14.

In black letters, the stick spat the word back at him. Pregnant. Almost mocking.

" Shit ," he said again, a raw furrow of panic catching under his breastbone. He knew instantly it was true, and any belief otherwise had been willful denial on his part. He threw the thing away and buried the extra test behind the toilet paper and cleaning products under the sink. He was feeling dizzy now, again. He'd make himself tea. He'd make a plan, figure out what to do with himself. How had this happened? He'd been responsible- so much for "over 99% effective." He bit his lip, hard.

The anxiety worsened his dizziness, and he had to hold the banister on the way down the stairs. He crossed over to the kettle, lit the stove.

"Ienzo? Are you alright?" Even asked. He'd even looked up from his laptop.

"I'm alright." He was going double. "I'm a little tired."

"Why don't you have a nap, then, instead of ingesting yet more caffeine?"

"I'll have mint tea." He turned towards their tea cabinet, his hand trembling, and he tasted more than felt himself faint.

When he came to he was on the couch, a damp cloth on his forehead, a pillow under his feet. Even was looking out the window, arms crossed, his face pinched… fearful. Ienzo knew instantly that he knew. "How do you feel?" He asked, his tone gentle, not nearly the telling-off Ienzo expected.

"...Better." He tried to sit up; Even eased him back down.

His green eyes were so hollow. "Were you aware…" He began haltingly, "were you aware you're pregnant?"

Ienzo felt tears in his eyes-of shame, mostly. "I… took the test shortly before I fainted," he admitted. "But I've had the symptoms for several weeks. I… attributed them to something else." He tried to blink it back. "I was careful , Even, I always used at least one form of conception-usually two! I-"

"What kind?"

He blinked. "What?"

"What kind of contraception?"

"Well-condoms, and a pill."

He groaned and put his face in his hands. " Hormonal birth control?"

"Yes?"

Now Ienzo saw a spark of the anger. "Child, your hair cannot take dye , why on earth did you think your body would take birth control?"

Ienzo's face flushed.

"You should've set your pride aside and came to me the moment you started engaging in… such activity." He was breathing hard. "It was when you went to the cottage, wasn't it? I knew Aeleus would be too lax with you two-" He turned away again. "And that was a full moon…"

"So?"

Even locked eyes with him. He looked exhausted now. "Ienzo, you may as well have been actively trying to conceive… doing that during a full moon, with essentially no protection. If his power comes from the sea and yours from the earth, of course the moon is going to impact your magic. Make it easier ."

Ienzo rested his hand on his stomach. "When you scanned me… did you happen to sense how… far along, it is?"

"About five weeks."

This time, when Ienzo sat up, Even didn't stop him; he came and sat next to him. Ienzo realized he was angry at him. "Even," he began. "How come you never told me?"

"What?"

"About the birth control. About the moon affecting my fertility."

He hesitated.

"I'm young, but I'm not a child . Even, if I'd known-"

"Are you implying this pregnancy is my fault?"

"No!" He crossed his arms. "But you infantilizing me certainly did not help. I need you to let me have agency, Even, and to stop withholding things from me."

He exhaled. "Alright. Yes. But first we must deal with this."

"I don't suppose we can… simply will it away."

"No," Even said. "Magic won't do much for you in particular. We'd have to… take the regular route." He squeezed Ienzo's hand.

"...I see."

"You can't have this child, Ienzo."

"I don't want to," he said. "I'm so-I'm only twenty, Even. Not to mention… the firstborn gets my power, doesn't it?"

"...Yes."

"I don't need it to be in danger. I… I'm not ready ." He felt himself tearing up.

"I know this. Listen, I'll… make an appointment for you, and we'll get this straightened out. It never happened." He drew Ienzo into his arms. And while Ienzo was literally just complaining about being treated like a child… the touch was much needed.

"I should tell him," Ienzo said.

"Do you want to?"

"He deserves to know."

Even stroked his hair. "You'll be alright, Ienzo. I'm sure of it."

It felt odd, uncomfortable, to go to the gynecologist, to discuss his "options." When he insisted he wanted to terminate, she just nodded and told him to come back three days later with someone to bring him home. He was mostly… numb. He knew it needed to be done, but the shame at getting himself in this situation was not to be doubted.

Ienzo took Demyx for a walk. It was a cold day in mid-December, shortly before solstice… before his twenty-first birthday, a day that would've signified him fully coming of age, were things normal. The air was oddly still, the air tense, skies cloudy. It was starting to snow, faintly. Demyx chatted happily about plans he'd made during the semester break; he wanted to take Ienzo sledding on the hills just outside of town.

"I want to… talk to you about something," Ienzo began slowly.

Noticing his change in tone, he stopped. "What wrong?" He asked, touching Ienzo's cheek with his gloved hand.

He hadn't previously been anxious about this; moreso numb, but now the panic threatened to invade. He took a deep breath. "I…" He had to spit it out. Get it over with. The situation had already been resolved, hadn't it? "I'm pregnant."

Demyx dropped his eyes. "...You... are?"

"I… I'm sorry. I was wrong." He felt himself tearing up yet again. "My… body rejected the birth control."

He didn't know what to say.

"But I'm… taking care of things." Ienzo nodded. "I'm… having the procedure on Friday."

"Are you sure this is what you want?"

"We can't have a baby, Demyx. With the darkness? We're both still in school, and-" The panic was inflating. He could feel his lower lip trembling. "The baby gets my power, Demyx, I don't want to give them that. What if Xehanort gets them? Uses them, or worse? I-"

Demyx drew him into his arms. Ienzo could feel him trembling too. "I'm sorry," he said. "I… I'm sorry."

It took him a while to calm down; the hormones didn't help.

"Can I… do something for you?" Demyx asked. "Be there, hold your hand? Anything?"

He wiped at his eyes; the cotton of his gloves was scratchy. "Someone needs to take me home."

"Then it'll be me." He kissed his forehead. "God. This is fucking surreal."

"...Isn't it?"

Ienzo hadn't anticipated being able to sleep the night before, but the pregnancy made him exhausted, and he drifted uncertainly.

He dreamt of Radiant Garden. It was a lovely spring day, and the flowers, well-kept again, were blooming. It had the haziness of memory, fond and well-worn. He was in the plaza, on a patch of grass, sitting on a quilt. A picnic.

"Daddy!"

The voice was startling, because it most definitely was not his. In this dream, this memory , he was an adult. He turned.

A little girl. Her hair violet-silver, maybe three years old, perhaps slightly less-

She had Demyx's eyes-

"Daddy, look!" She pressed her tiny hands together and when she opened them, a small, glowing flower of magic sat in her palms. "I made it!"

"Oh, sweetie, it's beautiful."

She walked over to him and held up her arms, wanting to be picked up, so he did. The weight was too-familiar on his hip. "Can we go to the garden?"

"Of course."

She leaned against his shoulder. They walked together, through the spring day. Passersby greeted them not as royalty, but as community members. Radiant Garden was bustling again. "Do you think this is real?"

"What do you mean, love?"

"This. Right now."

Ienzo blinked. "What makes you say that?"

"'Cause it feels like membering but I'm still in your tummy."

He stopped dead in his tracks. "What else do you remember?"

"Mmm, well. You telling me about the war, lots of people sad. And how me being borned made the bad man go away."

"Did I say how?" Things were losing distinction, getting hazy.

"When I was borned I brought a friend."

"What kind of friend?"

"He has teeth like this." She held her lips open with her fingers, like fangs. "And he looks scary but he isn't."

That didn't exactly narrow it down. Ienzo set the girl down, gently. "I need you to think really hard. Who was this friend?"

She put her hand to her face, looking, for a moment, exactly like Demyx. "He did bad things. And he felt really sad about them, so he wanted to fix it. So when I got borned he did."

"But what did he-what did he look like?" Like a toddler would be able to give him solid details.

Instead, her teal eyes got watery. "Daddy," she said instead. "I'm scared."

"Of what?"

"It's dark outside."

"So you're saying… if you're born, then…"

"My magic goes boom!" She gestured with her tiny hands. "And then people stop hurting."

Not much to work with.

"Friends helped us and then we pushed them all away, whoosh…" She pushed. "You member?"

Ienzo touched his forehead. He thought he almost did, but it was strained, through a veil of… time. "You're showing me the future," he said.

She clapped her hands together.

"In the future-he's gone? Xehanort is-gone? The war is over?"

"You and me and daddy live with granpa and grandad in the big castle."

Ienzo pressed a hand to his mouth. "Oh, gods."

"It's okay daddy. Don't cry."

"I'm not sad," he told her honestly.

He reached down and drew his daughter into his arms.

Ienzo woke slowly. He felt warm all over, especially his scalp, and he knew without looking his hair was glowing. He rested a tentative hand on his belly. The future… the memory that had not happened yet. He gasped a breath. He shot out of bed and darted down the stairs.

Even, drowsing over his papers, jerked awake with a start. "What… Ienzo?" He snapped into awareness. "Are you-your hair -"

"Even, I can't get rid of this baby."

"What are you on about?"

"It was… she was showing me a vision . Of the future. Xehanort's gone, Radiant Garden is back to normal. Apparently her birth… brings allies to the resistance."

For a long moment, Even's face was just blank, and then he said, "You were Forecasting."

"You don't think this is just some kind of dream?"

He got up and took a few shaky steps towards Ienzo. He placed his hands on his shoulders. "Your mother did the same with you," he murmured, and his eyes were watering. "And it came true."

Ienzo took a trembling breath. "So should I… should I really-"

"It shows you a future," he said. "It's not set in stone. You still have a choice, Ienzo."

"But if she brings peace … how can I… not do that?" He thought of her little face, another wave of warmth breaking over him. "How could I-"

Even embraced him. "Alright," he said. "Alright."

Demyx arrived before they were due to head out. His expression was drawn, his face gray, and his hair looked like it had been styled more carelessly than normal. "I have to talk to you," he said, as soon as Ienzo opened the door. "I had this dream-"

"About our daughter?"

He took a breath. "How did you-"

"I had one too. Come inside."

The four of them sat in the living room. Aeleus had made them tea, but none of them drank it.

"It's called… Forecasting," Even said in an odd voice. "Often with very old bloodlines… like both of yours… the expectant parents will see… a vision of what the child's life could be like. Who they'll be. What they could… bring, to this world. Like I told Ienzo, it's not… set in stone, necessarily, but it's… very likely to occur, what you saw. Your child will be very powerful-of that I have no doubt, whether they're born eight months from now or years into the future."

Demyx's grip on Ienzo's hand tightened.

"That kind of power… can turn the tide."

"You said my mother was right when she dreamt about me. What did she dream?"

Even's smile was small and sad. "That she wouldn't be with you for very long. That you would be raised happily, by her brother, Ansem… until at which point you were separated. So that being said… what do you wish?"

Ienzo looked at Demyx. They held eye contact for a long time. Demyx's eyes were watering. "I…" He swallowed. "I want her."

Ienzo's own emotions were rising. "I want her too."

"But what about the… the money, and the… we're so… we're so young , I-"

"It won't be easy," Aeleus added. His own expression was wistful, stoic. "Especially considering as the pregnancy progresses, Ienzo, your power will only grow, become more noticeable. Essentially… a target on your back."

"But if any of this is right, then… that will help , in a way."

"It'd be harder to protect you."

Ienzo felt a wave of guilt.

"But we are… willing, if this is what the two of you wish."

Ienzo looked back at him again. Demyx just nodded, the tears in his eyes running over. Ienzo nodded too. "Okay?"

"Okay."