Mafiatale AU (same premise as chapter 4)
Papyrus woke abruptly, every sense on fire as he tried to determine what was wrong. It took a moment before he realized that what had disturbed his rest had merely been Tabatha leaving their bed in quite a hurry. A glance at the clock conformed that is was still the early hours of the morning and he tilted his skull in slight confusion. Why had she suddenly left?
Swinging his legs around, the lanky monster got to his feet and followed after his wife, seeing the light on in the bathroom through the open door. As he strode down the hall, he heard a truly wretched noise come from within and prompt ran to cover the remaining distance. What he saw was his human partner kneeling on the floor, head resting on the bowl of the toilet, panting and sweaty.
"BELOVED?" he questioned, trying to keep his voice low for the sake of the other sleeping inhabitants of the manor.
"Hurgh...sorry I woke you," the brunette apologized, shivering as she twisted around. "Just...felt really sick all of a sudden."
"DO YOU THINK YOU HAVE THE FLU?" Papyrus had very little experience with human sickness, but he had heard of a few that could cause such symptoms."
"M-maybe," Tabatha managed to choke out before she twisted back around, her whole body convulsing violently as she vomited a second time. Helpless to do more than hold her hair back so it didn't get filthy, Papyrus stroked her back and murmured comforting words while his lover struggled to fight down her sickness and stop shaking from the exertion.
"DO YOU THINK YOU ARE ALRIGHT TO RETURN TO BED NOW?" he dared ask when she slumped backwards against him, completely spent.
"I-I think so," his wife breathed out shakily. "But it m-might not be over."
"NEVER FEAR, MY LOVE," the skeleton declared gently, taking her up in his arms. "I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL TEND TO YOU. SHOULD YOU WANT OR NEED ANYTHING, SIMPLY ASK. YOU MUST REST. WE WILL SEE DOCTOR ALPHYS IN THE MORNING TO EVALUATE YOUR CONDITION."
"You're too good to me," Tabatha sighed, snuggling into his embrace as he carried her from the room back to their bed and gently laid her down.
"NOTHING IS TOO GOOD FOR THE AMAZING MRS. SKELETON," was the cheeky reply he gave, nuzzling his forehead against hers as he tucked her between the sheets. "I WOULD GIVE YOU THE STARS THEMSELVES IF YOU ASKED FOR THEM."
"I think I'll settle for snuggles," the brunette murmured, eyes drifting shut.
"THEN YOU SHALL HAVE THEM."
Papyrus and Tabatha sat waiting outside the smaller of the basement labs for the final results of Alphys' testing. The small monster often felt rushed when anyone was in the room with her and was prone to nervous mistakes, so it was customary to give her space when coming for her advice. Of course it had been close to twenty minutes so either she was rechecking her math for the fifth time or-
The door opened and the fidgeting scientist poked her head outside.
"O-okay, I've g-got some results. Come on I-I'm."
Tabatha let her husband help her up, still feeling a little nauseous and not trusting her feet. Insisting that she take the only other chair in the office, Papyrus stood behind his beloved human with his hands on her shoulders in support.
"W-well I don't really know h-how to say this..." Alphys hedged nervously.
"PLEASE, BE DIRECT," the skeleton insisted. "IF THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WE NEED TO KNOW."
"Th-that's the problem," the reptilian monster sighed. "I c-couldn't find anything wrong. Not ph-physically a-anyway."
"What are you saying?" Tabatha pressed. "That it's something wrong with my Soul?"
"I-I'm not the most knowledgeable with hu-human Souls. Th-the most I can tell is that your body is reacting to a ch-change in your S-Soul, b-but I don't know if it's good or bad."
"WHAT DO YOU PROPOSE WE DO?"
"D-doctor Gaster w-would probably be able t-to diagnose the sh-shift since humans a-are his area of expertise, b-but other than that, I don't know."
Papyrus wrapped his arms around his wife, whether to comfort himself or her it was hard to tell. She had taken the news fairly well, though the concern in her features was not unwarranted. She may or may not have a problem right down to the core of her being -they was no small matter. Yet nothing was confirmed yet; there was still a chance it was just a minor thing.
But all the same, it was time to see the expert and get his opinion.
Gaster was in his office when the couple knocked on the door, opening it for them with one of his many magical hands so he could finish adding some powder to one of his mixtures.
"IS THIS A BAD TIME, FATHER?" Papyrus asked. "WE CAN LEAVE IF YOU ARE BUSY."
"Not at all; I was just finishing this drug for our next interrogation," was the smooth answer. "Have a seat."
Like in Alphys' office, there was only one extra chair, but rather than stand behind her, this time the tall skeleton sat and took his wife onto his lap. Gaster stuck a stopper in his beaker of chemicals before straightening his lab coat and sitting up with better posture.
"What may I do for you two?" he asked, tone warm.
"THERE IS SOMETHING STRANGE HAPPENING WITH TABATHA," Papyrus hastened to explain. "SHE HAS BEEN FEELING ILL, BUT WHEN WE WENT TO DOCTOR ALPHYS, SHE DETERMINED THERE WAS NOTHING PHYSICALLY WRONG."
"Ah," Gaster nodded in understanding. "You would like me to examine her Soul then?"
"Yes and you have my consent," Tabatha affirmed, familiar with the process. "Do you want to go out to the lab or..."
"This is sufficient for a primary evaluation. It will only take a minute, so it would be foolish to move."
Shedding his white coat and leaving it on the back of his chair, Gaster stepped around his desk, rolling up his sleeves as Papyrus linked hands with his beloved in a gesture of support. The Soul-summoning happened swiftly enough, Tabatha's kind essence floating freely, the bottom tip nearly dipping through the hole in Gaster's palm.
Visually, nothing was wrong, but the furrowing of the scientist's bony brow suggested otherwise. The green Soul pulsed with anxiety and Gaster frowned slightly.
"I need you to remain calm, please," he requested with a touch of irritation. "It is hard to tell what I am seeing if your emotions interfere."
"Sorry," the human mumbled, taking several deep breaths to try settling herself. Her husband nuzzled his nasal bone against her cheek and began to murmur soothing words which calmed her fears enough that her Soul ceased the panicked beat.
It took several minutes before Gaster seemed satisfied with his examination and released the green energy. Folding his arms and leaning against his desk, he gathered his words.
"Tabatha, how long ago was the first day of your last menstrual cycle?"
Caught off guard, it took the human nearly a minute to answer.
"Uh, a little more than two weeks ago?"
"And...you and Papyrus are actively...having relations? Involving bodies and Souls both?"
"Yes...Gaster, what is going on?"
"There isn't much conclusive evidence yet as I have never seen such Soul changes within a human before," the scientist mused, "but if my suspicions are correct...then I believe the two of you may be expecting a child."
The whole world seemed to hold its breath, then...
"IS...IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE?!" Papyrus burst suddenly. "I THOUGHT HUMANS AND MONSTERS WERE... INCOMPATIBLE IN THAT REGARD!"
"I will need to monitor the situation for some time to truly confirm my theory, but perhaps through you two merely being with one another has made you compatible. Tabatha's magic concentration has spiked, meaning that she has either absorbed quite a bit through direct magical contact or is retaining higher levels maintain the life of an unformed half-magic being. The morning sickness also supports my belief in her pregnancy."
"A child..." Tabatha breathed, one hand dropping to her stomach. "I never thought..."
"I COULD BE A FATHER!" her husband burst. "OH STARS! A CHILD?! THIS IS THE MOST WONDERFUL OF NEWS!"
"Settle down, Papyrus," Gaster remarked in a fatherly way. "I don't need to remind you two that a hybrid between our races is unheard of. This is going to be unlike anything I or anyone has ever seen before, so I have no idea what to expect. I'm afraid that until we recognize patterns and how this conception is received you will not be permitted to work in the field any longer. I will inform Don Asgore as to what has occurred. Do not be surprised if he begins to smother you with luxuries-he tends to get...excited about such things."
Tabatha nodded, still in obvious shock as she slowly got to her feet. Papyrus was equally silent, but his excitement was clearly visible in his wider-than-usual grin. The pair left the office without another word, but Gaster could clearly hear the rapid-fire words coming from his younger son from the other side of the door, asking his human partner if they should tell Sans and when and how they should go about it. The old scientist chuckled to himself as he busied himself with cleaning up the serum he'd been making, an extra pair of magical hands going to his bookshelf to retrieve one of his journals. Once the desk space was clear, he picked up a pen and began to write in his symbolic language.
Tabatha came in today. Her Soul indicated a sharp increase of magical concentration and I detected the beginnings of a mutual energy flow in the bond she shares with Papyrus. The usage of my newest compound in her food and water has delivered the desired results: conception has occurred. I had begun to fear that even with enhanced reception to magic Tabatha would be incapable of carrying a half-monster child. My fears have been put to rest; I now can look forward to my grandchild's arrival and continue to monitor both their development and what changes Tabatha will experience both physically and Soulfully.
I generally don't think about these two having kids (magical/biological logistics and all that), but gosh dangit this plot bunny seized all my writing attention. I love people getting excited over pregnancy news.
Also, thanks to "sans" for the review!