Prolificacy

Disclaimer: Monster Hunter is copyright Capcom. All the characters in this story are mine.

Edited by: Hoenn Master96

This one-shot is CANON with The Lost Civilization

Two Years Since the Fall of the Alatreon

The sound of light scratching could be heard emanating from the small work room as Kerry emerged from the small bedroom of the house she shared with her husband, Harker. She yawned wearily, looking up at a small handmade clock Harker had made and pinned to the wall; it was sloppily crafted, but usually accurate, and told her it was two o'clock in the morning. It was far too late at night for anyone with sense to be awake if they didn't have to be, and the lack of a warm body next to her in bed when she had awoken five minutes ago had shown her Harker was one of those senseless people.

The dim light of a candle flickered in the next room, dark shadows dancing on the opposite walls. Kerry looked in, and sure enough, there was Harker, leaning over a scattered pile of papers, a small pencil scribbling down notes and thoughts into a notebook as his eyes darted over the words and symbols written on the papers in front of him, his left hand doing all the writing while his still-gimped right arm hung loosely across his lap. His blonde hair had grown long in the last year, so much so that he'd even taken to tying it back to keep it from getting in his face when he was doing research.

Kerry looked around the room. Much of the house they shared, a solid stone structure hidden away at the base of the mountains just northeast of Nastre, resembled this room. It was a mess, the walls, floors, tables, and desks covered in papers and research notes. The smell of ink and parchment was thick in the air, despite the gentle breeze wafting in through a nearby window. Papers crinkled under her feet as she walked towards Harker, some important, most not; most had Harker's uneven scrawl across them, the madman's script still sloppy as he was still unaccustomed to writing with his left hand. Kerry wished Harker would put more effort into cleanliness and organization, like she did, but the man's attention span seemed too short to even contemplate the idea of proper filing.

Most of the space in this house had been set aside and dedicated to their research. They both had studies of their own, wide rooms like this one, used for research and notes of whatever studies had caught their attentions at the time. In the back was also a larger, much sturdier room, built of stone and lined with metal, and used for more dangerous experiments, those which could result in explosions (which seemed surprisingly frequent). The last thing they needed was to blow up a house. Again. More often than not, it was Harker using the lab, but every once in a while one of her own research experiments required the use of more sturdy walls. All the other spaces in the structure were duly reduced to make more room for their work. Their kitchen and bathrooms were small, with just enough room for doing what needed done in them. The bedroom had just as tight of quarters, with just a few feet of space between the bed and the walls, barely enough for the trinkets and mementos the pair of them had gathered through the years. Heck, even their old armor sets and weapons from their hunting days had been shoved into the back of a closet somewhere… or Kerry's were at least; Harker might have dismantled his own for materials, knowing him.

But Kerry loved it. It had been almost a year since they'd moved to Nastre, and even with the messes bordering on chaos and the tight quarters, she was enjoying the life she had with Harker, especially now that they were finally married…

Though, she had to admit, there were flaws; Harker's tendency towards messiness was but one of them. She couldn't hang many knick-knacks on the walls or place fragile things on high shelves, since a single botched experiment in the lab could shake the house and send them all clattering to the ground. And though she was fairly proud of her cooking skills, the space issues in their kitchen made it rough cooking anything with any sort of complexity to it. Not to mention Harker's research usually distracted him from showing Kerry proper attention, a veritable crime for a couple which had only been married a little over a month…

But, such actions were forgivable, and Kerry knew this was the life she'd signed on for when she'd married Harker. She'd known he was like this when she'd married him, dedicated to his research nearly to the point of madness, and she loved him for it, despite the confused and confounded looks her friends and family had given her. She had her ways of dealing with their issues, leading Harker back onto the proper path, and she had to admit Harker was slowly improving his habits for her sake as well. Compromise and acceptance were necessary in a marriage, her mother had always told her.

Though there were certainly issues a marriage could do without, such as nights without sleep and days upon days sitting at a desk, translating an ancient language without pause. Harker glanced up at her as she approached from behind, smiling wanly at her before returning his attention to the papers in front of him. The bags under his eyes, behind his thin glasses, gave proof to how long he'd been working.

"Shouldn't you be asleep, my dear Lady Kerrigan?"

"I could ask the same to you," Kerry noted, sidling up along next to him on the bench and looking down at the papers. "Working hard, I see. Having any luck?"

"Not so much," Harker muttered, running his hands through his hair as he glared down at the ancient writings. "So many carvings and writings left behind by the Meridians… and not a single notation on how to get inside that tower of theirs! I refuse to believe such a construct is completely solid! There must be a way in somewhere… I simply need to find it."

"You will, someday," Kerry said reassuringly, wrapping her arms around Harker's neck and pulling him closer. "I have faith in you, dear."

"Such faith is utterly unfounded, I fear," Harker murmured. But then he smiled at her. "But I appreciate the sentiment nonetheless, my love."

"I'm glad… but work or not, Meridian tower or not, you need to take breaks every now and then, dear," Kerry told him sternly. "You can't keep staying up for days straight working on your research, before passing out for a couple days to recover. It's not healthy…"

"Hmm…" Harker murmured, not taking his eyes off the notes in front of him. "You go on ahead… I'll be there in a few… in a little while."

Kerry smiled at the words. If Harker had been looking at her, he might have noted it was not the gentle, loving smile she usually had on her face, and was one with several warning signs which should have been seen, but one radiating a feeling of irritation. She slid her arms under Harker's right arm. At first her husband didn't react; his wounds made it a challenge to feel touch through that particular limb. Then she tightened her grip, and Harker's pen stopped writing mid-word as the man winced slightly.

"No," she said sternly. "You're going to bed right now. You need your sleep, Harker." Mild numbness in his arm or not, Kerry was still quite strong, and she knew Harker knew that if he didn't do as she said, she could just as easily throw him over her shoulder and force him back to their bedroom.

"Aha… I suppose some rest wouldn't be adverse," Harker admitted, trying to smile amicably. "I can get some rest tonight, and wake up bright and early to-"

"You can sleep in, dear," Kerry interrupted, making Harker sputter off weakly. "And for that matter, I think you can take a couple days off from work to fix your internal clock, to get yourself back into a decent sleeping pattern."

"Ah… hmm… I suppose a couple days off wouldn't be too much of a hamper on my work," Harker agreed cautiously. Kerry smiled again, tightening her grip just a touch more, to make sure she had her husband's attention.

"Actually, perhaps you should take a vacation," she 'suggested', and Harker sighed in defeat. She knew she had him now. "You've been working hard on your research since you recovered from your wounds. It's been almost a year and a half, and you've barely slowed down at all, even for our wedding. Why don't we take off for a week or two, and go down and visit Ellie and Levin down in Boma? It would make for a nice getaway." Kerry felt her face tinting red slightly as she leaned in and purred into her husband's ear. "Maybe we should even have one of those 'honeymoons' you said the Lost did after marrying. It certainly would help you relax a little bit, and I wouldn't mind the attention. They say Port Tanzia is positively lovely this time of year."

Now Harker smiled, an amused expression on his face, and Kerry felt a wave of relief come over her. He knew he was beaten, and knew Kerry was right, but was now choosing to play to her tune, rather than arguing or trying to counter her. People could say what they would about her husband, how he was fast-talking, devious, and surprisingly skilled at getting what he wanted or making people dance to his tune. But Kerry knew all his tricks, and while she wasn't so fluent a debater or orator, she knew how to push through Harker's often sly, often stubborn disposition. She wasn't his wife for nothing.

"You're right, my dear, you're right. I suppose I have been somewhat focused on my work the last year or so, and could use a break. Perhaps a vacation will give me perspective on something I'm missing… Ah, but visiting Levin and Miss Eleanor certainly sounds nice, though it has only been a month since we saw them last. And I have been meaning to travel to Tanzia… though for, ah, business, rather than pleasure." He gave her a sly look, and Kerry smiled back sheepishly, her face warming. But he looked down at her worriedly. "Though, I must admit, my dear Lady Kerrigan, I am worried… Should you be, ah, moving around in your condition?"

Kerry huffed in frustration. "I'm pregnant, Harker dear, not crippled. Besides, I haven't been pregnant that long. I'm not even showing yet. There's no harm in the two of us traveling a bit."

"Forgive a man for showing worry for his wife and future progeny," Harker said with a grin. "I suppose I'm just thankful to have garnered myself such a lovely woman, and am looking forward to fatherhood as well."

"Mother always hoped I'd meet a nice boy, get married, and have children," Kerry replied with a smile. "Though… I suppose she never specified the exact order of the last two…"

"They haven't been born yet…" Harker said sheepishly. "You're still in the first trimester. That still counts, doesn't it?"

"My father didn't think so."

"I am aware," Harker muttered. "I still have the bruises to prove it. I might have died if Levin hadn't stepped in to help me… after he'd finished laughing about it all, of course."

"At least nobody can say our wedding wasn't interesting," Kerry replied with a laugh. She leaned down and kissed him lightly on the cheek. "You got all three of the goals completed in the end, Harker, and I'm perfectly happy with that, even if the pregnancy happened before the wedding."

"I always meant to marry you, my dear," Harker said quietly. "But I never… quite found the time for it. With all the research and the experiments, getting permissions and funding from the Guild, and dealing with the aftermath of the Alatreon… I just couldn't find the time or place to properly do what I needed to. I should have married you while we were still in Loc Lac, but it ended up turning into a shotgun wedding…"

"A shotgun… I don't know what that means."

"It's applicable to the situation, trust me."

"Hmm… Well, no matter. Back to the topic at hand: you need to get some rest, dear," Kerry said sternly, pulling herself and Harker to their feet and slowly working him away from the desk. "These all-nighters may have been… tolerable when we were still unwed, but with a child on the way, you need to get all the rest you can. After all, in seven months or so, there will be one more to care for besides ourselves, and I can't have you worn out when that day comes. The baby will do enough of that on its own, dear."

"Ah, yes… one more to care for…" Harker murmured, glancing down at Kerry's belly. There was a measure of pride and elation in his expression… but there was also something else. Something Kerry didn't recognize.

"Harker? Is something wrong?" Kerry asked worriedly, and Harker's eyes snapped up in surprise.

"No, no, it's… I wouldn't define it as a problem, exactly… I just…" The madman ran his hands through his hair, a note of worry in his voice. "It's just… I've been meaning to talk to you about something… rather important. I meant to do it a while ago, much as I meant to marry you long ago, but…" His gaze drifted again to her belly. "It seems time and my distractions got the better of me again."

Kerry felt a twinge of fear shoot up her spine, and her hands instinctively went to her womb. "Harker… Harker, what's wrong? What did you want to tell me?"

"It's nothing bad!" the man said quickly, holding up his hands. "Er, well, depending on who you talk to… No, no, I mean it's nothing dangerous! Nothing which would harm our child or… It's nothing like that. However, I feel I must notify you of more information which I… well, I wasn't withholding it, per se, I just never quite found the right moment to mention it."

"Harker, please. Just tell me."

Harker sighed, glancing worriedly between Kerry's face and the floor. "I am… ah, how to explain… You met my brother at the wedding, didn't you?"

"Yes, of course," Kerry replied impatiently. "Victor, wasn't it? You said he… he was your only family that managed to come to this world along with you. Or at least, the only one you've managed to meet up with so far, and he said he hadn't had any luck finding your parents or other siblings."

"Yes, indeed… all of that is true. It was a mercy I managed to find at least one of my kin. Well, something I have not told you is this: Victor is my eldest brother, and he is also six years older than me." Kerry stared at Harker expectantly, and the madman sighed wearily. "Very well: I am… I am the youngest child in a family with ten children."

Kerry had to admit her jaw dropped for a moment. "Ten children? Really? That's… Wait, wait, hold on," Kerry muttered. "You told me Victor was your oldest brother."

"Indeed."

"...And you also said you were the youngest of your family."

"Also true."

"But he's only six years older than you! How could you be the youngest of ten with only six years to…?" The huntress sputtered to a halt, and Harker could see the gears in her head turning in realization.

"I see you've hit upon what I wished to tell you," Harker sighed. "Victor is the eldest of my siblings… and also the eldest of triplets, all boys. But they were only the first. Two years after that, my mother gave birth to twins, my eldest sisters. Two years more and there was another pair of twins, both boys. Another two years and my mother gave birth to triplets once more, including my youngest sisters and myself, the last. After that… well, after that, my mother had quite enough, and I heard her threats to my father were rather inventive."

Kerry stood in silence for several moments, her eyes wide in shock. She began to teeter a bit, and Harker yelped, leaping forward to catch her and help her into a chair. "I don't… I mean, is there… maybe it was just a coincidence?"

Harker smiled ruefully. "Hah, if only that were so… But, well, the rest of my family only solidifies the certainty of the situation. My father, you see, was the third born of nine siblings, almost all of them similarly grouped in twins and triplets. His siblings were just as, ah, abundant as he, with Aunt Shelley giving birth to fourteen children of her own in the span of eight years. A strong woman, that… My Uncle Walt was the only odd one out, being the only single-born child in the lot… and even he ended up with eight children, two clusters of quadruplets. All in all, my grandparents ended up being the proud patriarch and matriarch of a family of over a hundred children and grandchildren. Family reunions were… populous, to say the least."

Kerry sat, stunned, words trying to come up, but catching in her throat each time she tried to say them. Her hands once again dropped to her belly, pressing up against it. "So… you… I'm going to give birth to more than one?"

"I'm not, ah, exceptionally learned in birth rates and genetics," Harker muttered, scratching the back of his head. "But, well, if precedence is any indication, then… odds are good you'll give birth to between two and four children. More than that is unlikely… though I suppose my cousin Greyson had septuplets…" Kerry didn't reply, instead staring down at her lap, and Harker sighed ruefully. "I should have warned you of this before, my love, but it seems time and a lack of caution got the better of me…" Harker muttered apologetically. "I suppose it's fairly obvious by now, but… I come from a rather, ah, fertile family. And I fear I, like my kin, will prove to be very… prolific."

Kerry sat in silence for a long time, letting the information Harker had given her sink in. She had always wanted a family of her own, that was certain, assuming she managed to survive her hunting career. And upon meeting Harker and taking him as her apprentice and eventually hunting partner… well, the idea had certainly not grown duller. Though their rush into married life and imminent parenthood had been abrupt, Kerry had been looking forward to a calm, peaceful life with her husband (at least, as peaceful as life with Harker could be). But this… she'd expected one child. Just one. Maybe another couple as the years went by. And now she should expect at least two, with upwards of seven depending on how fortunate (or, perhaps, unfortunate) she turned out to be? And that was if she only got pregnant once… Was this what she really wanted? The promise of a small horde of children which would likely be just as wild and hard to control as Harker himself?

It took her only a few moments to realize that, in fact, it was. She remembered all too clearly the years when her infamous title of 'Companion Killer' had followed her around, a shadow taunting her in her loneliness and despair. She'd spend almost her entire life after her apprenticeship on her own… until she'd met Harker. After that had come Ellie, and Levin, and many more. The idea of filling her life, her time, and her home with people she loved and cared for was something she'd almost believed impossible before meeting Harker, and now that it was available to her, she realized she wanted nothing more.

Much to Harker's shock, she found herself laughing softly at the prospect. She could give birth to a small collection of children, all of them with the possibility at being just as… unique as her husband. Considering the reputation Harker had with the Guild, somewhere between fame for battling the Alatreon, and infamy for the destructive results of his experiments, she could very well be declared a public enemy for unleashing such a force on the world. With the way rumors and stories spread in the world as it was, a hundred years from now she might be considered the terrible matriarch to a family of diabolical mad scientists… But, no. For now, she'd be perfectly happy for being the loving mother of her and Harker's children, no matter how many of them they ended up having. With a smile, she pushed herself back to her feet, wrapping her arms around Harker's neck as her husband looked at her worriedly.

"It's fine, dear," she told him reassuringly. "You just caught me off guard a little. I suppose I should have expected as much, as strange of a man as you are. It doesn't matter how many children we end up having, I will love them all: because they'll be ours."

Harker heaved a sigh of relief, and Kerry could see a lot of stress had fallen from the man's shoulders at her words. Apparently he had been worrying about this far more than Kerry would have ever guessed. "Thank goodness… forgive me, my love, but I had feared your reaction to my admission would be far less forgiving than it was. I'm aware of the difficulties of childbirth, and… well, giving birth to multiple children rather than just one seems a rather loaded request."

"I'll be fine, dear. I'm a tough girl, after all. You of all people should know that." Harker chuckled sheepishly at the words, and Kerry patted his shoulder. "Now, for the last time, can we go to bed? Revelations aside, we both need rest, and we won't be getting it here, standing ankle-deep in crumpled papers."

Harker chuckled at the words, and allowed himself to be led out of the room towards their bedroom. The bed was cool and comfortable, and as Kerry snuggled close to Harker, she had to admit, yes, it was far better to sleep with her husband next to her than it was to sleep by herself. She knew she should enjoy this as long as she could; life would certainly be hectic once the babies were born. Who knew how often she and Harker would have moments like this again, between the children and their research?

"I suppose that's another reason for you to take a break from your work for a couple weeks, dear," Kerry said quietly as the pair lay next to each other.

"What's that?" Harker asked, his voice finally showing signs of weariness.

"The babies. We'll need to make room for them. This house is simply too cluttered for children. We'll need to add on to the house to make room for them all. Or rather, you'll need to add onto the house."

Harker raised an eyebrow at her and smirked. "All by myself? With one arm?"

"It'll make for a good distraction, and get you back on a regular sleep schedule. Besides, they say hard labor helps develop ideas. And I can help you with the heavy lifting if you need me to, my dear frail husband. If all else fails, you might ask some of the other Lost engineers and mechanics in Nastre to help, since they seem to jump at the chance to show off to you."

"How encouraging," Harker chuckled. The pair of them lay in silence for a while, slowly drifting towards sleep and listening to the sounds of their house settling around them. But as Kerry began to fall into the warm embrace of slumber, savoring the feeling of Harker's arms around her, her husband shifted slightly, muttering quietly to himself. "Lady Kerrigan…"

"Sleep, dear."

"Mmm… yes. It's just, you said we'd need to make room for the children. But you specifically said, 'make room for them all.' Them all. You made it sound like over two or three…"

"Hmm…"

"How many children did you want to have exactly, Lady Kerrigan?"

Kerry smiled to herself. "Well, eleven has always been my lucky number…" She suppressed a chuckle as she felt Harker flinch next to her.

"Ah. Hmm… Eleven? Really? I don't… well, there's nothing wrong with that, per se, but… erm."

Kerry was enjoying this. It was so infrequently that Harker was left speechless by something, and she always savored it when it happened; she found Harker… cute when he was dumbfounded. But that was enough teasing for the night. She'd meant it when she'd said he needed sleep, and Harker didn't need to be kept awake by the thought of having near a dozen children darting around the house. She leaned forward, kissing him gently, which stopped his sputtering.

"Well, maybe not that many. But I wouldn't mind having a fair few. We'll see how this first pregnancy goes before thinking about more. Now don't pout, dear. You brought this on yourself."

Harker huffed irritably, but chuckled soon after. "I suppose I did. I'm certainly pleased you're taking to it so well, at least enough to make jokes at my expense. But… I do suppose this gives me a rare opportunity. I have been meaning to do a study on genetics and heritage. If we have enough children, I could probably start some research into-"

Kerry quickly reached up and smacked Harker upside the head. "No, Harker. You are not using our children for your experiments or research, no matter how many we end up having."

"I was only suggesting-"

"Don't make me sic my father on you again, dear. Or would you rather I extend your mandatory vacation? I can keep you from getting back to your research for as long as you like."

"Urk. Erm, yes my love, of course. No experimenting on the children."

"I'm glad we understand each other," Kerry replied with a smile. "Now go to sleep, dear."

"Yes, of course. Goodnight, my dear Lady Kerrigan."

"Goodnight, Harker."

Author's Note: Please Review! Moving the release schedule to Sundays, so I can actually reply to reviews in a timely manner.

Quick reminder that, if you have a prompt or idea for a one-shot, hit me up and let me know! I need ideas and things to write! And while I'm thinking on it, if anyone out there has any specific monsters they'd like to see characters fight, write that down too. I don't want to get sloppy when I need to write action scenes. No elder dragons though, let's keep it simple. Hoenn already suggested the Phantom Uragaan, which should be interesting…

Also, I have a temporary opportunity for my readers! An upcoming chapter (I say upcoming, but it's actually going to be quite a while before it is posted) has the opportunity for four reader OCs to make an appearance! I don't really need a detailed background or anything, just their basic appearance, armor, and weapon. They're only going to be in maybe five or six paragraphs, so like I said, it's really doesn't need to be much. First come, first served!

One last thing: to those of you that send a message as a guest, not logged in, I cannot reply to your reviews! So if you have a question you'd like answered, I'm afraid you'll have to log in properly to do it!

Reading: Order of the Stick by Rich Burlew
Playing: Pokemon X, MH3U
Listening: Explosions in the Sky, CatHatFiddle, Nightmares on Wax