This…. This pairing came out of nowhere and hit me in the face.

And when a new pairing hits me, I need to write a fic…. And because it's in the Marvel universe, it's time for another OC, next generation fic.

Everstrange series, here we go ?

Please read, review and enjoy ?

…..

Stephen spent a few days panicking.

And then he pushed aside all thoughts of having a baby with Everett, so that he could actually focus on being the Sorcerer Supreme.

By the time he was actually able to relax, his brain wouldn't stop thinking. Everett was pregnant, and Stephen was going to be a father.

Suddenly, he couldn't breathe.

Out of everything he had ever thought he would be, a father was not on the list. Sure, he hadn't planned to get in that car crash and become the Sorcerer Supreme, but he had planned to eventually to fall in love and get married someday. But he had never, ever thought about having kids.

But Everett was probably freaking out even more…. Which is why he was here.

"Are you done shutting me out?" Everett asked, glaring at Stephen in the doorway.

"I didn't mean to shut you out, Everett. It's just, this is such a massive thing. I've never thought about being a dad!"

Everett was silent for a few moments, before sighing and getting to his feet. "I know this is hard… trust me, I know… if you want me to leave, I will, and I won't say a thing."

"I don't want you to leave! I just… don't think I'll be a good father."

"Oh please…" Everett rolled his eyes, "… you can make objects fly in the air, the kid will love that. You'll be a great dad, so stop feeling sorry for yourself."

Stephen was silent for a moment. What do you say to someone when they clearly have so much faith in you?

Finally, he said, "Are you sure?"

"Yes," Everett said firmly.

"Okay," said Stephen, "Let's do this."

Everett's grin was blinding.

….

Two days later, a harried-looking Stephen knocked briskly on Everett's apartment front door. The shorter man had decided to remain living in his apartment, which, of course, was his own choice.

It took a while, but Everett finally answered. He was bleary-eyed and still dressed in his pyjamas. Stephen forced himself to not stare at the sliver of skin that appeared between his t-shirt and pyjama pants when Everett wiped his eyes with the back of his hand.

"Stephen?" he said. "What are you doing here?"

"Can I come in?" Stephen asked. "We have… I think we need to talk."

"Oh yeah, of course," Everett sighed, pulling the door to one side and allowing Stephen to come in.

He'd been in Everett's apartment several times… never usually through the front door mind you. It never failed to make him smile. Books were neatly in alphabetical order, as were the DVD's. There weren't any clothes on the floor… or out of the wardrobe at all.

"What do you want, Stephen?" Everett asked as he moved past Stephen and into his kitchen, putting the kettle on to boil.

"I've been thinking… and I think we need to make some changes before the baby arrives."

"Oh really?"

"Well, the average child costs the parents about $12,000 for the first year alone. By year two, it will be up to $12,500. We'll spend close to $50 per week on diapers, formula and baby food alone. That comes out to $2,448 per year, Everett, per year. Not to mention the costs of furniture, toys, and clothes. And if the baby is sick for some reason, the expenses just get higher and higher!"

Everett seemed amused by Stephen's freak-out, watching as the sorcerer started to pace the room.

"Plus, we'll have to take into account child care because of our jobs, and Wong has said he is not going to be the baby-sitter, no matter how much I beg. And how is the baby even coming out?! How much will it be to pay off doctors to go through a caesarean, and then keep quiet about it! We need a plan, Everett!"

"I need a cup of tea, and you need a sedative, Stephen," Everett said. He prepared two mugs for tea and then poured in the now boiling water. He handed Stephen's over before going to the fridge and pouring a little milk in his.

He took a sip and then looked at Stephen. "It's not that I don't appreciate the effort you've taken in finding out these things, and the fact that you've actually thought about them, but the cost of the baby doesn't really matter to me. The CIA pays really well."

"Money isn't a concern for me either… but I feel like we should at least make some preparations whilst your pregnant… if you're keeping it?"

"Of course, I'm bloody keeping it…" Everett headed towards the bathroom, "… who am I meant to go to even if I didn't want it?!"

At Stephen's silence, Everett rolled his eyes. "Let me shower and get dressed, and then we can talk about this."

…..

Stephen thought that he had done really well.

He had managed to support Everett through his second trimester without freaking out again. Everett's friend, Agent Coulson had sent a privately paid Doctor to the Sanctum, who had given Everett several prenatal vitamins.

But pregnant males weren't exactly common, so the Doctor could only do so much.

He was getting tenser and tenser with each passing day…. And all the meditation in the world didn't stop his chest from freezing up when Everett asked, "Have you told Christine about the baby?"

"No…" said Stephen slowly, as if it should be obvious that he would never, ever think of sharing his personal life with his ex-girlfriend.

"Don't you think you should? She's going to find out sooner or later."

"… I'll think about it."

….

He didn't want to think about it, but he promised Everett…. There were a million reasons why this was a bad idea.

Now it wasn't like Christine didn't like Everett. In fact, they got on surprisingly well… a little too well honestly, especially when they were ganging up on him.

But he had bigger problems to deal with as he rang on Christine's doorbell, with Everett at his side. The agent did have a little extra weight, but nothing too noticeable.

"Are you sure she's off duty?" Everett asked, seconds before the door opened and Christine beamed at them.

"I feel like I can't get away from you boys sometimes…" she teased, moving to one side and allowing them inside, "… must be serious if Stephen didn't do that… portal thing he usually does."

At their silence, Christine frowned, "Is something wrong?"

"… Everett's pregnant… with my child…. Because of magic."

Christine looked as though she were seconds away from passing out at this revelation, steadying herself against the doorway of the living room. "Y-Your child? Are you sure?"

"I like how she focuses on that, instead of the magical pregnancy …" muttered Everett as Christine started to pace the room, "… although, it does suggest that she thinks I'd sleep around."

"I know this is a shock Christine… but I think I need you to be happy for me."

There was a brief silence, before Christine sighed and shook her head. "… You just want a free babysitter, don't you?"

The smile on her face indicated that she was teasing them, putting them instantly at ease, especially when the smile became more fond than amused. "I'm not going to pretend like I understand how this will all work, magic or not…. But I am happy for you both. And if you or Everett need anything, don't be afraid to call me… I know a really good nurse who can help me with any issues you may have."

"Oh?"

"Claire… she's been offering a little… midnight help to some people. She knows how to keep a secret."

Stephen felt all the breath leave his body in a rush, a relieved smile on his face, "Thank you…" he sighed in relief, "… thank you."

Once they left the apartment, after having some tea and teasing Stephen (a was usual for Everett and Christine), Stephen turned to Everett, a concerned look on his face.

"I suppose this means we'll have to tell General Ross about this?"

"… Huh?"

"General Ross… you know- "

"- I know, I know." Everett held up his hand to stop Stephen in his tracks, "I know who General Ross is, but why would I tell him anything?"

"Isn't he… related to you?"

"Ugh, no!" Everett twisted around and glared at his boyfriend, "Ross is a common last name, there's no way in hell I'm related to that- that- "

"- Okay, okay." Stephen held up his hands in surrender, "You're not related to General Ross…. Can you tell me why you're so disgusted by the idea?"

"… He's destructive."

At Stephen's curious glance, Everett was quick to explain. "The CIA have discovered that Ross is trying to replicate the super-soldier serum. He's got a Doctor Banner working on it, and because he might be successful, the CIA aren't going to interfere…. But it'll go wrong, and Ross will shift the blame, he always does."

"… You really don't like him."

"I despise him… but I have to be professional, and it would be professional to end this conversation right now."

….

Stephen was sleeping when the phone rang. "Hello," he answered, his voice sleep-roughened.

"Stephen, I think I'm having the baby. I would very much appreciate some help right now," Everett's voice came through the phone at a brisk pace.

"… I'll be right there," Stephen said panic evident in his voice.

He hung up the phone and quickly got dressed, the Cloak floating towards him as he summoned a portal inside Everett's apartment, where Everett was sitting on his bed.

Heavily pregnant, he was dressed in comfortable looking, blue pyjama bottoms.

"Are you alright?" Stephen asked in concern, rushing over and placing his hands gently on his boyfriends' shoulders.

"I'm pregnant and a baby is trying to come out of a hole I don't have… take a guess Doctor!"

"… Are you comfortable?"

"I. Am. Having. A. Baby! Nothing is comfortable right now!"

Before Stephen could reply, a contraction hit.

Everett immediately tensed up slightly at the pain, clearly refusing to let it show on his face. The only thing Stephen could do was offer his hand to hold, which quickly backfired on him when Everett squeezed it too hard.

He knew enough to not comment on that.

He was surprisingly calm as he helped Everett through the portal, calling up to Wong and asking him to call the Doctor, Everett's friend had gotten for him. His heart didn't even beat a little faster when he helped Everett to his room (having set one up for his boyfriend in the hope that Everett might stick around). Despite the fact that he had freaked out at every possible moment during Everett's magical pregnancy, the actual birth was actually becoming a relief.

Everett, on the other hand, was having a different experience.

He was a nervous wreck.

He started to pace around the room, making a list of things they needed (even though both of them had nurseries set up in their respective homes, and had at least two of everything remotely related to babies).

The closer together his contractions came, the more frantic he became…. He'd faced down soldiers and mercenaries in every corner of the globe without even a flinch, but this… this was making him panic.

"Everett?" Stephen noticed how pale Everett was getting, "What's wrong?"

Everett sat down beside him and stared at his hands as they twisted around each other. "I don't know if I can do this. I'm a CIA agent, I know how to shoot and get people out of tough situations, but I have no idea how to take care of them twenty-four/seven. A parent never gets a break. A parent always has to be there… I don't know if I can do that."

"Everett, you're forgetting one important fact: this child will not have 'a parent.' This child will have parents. Parents who can support each other when things get bad. Parents who can take over if one of them needs a break. As for taking care of them, I have no idea what I'm doing, and I don't think there's been a parenting book published that I haven't read over the past nine months…. We just need to stick together."

"You think It's as simple as that?" Everett asked.

"Yes, I do."

"… What if you find someone else though? What if this relationship doesn't work, we've barely been together a year!"

Stephen was silent for a time, before taking a deep breath. "That will never happen… I wanted to go out with you from the very moment we met. Did I anticipate this whole baby incident, no! But I wouldn't change it for the world… I love you."

"Because I'm carrying your kid."

"Because you are a gorgeous bad-ass, who could probably pin me with your pinkie finger… which I would love to try sometime. You have beautiful eyes; a wicked sense of humour and you look good in a suit… but you are also a great man. That's why I love you."

Everett's smile was the most perfect smile Stephen had ever seen, even if it crumbled after a second due to another contraction.

"Yeah, I think I love you too," Everett said when it was done.

"Then we'll be fine," Stephen said, suddenly confident in their future like he hadn't been for the last nine months.

Later on, after he stood next to Everett's bed and gently held the man's hand as the lower half of his body was numbed, giving him ice chips when Everett desperately needed water as the Doctor made a careful incision and pulled screaming baby out. He watched as Everett was stitched back up, only relaxing when Everett and their son were asleep from exhaustion.

He could do this.

He could handle being a father and all the issues, both good and bad… how hard could this be?

…

"Why does he have a white streak in his hair?"

Wong glanced down at the baby and shrugged, "I imagine it probably has something to do with the magical effect of the birth and pregnancy itself."

"So… you don't actually know?"

"… No… no I don't."

Everett glanced down at the new-born, before shrugging. "Fair enough."

"Do you have any ideas about names?"

Gesturing over his shoulder, Everett smirked. "Stephen has the 'best method' for choosing a baby name… or so he says."

"… I'm afraid to ask."

"He randomly picks a book and then he randomly picks a name from the book."

Wong frowned at this, "That sounds… like you'll have a kid called Bilbo or Sherlock?"

"It had better not end up that way… I told him we should have discussed this earlier, but- "

Before Everett could finish, there was a nervous look on the door as Stephen entered the nursery, a book in his hand. "I have a name…"

Noticing the book, and that it was a collection of King Arthur stories, Everett rolled his eyes. "You better have picked out Arthur… or Percival, I could deal with Percival."

"Lancelot."

"…I hate you."