your tentacle tips, and that's only very confident of you." Duncan grabbed the inner frame of the bed that he just finished as well. "Should I insert this and the plugs to test things out?"
"Of course, please go ahead."
In the meantime, Arnold and another Rudinn Ranger named Roger were busy building the dresser's first few drawers after only just having finished its frame.
"I bet both King and Queen will be very happy with these big drawers" Roger said. "They can fit at least twenty piles of clothes…!"
"That's wherefore we have the wardrobe planned, Rog" Arnold said. "The dresser will contain the nappies and changing supplies, remember? Those are significantly more important than the clothing." He started screwing the next screw into the second-to-last marked spot on the upwards-facing side of the drawer.
"Arn, I'm only just 22 right now, and contrary to King and Queen, I'm everything but ready for a child, so how should I know?"
"I wasn't blaming you for anything, Rog. I'm just sharing my experiences as a father to twins, you know? Two kids are always proven to be a bigger handful than one."
"I hate to say it, but that must've been pretty rough."
"The first few years were indeed pretty rough, you're correct about that. My twins would always copy one another when they were still babies, and once they were nearly two, they regularly threw the most horrifying and painful tantrums that would leave me with massive bruises every week." Arnold couldn't help but laugh while he was almost halfway there with his current screw. "My friends and acquaintances would oftentimes wonder if my wife gave me those bruises during sadomasochism play or something, while neither of us is into that stuff…! But it was definitely the twins' doing whenever they didn't get their way, hahaha!"
"At least you can still laugh about it, even though it must've been very embarrassing back then."
"At least those terrible twos are merely a phase, and there's always puberty which is significantly worse."
"Ah, puberty. It feels like mine has been there pretty recently. My mother suddenly became overprotective of me once puberty hit me a decade ago? Like, it's not that I can stay her little child forever or something." Roger was now busy screwing the last screw into the upwards-facing side of the drawer, the previous one being fully inserted now.
"I know that a lot of parents react to their offspring's puberty like this, so that's why my wife and I decided to let the twins explore themselves at their own tempo by then."
"Why aren't all parents that way?"
"I don't know, but I agree with your indirect suggestion that every parent should follow my example of raising their offspring."
While the two Rudinn Rangers talked on, Tobias and Duncan had fully confirmed that the bed's measurements and proportions were perfectly correct, and thus that the bed was all done.
"Heck yeah, we did it!" the two Head Hathies said as they high-fived one another enthusiastically.
"Do we still have any suitable mattresses for this bed?" Tobias asked.
"Of course" Duncan replied. "In one of the storerooms, Clover's baby mattress is still there, and I'm pretty sure that it perfectly fits in this very bed. As for bedding and such? I think that's up to King and Queen to either purchase or let someone design and sew it for them."
"Ooh, spades-themed bedding. That sounds pretty cool, actually. It'll continue the tradition of every suit-themed bedding the monarchs' offspring has had so far."
"Ah, yeah, like how Clover had clubs-themed bedding! That is indeed pretty cool. Didn't Igos's wife Irene customly design that specially for her?"
"Now that you mention that, she indeed did. She's a top seamstress at this castle, don't you think? The unique shapes and designs really scream her name and style."
"However, like Clover, King and Queen's child isn't allowed to have duvets and such just yet at first, so we should probably ask Irene to make that child something like a spades-themed baby blanket? You know, as a little gift."
"That's not a bad idea, actually. Every baby deserves presents shortly before their arrival, and Clover also got her own clubs-themed baby blanket before she arrived."
"Okay, we should definitely ask Irene to make that blanket. 'Probably' fiddlesticks." Duncan laughed heartily. "Shall we carefully move the bed into that corner over there?"
"No, the corner is way too secluded for a child to sleep in! I suggest we'll put it over there." Tobias pointed at an area between those two vertical corners in the room.
"You're right. What if a spider crawls down from the corner of the ceiling to subsequently be eaten by the baby? That mere thought already gives me the shivers!" The strong Head Hathy carefully grabbed the bed by one of its wide edges. "Ready, Tobi?"
"Ready when you are." Tobias grabbed the other wide end of the bed.
"Alright, on three. One, two… three…!"
The two Head Hathies carefully replaced the bed towards its assigned spot, and let out a deep sigh of relief once they let go of it after having settled it.
"Are you two doing alright?" Arnold asked. "Whoa, that bed looks astoundingly perfect! You two did an amazing job once again!"
"Thanks" Tobias said with a smile and a somewhat exhausted chuckle. "My mathematical skills were once again proven to be top-notch." He went towards Arnold and Roger to take a gander at their process on the dresser. "How is the dresser going?"
"Pretty smoothly, thank you."
"Wow, that frame looks pretty symmetrical, too! Nice job on it!"
"Thank you kindly. Who says I can no longer build baby furniture simply because my twins are turning 18 this year?"
"Not me, in any case."
"Me neither" Duncan chuckled. "Keep up the good job. Ooh, pretty nice drawers! I think that some spade-shaped knobs could make the perfect finishing touch for them."
"Yeah, me too!" Roger said. "I remember those tiny clubs-shaped paint jobs on the knob areas of the drawers of Clover's dresser, but I think actual suit-shaped knobs are an even better idea! Who painted those again?"
"That happened to be my wife" Arnold replied. "She predicted that those drawers looked too stale and plain without any small details behind the knobs, so before the knobs were inserted, she swiftly painted some clubs there, and they perfectly matched the hue of off-white that the knobs were."
"Ah, of course! Matt always loves to add small details to anything, doesn't she?"
"Correct! I can tell that you've paid very good attention while looking at her sketches and royal portraits. Nobody but her can manage to pull off Queen's visor that perfectly." Arnold then inspected the finished drawer once more. "Now to attach some of those rail wheels onto the sides and this'll be perfect to be put into the frames that are already inserted!"
"Shall we help you with that?" Tobias offered. "Dunc and I are done with the bed, after all."
"Of course, please knock yourself out! The more will help us assemble the dresser, the sooner it'll be done, right?"
Duncan was soon there with the second toolbox, and the foursome quickly started assembling the next few drawers of the dresser, which could be put into their corresponding frames even sooner that way.
As for the knobs of those drawers? Don't worry, they'd be there very soon thanks to the co-operation of Arnold's wife Matt and the artsy Roger.
"Oh My Circuits…!" Queen softly squeaked. "I'm Actually Pregnant…!" Her visor showed two large star icons.
In her left hand, she held a modern-looking pregnancy test that she received from the castle's medical room beforehand, of which the tiny LCD display would either show the word 'no' or 'yes' once the test would be used. And guess what, its display showed the word 'yes'.
Queen gently closed the door of the Royal Flush behind her, sanitised her hands thoroughly and subsequently went to look for King.
"Kingy Wingy…!" she said in a sing-song voice. "Kingy Wingy Darling Where Are You?"
"He's in the throne room with Rouxls" a passerby Ponman replied in a shy, soft voice tone.
"Thank You Dear…!" Queen swiftly hid the test behind her back, which, ironically enough, didn't even surprise the Ponman for one bit.
"You look to be very happy, by the way."
"Thanks Mari Today Just Happens To Be: A Happy Day For Me. When Was Your Last Happy Day?"
"Hmm… that's a tricky question. I think when I turned 21 last month. I was finally allowed to have my first ever glass of wine, and it tickled my taste buds so hard that I immediately smiled…! I no longer have to be jealous of everyone else who has a glass of wine of their own."
"Did They Tease You With Their Wine And Such Before You Turned: 21?"
"You bet your sweet behind they did, and it was not fair…! And nowadays, they just welcome me to the club of alcohol with the warmth that a glass of wine often gives us from the inside. Do you know that feeling?"
"I Only Know It Of: Tea, Since I Don't Drink Anything Alcoholic Myself. My Mother However Did Know That Feeling After Having Drank Battery Acid."
"In that case, you're doing a much better job than her and me, if I may be frank. Alcohol is significantly more addictive than sugar." Mari swiftly checked their ankle-watch. (Do Ponmen have arms? I don't think so.) "I hate to break it, but I promised to meet with Izuki and Amore in 5 minutes to play poker for dummies. Have a nice one…!"
"You Have A Nice One Too Mari Sweetie." Queen waved at Mari with a sweet smile, and from the inside, she sighed deeply in the relief of not having given her only-just-discovered pregnancy away.
The cyber monarch subsequently headed towards the throne room, where she knocked on the door frame.
"Yes?" King said.
"Ay?" Rouxls said along with King.
"Hi There Kingy Wingy And Rouxls!"
"Thou seemst very happy. How cometh?"
"Nothing Special My Dear Shakespearean Friend Today Is Just A Happy Day For Me."
"Um… what hast thou got there?" Rouxls pointed at the test that could somewhat be seen in Queen's left hand.
"Oh Nothing Too Important. Just A Gift For Kingy Wingy Since I'm Feeling Processor-Tastically Generous Today."
"Oh?" King asked with his head somewhat cocked. "A gift for me? But we never even exchanged any gifts beforehand."
"Sweetheart Remember How I Gave You Your Own Phone After: Our First Date?"
"Huh? Oh yeah, that's right!" King was somewhat flabbergasted upon actually having forgotten his first gift from Queen. "I was very glad that I no longer had to share that big black phone with everyone else once I got my own!"
"But This Gift Is Even Better. However You Shall Not Take It Out Of Your Inner Pocket Until It's Just Us Here. It's: Top Secret…!" Queen swiftly put the positive pregnancy test inside of the inner pocket of her husband's cape, held her index finger in front of her lips and grinned somewhat smugly.
"A secretest gift, huh?" Rouxls said. "Art thou not a sweeteth wife to thy Kinge?"
"Well Duh Of Course I Am! I Mean I Can't Do More Than Just My Best To Strengthen: Our Chemistry Lately."
"Ay, I indeed noticeth that thoust two hath a strainedeth chemistry as of lately-est. Hast thoust tried anything to fixeth it that art not giving gifts?"
"As Far As I Know: No." Even though Queen was currently lying, her visor did not show the text 'lying' this time. But when she turned to look at King, her visor quickly showed a winking emote.
King snickered a little upon having seen the emote, having gotten the clue almost straight away.
"Were The Two Of You Discussing: Anything Important? Did I Interrupt You? If So Please Feel Free To Tell Me To: Leave."
"No, we art not discussing anything-eth too important, mine Queene. In facteth, I hath no clue whether we shouldeth continue discussing it or naught."
"We shouldn't" King said. "It mainly just represented my future as the sole king of Card Kingdom with all of those other cretin kings still incarcerated for the next 8 years still. Said future will be brighter than the Light World, that's one thing that's for sure."
Rouxls simply nodded as he got up from the floor and carefully picked his new large jar of worms up.
"And significantly brighter than those worms as well."
"Hey, doth not speaketh ill of these worms! Biology still art an amazingeth thing…!" The young Duke of Puzzles turned to leave the throne room with a slightly distressed-looking fake smile. "Well, haveth a nice day, mine Kinge and Queene, and enjoyeth whatever gift thou hast." He left with a slightly quick pace in his steps.
King and Queen waited for a bit until the coast was completely clear.
"So you decided to have given me a gift?" King said. "That's very generous of you. But why such a small one?"
Queen shrugged, smiling excitedly and her visor showing the text 'IDK' as she did.
"What is it anyway?" King took the gift out of the inner pocket of his cape. "Is… hold on, you gave me a pen? You're all excited about a simple pen?"
"This Is Very Certainly Not A Pen Kingy Wingy…!" Queen giggled. "Do Pens Have: A Display?"
"A display, you say? Where?" The spadeling checked to see if his 'gift' had a display anywhere. "Ah, there. Of course. Man, those letters are too tiny for me to make out…" He squinted his eyes while taking a gander at the display that he just found. "Hmm… it says 'yes'... hang on a minute, this is indeed not a pen! Then what is this?"
"Kingy Wingy…!" The cyber monarch leaned towards her husband's ear to whisper excitedly. "I'm Pregnant…!"
"Could you rephrase that?" King could not completely believe his ears.
"I'm Pregnant Kingy Wingy! This Test Is Not Lying!" Queen's visor showed the text 'true' while she spoke.
"Ah, this is a test to see if we actually succeeded! And it has confirmed that we're expecting? Oh my goodness, this is the best news of the entire Dark World!"
"It Indeed Is And I Was So Excited To Tell You Once I Found Out!"
"Congratulations, Queenie Beanie!" King squeezed his wife into one of the tightest hugs that almost crushed her core and processor. "I'm beyond excited for this…!"
"Congratulations To You Too Kingy Wingy!" Queen immediately locked her lips with King's while embracing him back, her core pleasantly warming up and almost racing with excitement.
It was almost quiet in the throne room now. The only sounds that one could currently hear were the soft echoes of kissing sounds and occasional moans of said kissing's pleasure.
Rouxls, who happened to have heard those sounds from his little room, couldn't help but take a brief gander in the throne room once again.
Mine Kinge musteth be very pleased with his present, he thought to himself, for lately, it seemst like he never doth this anymore lately…!
"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" Cathy suddenly asked in a strict tone, startling Rouxls to the point where King and Queen noticed him near the door frame.
"N-nothing, mine own lady!"
"Nothing? That's such banana oil I'm hearing from your mouth, Duke of Puzzles whose actual name is a challenge for me to pronounce. Now, come with me. Monarchs should be able to express their love without any onlookers as well." Cathy grabbed Rouxls by the collar of his vest and dragged him back to his room. "Why won't you show me some of those puzzles of yours and see if I can solve them? Right now, nearly everyone else is either working or playing poker for dummies and I'm just being bored on my own around here, so please entertain me."
"Th… uh…" The young Duke of Puzzles was blushing for a bit in response to having been busted just now.
"I mean, you mentioned those puzzles so often that everyone is most likely curious about them at this point."
"Ay, mine own lady. Whicheth one wouldst thou liketh to see? Mine first puzzle? It art not very difficult to solveth, though."
"So what, I'm pretty sure I can solve it somehow."
Rouxls got his first visual puzzle from his starting collection in one of the shelves, which was a fairly simple-looking prototype that consisted of a little cube and a drawn square next to it.
Who would be so dumb to think that that puzzle would be difficult to solve? I, the writer, and you, the reader(s), have solved a puzzle like that one as well back in the Card Castle of the more recent present, right?