(A/N) Trigger warning for mentions of rape/non-con [not graphic, per se, but if you are triggered by ANYTHING remotely related to sexual assault, yeah, save yourself the angst].
-John & Vriska's house / 11:32 pm-
Vriska sighed and poured yet another layer of bleach onto the pink bathroom tiles. It had been a long evening, and right now she was debating whether not she should uncork the bottle of wine in the kitchen.
Several hours had passed since what she was now referring to as the "complete and utter fucking fiasco", and John still hadn't answered any of her texts. Kanaya had stayed behind after everyone left, and was currently helping Vriska furiously scrub the floor with as much elbow grease as she could given the circumstances. Similarly, Vriska didn't even want to think about what had happened—too similar to one of her previous experiences. She kept thinking about Larissa, her tiny body covered in blue blood, cradled in her arms…
"Vriska," said Kanaya, bringing her back into reality. She threw the grout sponge into the tub and looked up at Vriska, completely exhausted as she stood up. "I think…"
Vriska nodded—Kanaya didn't even have to finish her sentence for her to understand. She inhaled the chemical-filled air before coughing. "I'm going to check on Casey."
"Just…just let Karkat and Terezi watch her," sighed Kanaya, taking off her latex gloves and throwing them into the trashcan. "I don't think it's going to get any cleaner than this."
Even though there wasn't any blood left, the bathroom just didn't feel…right. Vriska had no idea if she was going to be able to even bathe Casey in there without thinking of what had happened. "Can you make coffee?" she asked, her eyes burning with exhaustion and bleach fumes. "Just use the French press this time; it's quicker. It's in the cabinet with the cups."
Kanaya nodded and went downstairs while Vriska quietly turned off the lights and shut the bathroom door, then walked into Casey's room. Her daughter was curled up under a huge fluffy blanket, her lips parted slightly as she drooled on her tiny mattress. For a minute, Vriska just watched her breathing, smiling at the thought of Casey growing up and becoming some ultra-successful…well, anything. She didn't care if she was a CEO or was a cashier at McDonald's: she would always be her Peanut. Taking a deep breath, she leaned down and kissed her cheek before picking her up. "Oof, little lady," she whispered, supporting her head on her shoulder. "You're getting so big."
Carefully, she walked down the stairs, more alert once she reached the bottom of the steps. It had stopped snowing outside, but it was still freezing. "Casey," she murmured, nudging the toddler. "Peanut, wake up; I have to put your coat on."
Casey let out a small yawn and blinked her bright blue eyes, a string of drool connecting her mouth to Vriska's dress. "Mommy?" she quietly asked, cocking her head slightly. "Where we going?"
"You are going to have a sleepover with Katrina, Little Miss," Vriska said. Any sort of get-together always made Casey excited. "Aunt Kanaya and I are going to check on Grandpa and…um…Miss Roxy."
Casey pouted. "I wanna see Gwampa."
Vriska sighed. "Grandpa's a little busy right now, Peanut."
Casey grunted and started to stick her arms through her tiny parka. "Gammy make him busy," she grumbled, and Vriska blinked in confusion.
"Who's Gammy?"
"Gammy," Casey repeated in an exasperated tone. She put one little hand on her hip and held out the other, which Vriska came to realize as her pretending to hold a martini.
"You mean Miss Roxy?"
Casey reached to be picked up and held on tightly to Vriska once she was in her arms. "Gammy okay?"
Vriska had no idea how to answer, but luckily, Kanaya walked into the hallway, holding up four cell phones. "Look what I found," she said with the slightest bit of a smile. "The water's boiling, by the way."
Casey giggled sleepily and snuggled into Vriska's chest. "I'll be back in a minute," she said, opening the door and immediately being hit with a blast of frigid wind. "Wow, Casey, it's so cold!"
Casey mumbled something inaudible and Vriska quickly looked both ways before trudging through the snow and up the Vantas' driveway. She knocked twice before the door opened. Terezi was staring at her without her glasses, and Vriska had forgotten how bright her red eyes were. "Hey, Terezi…"
"What do you want?" Terezi hissed, and Vriska realized that her cheeks were streaked with dried teal. "Please try to be quiet; Karkat's on the couch, Augeth and Obrina are asleep, and I'm trying to get Katrina to sleep."
"Terezi, have you been crying?" whispered Vriska, walking inside. "Why weren't you at the party?"
Terezi didn't answer and shut the door a little too hard. "Nothing serious," she responded, taking Casey. "I'm assuming you want me to watch her?"
"Yeah," Vriska said uncomfortably. "With everything that happened—"
"Wait, what?" Terezi whispered. "Is everything okay?"
Vriska tried to contain herself, wondering if she even should tell Terezi at all. "Um…no. Roxy may have had a miscarriage, but we're hoping that she didn't, because, um—"
Terezi blinked and held Casey a bit closer. "Oh my god, is Mr. Egbert okay?"
"Eh," mumbled Vriska, trying to think of a response. "Well, to be honest, I'm not sure. So…that's why Kanaya and I are driving up to the hospital."
"God, that's terrible," Terezi said, her face a bit pale. "I…I don't know what to say."
Vriska didn't either, but the curiosity—particularly why Karkat was on the couch—was eating her alive. However, she checked her phone and saw a text from Kanaya. "I've got to go," she said hastily, zipping up her coat. "Thanks so much for watching her, Terezi."
"No problem," Terezi replied. "Just…my condolences."
-Maple Valley Regional Hospital / 11:58 pm-
Roxy was hooked up to several machines and monitors, sound asleep underneath the thin hospital blanket. Joseph was still waiting for the doctor to tell him the inevitable, and was holding Roxy's perfectly manicured and clammy hand, still shocked by the fact that he almost lost her. He sighed and stroked her hair, and she mumbled something in her dream state (her veins were being pumped with pain medication, after all). He didn't know what they did with her dress—he didn't want it back, ever.
There was a knock at the door and a tall, thin African-American woman wearing professional attire and a steaming cup of coffee in her hand entered. "Mr…Egbert?" she asked, checking her clipboard. "Hi, I'm Emma, the social worker in charge of this floor. Are you feeling okay? We have free coffee for the nurses on the night shift, and if you'd like, I can get some food from the kitchen for you."
"I'm…breathing," said Joseph, exhausted. "I'd actually love some coffee right now…"
Emma smiled and sent a text to someone (who he assumed was in the nurses' station a few doors down). "Okay," she said, sitting down next to him and pulling a set of papers out of her folder, "now, there's good news and bad news about your wife's condition. What do you want to hear first?"
Joseph rubbed his eyes and sighed. "Uh…bad news," he said, preparing himself for the worst. "Sorry, I'm just…"
"It's okay, Mr. Egbert," responded Emma politely. "I've read through your file, and this must be very traumatic."
He nodded. She felt oddly trustworthy despite looking like she was fresh out of high school.
"Alright," she continued, making direct eye contact. "Okay, bad news. Your wife did suffer a miscarriage. The lab analyzed the fetus, and it was carrying what would have formed into fetal leukemia. I'm very sorry."
Joseph swallowed his tears. "And the good news?"
Emma smiled. "Mrs. Egbert is still pregnant," she said, and it took a moment for him to process what she was saying. "You're still going to have a baby."
"…How?" he asked, dumbfounded. "I thought—"
"She was carrying twins," said Emma, still smiling. "It's nothing short of a miracle, really. She'll need to be put on bed rest immediately and will need lots of medical attention throughout the rest of the pregnancy, but the other fetus is completely healthy. The twin that miscarried—well, typically, deceased twins are absorbed back into the mother or the remaining one, but this one…it's almost as if it knew that it would cause her to lose both itself and the other, as well as potentially give her some form of cancer. Now, I can't guarantee the baby won't have any disabilities, but the ultrasound technician double-checked and everything is growing beautifully. Congratulations."
Joseph began crying and squeezed his wife's hand. Her eyelids fluttered open and she smiled weakly. "Joseph, what's going on?"
"Roxanne! Welcome back!" Emma exclaimed, standing up. "I'll go get a nurse to check your vitals. Do you want anything to eat?"
"Avocados…" muttered Roxy, squinching her face. "Joseph…am I in the hospital?"
"Yes, darling," he told her, kissing her on the forehead. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm—" Her voice faded off and her eyes widened. She put a hand to her stomach. "I'm having cramps. Oh, god…"
"Roxy, please listen to me," Joseph said with urgency, still trying to comprehend what he had been told. "Vriska found you in the bathroom at the party. You were unconscious, and—" He tried to think of a way to tell her what had happened without shattering her heart. "—you were bleeding."
"Oh, no," said Roxy, her face crumpling. "Oh, no, no, no…" She started crying as her husband reached for her hand. "Joseph, I'm so sorry—"
"Shh," Mr. Egbert hushed her, breathing in calmly. "Roxy, you were pregnant with twins. One of them was…cancerous, so it miscarried on its own. The other one is still alive."
Roxy blinked, tears now streaming down her face. "So…?"
"Roxy, we're still going to have a baby," Joseph said, his voice breaking. "It's going to be all right."
Roxy sobbed, a mix between sorrow and relief, and Joseph did too.
All was well.
-Tuesday, January 1, 12:20 am-
Rose was barely keeping her eyes open, Kanaya's arms around her, when her stepfather-in-law appeared. His eyes were red and he looked terrible, but he was smiling nonetheless.
John sat up, holding Vriska's hand. "Dad?"
Mr. Egbert nodded, hugging him. "She's okay. They're okay."
"Thank god," Kanaya sighed, holding Rose tight. "Oh, thank god."
Rose blinked. One of the babies had decided to sit directly on top of her bladder, and the other was kneeing her in the ribs, but she could barely concentrate on them as she took in the news. "Why was there so much blood?" she slowly asked, hoping for some sort of reasonable explanation. "Did something rupture, or—"
"It's…complicated," said Joseph, sighing. He looked completely exhausted. "She woke up a few minutes ago and has been asking to see you, actually."
Rose tried to emotionally prepare herself and quietly began to walk—at this point, it was more of a waddle than anything else—and found room 402. There were little paper ducks on the door, and she stared at them a moment before entering the room and laying eyes on her mother, who was devouring an avocado. "Hi, Mom."
Roxy looked up in surprise. "Rosie! Are you okay?!"
"You're the one in the hospital, Mom," said Rose with an uncomfortable laugh as she sat down. "I…I was really scared for a minute there."
Roxy wiped some avocado bits off of her mouth and gave a sigh. "Sweetie…I need to talk to you about something."
Rose inhaled deeply, preparing to hear some bad news, and smoothed her shirt over her expanded stomach. "Go on," she said, hoping for something she could easily manage.
"It's about…everything, really," said Roxy, her hand moving down to rest on her own stomach. "I wanted to apologize for…for not being a very good mother."
"M-Mom," Rose stuttered, completely shocked. "You—you were great. I was a complete brat, and—"
"No, you were thirteen," Roxy said with a smile, closing her eyes as she remembered. "Dear God, I'm going to have to do that again…but really, Rosie. I just wanted the best for you, and I'm so sorry that you had to see me drunk on so many occasions."
"Mom, it's okay," Rose responded, shifting her weight. "You had a problem. I'm just glad you weren't some absolutely terrible, violent alcoholic who tried to kill me or sell me into the sex trade or something."
Roxy laughed and took up her daughter's hand. "Rosie..."
Rose grinned, her eyes welling up. "And look at how I've turned out so far," she said, feeling a complete lack of annoyance towards her mother. "I was going to tell you earlier, but…yeah. So, um…I kind of was promoted."
Roxy gasped. "Rose, that's wonderful! What are you doing now?"
"I have five more clients on my caseload, and I can now run therapy groups," explained Rose, her cheeks flushed. She had known for several days now, but hadn't told anyone yet. "You're kind of the first to know."
Roxy looked overjoyed for exactly five seconds before turning green. "Shit. I think I'm going to—"
Rose threw her a bucket at light speed, and she vomited, holding her stomach with one hand. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay, Mom," Rose sighed, gagging at the smell. "Do you want me to call a nurse?"
"They're checking on me every ten minutes." Roxy stretched and curled back underneath the blanket. "Rosie, I have to sleep. I feel exhausted beyond belief."
"Okay," Rose said uneasily, standing up and kissing her mother on the forehead. "I love you."
"Love you, too."
-Thursday, January 3, 11:00 am / Rose & Kanaya's condo-
The alarm began to screech on the bedside table and Kanaya groaned before slapping the snooze button. She had been coming down with her very first human cold, and she sneezed before looking to her right. Rose wasn't underneath the covers. In fact, her wife was nowhere to be found, and even her ridiculously luxurious "Scarlett O'Hara-Gone with the Wind"-style bathrobe was still hanging up in the closet. "Huh," murmured Kanaya before blowing her nose and massaging her pressured sinuses. She slowly got out of bed, joints aching as she wrapped her black robe around her shoulders. "Rose?"
"In the nursery!" called her wife, and she smiled faintly before walking down the hallway to one of the two other bedrooms. "Can you help me with this?"
She was surrounded by instructions and slats of wood, sitting on the floor and drinking from a tall mug filled with hot cocoa. Kanaya blinked. "What are you doing?"
"Funny story, actually," said Rose with a teasing smile. "You were completely passed out, and I was really energetic…so I kind of went to Target last night and bought these cribs."
"You bought cribs," repeated Kanaya. "Wait, when did you go to Target?!"
Rose shrugged, yawning. "I don't know, about…one?"
"In the morning?!" Kanaya exploded, sitting down next to her. "Rose, I'm sorry, but that's terrible! You should be getting all the rest you possibly can!"
Rose patted her belly and cringed. "I know, but Oliver has essentially been destroying my insides.
"Oliver?" asked Kanaya, raising an eyebrow.
"I mean, we still don't know what the other one is, but I like the name Oliver," said Rose. "We could call him Ollie and make him the most fashionable boy the world has ever seen."
"Oliver Lalonde," Kanaya tried, actually liking the rolling syllables. "Oliver Lalonde…-Maryam?"
"We can think about what we're going to do with the last name later," said Rose, trying to stand up. She yawned. "Help me up, please."
-11:32 am / Karkat & Terezi's house-
Terezi groaned and tried to think of a legitimate excuse to not get up. However, Katrina was pulling at the bedspread and talking endlessly. "Mama! Duwwbell!"
"What, Katrina?" asked Terezi, a sharp pain running through her side as she tried to sit up. "Oh—where's Augeth and Obrina?"
"Miss Augeff and Miss Obwina at store!" chirped Katrina, jumping up and down. "Daddy out too!"
Dammit, Karkles, thought Terezi before attempting to stand up without experiencing any pain. "Okay. Have you eaten breakfast yet?"
"Donut! Box!" Katrina giggled, and Terezi then realized that her daughter's face was smeared with chocolate and sprinkles. "Daddy got you jelly!"
"That's…nice of him," said Terezi through gritted teeth. It was Saturday morning, and she knew that Karkat was almost never scheduled to work weekend shifts. A horrible thought came to her mind, but she immediately shook it off. He'd never do that. "Let's go answer the door, okay?"
Katrina reached her arms upward. "Up!"
"Um…not right now, baby," Terezi told her. She felt absolutely awful and slowly descended the stairs, gripping the railing as she went down. Through the window she made out two familiar figures, and smiled slightly before reaching to open the door. "Latula! You made—"
She went completely silent. Latula was wearing an extremely baggy sweater that said "R4D" on the chest, but it still didn't hide the obvious bump underneath. Usually, her dancestor was relatively laid-back, but something seemed off. "—it."
Mituna, however, immediately wrapped Terezi in a huge hug. "Yo, TZ!" he shouted at a piercing volume. He wasn't wearing his helmet and Terezi was shocked at how curly his hair was, but she couldn't really concentrate on anything as the hug hurt. "What is up, sugar?!"
"Uh…" Terezi mumbled, not really knowing what to say. Katrina ran up to Mituna and giggled as he picked her up and lifted her above his head. "Be careful."
"Aiwpwane!" squealed Katrina, grabbing onto Mituna's inner set of horns. "Higher!"
"Naw, lil' bean, let's go get some nutrition stuffs!" Mituna exclaimed, flashing a peace sign at the Pyropes. "I'm gonna raid your kitchen, TZ!"
"Yep…" Terezi sat down on the couch across from Latula, trying her best to avoid looking at her. "So…"
"What's up, sis?" asked Latula, nervously flashing a row of sharp teeth. "Hey, you're looking really curvy. You doing anything different?"
"I guess," said Terezi, who didn't remember the last time she had stopped herself from overeating. "Um, so…you look…different…"
"I know, right?" Latula laughed, looking uncomfortable. "Yeah, last drone session, me and 'Tuna were excluded on account of his, ahem, differences. Like, yeah, man, Her Imperious Condescension is not interested in any more high-level psiionics running around, and…actually, we've kind of been on the run."
"What?" Terezi blinked. "Is Mituna being subjected to her genocidal tendencies?"
"Um, a little worse, actually." Terezi realized she was struggling to hold back tears. "So, um. You know the original Psiionic, am I right? Pretty famous guy right there. Well…he's dead."
"What?! I thought his life was extended, and his consciousness was—"
"—Intertwined with the imperial fleet, yeah," finished Latula. "Um. But mustard-bloods burn out eventually because of the whole mental health thing. He…well, it's all just rumors right now, but he crashed the ship containing his brain. Sort of suicide, I guess."
"Holy shit," Terezi breathed, trying to comprehend the fact that someone who had actually known the Signless was dead. "But what does that have to do with Mituna?"
Latula laughed bitterly. "He's one of the last known descendants. The other Captor is in prison right now for protesting against the Empire."
"Sollux is in prison?!" Terezi had never gotten as close to Sollux as Karkat had, but they did have some interesting conversations about blindness after he lost his vision. "Oh my god."
"It's a political shitstorm back home, really," said Latula, sighing deeply. "Damara disappeared, Meenah is in solitary confinement for associating with a guerilla army, and don't even get me started on Porrim and Aranea. Like, holy fuck, TZ, that is the single worst case of quadrant vacillation that I've ever seen, and I know Rufioh."
"Is…something wrong with the Mother Grub?" asked Terezi. Maybe that would explain her obviously pregnant dancestor.
Latula closed her eyes. "We don't know, but there hasn't been a new matriorb in sweeps, and people are freaking out. A lot of discrimination, not enough grubs to help the population grow, let alone provide for the food industry—"
"Stop," said Terezi, squeezing her eyes shut. "People shouldn't eat grubs, ever."
"Oh," said Latula, blinking. "Right."
The tension was killing her. "Latula. How far along are you?"
Latula looked confused. "What do you mean?"
Terezi swallowed. Oh, god. "You know," she said, making a gesture to her belly. "How…how long has it—"
Latula shrugged, squeezing a pillow against her front. "Yeah, I know, I've been basically stress-eating, like, all the time," she said quickly, pushing her rectangular glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Like, yeah, I'm fat now. Weird, right?"
"Latula," said Terezi gently, "I don't think that's fat."
Her dancestor still looked confused. "Do I have, like, a tumor or something?"
"No!" exclaimed Terezi, trying to figure out how to explain natural reproduction to a troll who had grown up without ever seeing pregnancy. "Okay. So you know about the Mother Grub, et cetera, right?"
"…Yes?" asked Latula, frowning. "What does that have to do with me?"
"Okay, this is going to sound weird," said Terezi, "but did you, um…pail with Mituna without using…a bucket?"
Latula looked offended, but sighed. "Yeah, but I don't see how that relates to anything!"
"That's how Karkat and I got Katrina," said Terezi slowly. Latula squeaked in realization. "I think you're going to have a grub."
-12:03 pm-
Mituna had absolutely no idea what he was doing with his life.
Katrina had arranged several pillows around a footstool and was pouring imaginary tea into a plastic teacup. "Would you have cookies?" she asked, giggling. "We have wed."
"Sure, kiddo," said Mituna, pretending to sip from the cup. "Holy fuck, this is de-fucking-licious!"
Katrina burst out laughing, but quickly got back into character. "Oops! We have bwue now, too."
"I want both, kiddo," said Mituna, bringing his knees closer to his chest. "Oh man, those nutrition packets look amazingM/em."
"Hee! Fank you," exclaimed Katrina, blowing him a kiss. "They cookies."
"Very good," said Mituna, and suddenly Latula was looking at him from the doorway. "Babe, want some tea?"
"Mituna, we're leaving," she said rather tearfully. "Come on."
"No thanks," said Mituna, sticking out his split tongue. Katrina giggled. "Me and kiddo here are having bona fide good-ass meals right now."
"'Tuna, please," she said, hiccupping. "I feel horrible."
"Back to Alternia, I guess," sighed Mituna, frowning and giving Katrina a little wave. "Hey, niece, next time, I'm eating at least six donuts. Jelly, please."
"You're not going back to Alternia," said Terezi firmly from behind Latula. "It's too dangerous, Latula! You could get culled, or worse!"
"What are we supposed to do otherwise?" sobbed Latula, completely losing it. "I can't have a grub, not now, not ever—"
Mituna perked up. "You're having a grub?"
Terezi shushed him and put her hands on Latula's shoulders. "Look. I…just stay here until you have the egg, okay? I'll take care of it, no strings attached."
She couldn't believe herself. Did I really just say that? she thought in horror. How would Latula react? How would Karkat react?!
Latula wiped away her tears, however, trembling slightly. "Really?"
"Yeah," said Terezi, internally freaking out. "Look, I can help you and Mituna find an apartment, and it'll be okay. I promise."
Latula smiled enormously, her eyes pouring teal tears, and hugged Terezi tightly. "Thank you," she whispered, and Terezi realized that not only had she saved her dancestor and her matesprit, but was going to have another kid. "Thank you so much."
"My pleasure," said Terezi, lower lip quivering.
-Monday, January 7, 8:13 am / Rose & Kanaya's condo-
Rose: 21 weeks
Roxy: 11 weeks
Kanaya straightened her collar before checking her reflection in the mirror. "Rose," she called over her shoulder, "are you ready?"
There was a grumble from the bathroom, and Kanaya smiled slightly as she got her cell phone out of her purse. Today they would hopefully find out the sex of the other baby, and she couldn't fully hide her excitement. She didn't exactly have a preference, but part of her—maternal instincts—hoped for a daughter. Of course, all the thoughts of a tiny girl looking like the perfect combination of her and her wife disappeared when she looked at her phone. "Shit," she mumbled, standing up. "Rose. I can't make it."
"What?" Rose opened the bathroom door and adjusted her dress. At this point, she had come to the grim realization that pants would probably not fit comfortably until after the birth, and at the rate she was growing she had to buy ridiculously large maternity clothes in order to have any kind of comfort. "Kanaya, I can barely drive with these little fuckers!"
"Don't call them that!" Kanaya hissed before kissing her on the cheek. "Look, I'm really sorry, but I completely forgot about an…arrangement."
"Arrangement?" asked Rose, raising an eyebrow. "What are you planning?"
Kanaya exhaled loudly. "Okay, I wasn't going to tell you until it was confirmed, but I may have acquired a new job."
"What?" Rose exclaimed, her hands enveloping her wife's waist in a hug. "That's wonderful!"
Kanaya smiled nervously. "Yes. There's a new avant-garde fashion design company, and…well, I figured I might as well attempt to get a job at least interning with them."
"You'll get the job," Rose said as she kissed Kanaya's cheek.
Kanaya was shocked—Rose had barely shown any affection over the last two months, a major contrast from the sultry seductress that had stolen her breath at their first meeting. "Rose," whispered Kanaya, "I—"
Rose remembered her current predicament and snapped out of it. "Shit. Who's going to drive me?"
"Shit."
-8:30 am / Karkat & Terezi's house-
Terezi groaned and got into the loosest possible pair of jeans before trying not to poke her eyes out with some mascara. Right after she finished, her phone began to ring. "Crap," she mumbled, answering without even checking who it was. "Hello?"
"Hello, Terezi," said Kanaya. "Um, are you busy?"
"Um…I have a doctor's appointment at ten, but other than that, my schedule is pretty much free," she said, trying to keep her plans as vague as possible. Obrina had agreed to watch Katrina while Karkat went to work and Augeth looked for a job, and she was really nervous about what the doctor might find. "Why?"
"Ha, okay," laughed Kanaya. "So…if you're going to the doctor…could you maybe take Rose to her ultrasound? Just wondering. You totally don't have to do it, but I have an interview, and she is having some difficulty driving, so—"
"It's fine," said Terezi a bit lethargically. She didn't really want to interact with Rose due to the fact that she was massively pregnant and was basically a beached whale with an attitude problem, but Kanaya was still one of her best friends and only people who could tolerate her moods. "When's her appointment?"
"9:45," said Kanaya. "I appreciate this so much, Terezi! Thank you!"
Terezi hung up and moaned. Her appointment was at the same place, and she hoped she could trust Lalonde with keeping whatever happened completely confidential. "God."
-8:46 am / Terezi's car-
Terezi drummed her fingers against the steering wheel. "C'mon, Rose…" she muttered as the doors to the opulent condominium building opened. "Oh my god."
She hadn't seen Rose for a few weeks, and the blonde looked painfully enormous. Was I that big with Isaac? she wondered, the memory piercing her thinkpan. Out of habit, she pressed down on the horn, causing Rose to look up from her phone with a startled expression, and then did her best to walk over to the car before opening the door. "Hey, Lalonde."
"Terezi," said Rose curtly as she sat down in the passenger seat. "Thank you so much for doing this."
"It's fine," Terezi replied, and her phone suddenly buzzed on the console. "Fuck, let me get this…hello?"
"Hey, TZ!" shouted an all-too-familiar voice. "What's hangin', brosis?"
"Mituna, I can't talk right now," Terezi told him through gritted teeth. "I'm taking a friend to the doctor, and you—"
"Yo, I just wanted to tell you that me and Latula found an apartment," he said, and she could practically hear his toothy grin through the phone. "Subsidized, and we're gonna have to clean shit to live there…you still in on the grub?"
"Of course," she smiled. She still hadn't gotten around to telling Karkat, but she had started to do research on mustard-bloods (just in case the grub happened to have psiionics). "Tell Latula to rest."
"Aight, cool kid!" shouted Mituna before abruptly hanging up. Terezi sighed and shoved her phone into her shoulder bag.
"Who was that?" asked Rose quietly, taking out some knitting. "He was very…loud."
"Please tell me you didn't hear what he said," groaned Terezi. Rose looked uncomfortable. "Okay, confession time. My, um…biological sister is in town, and I'm adopting her grub. Karkat doesn't know yet."
"That's wonderful," Rose said with a genuine smile. "I mean, you should probably tell Karkat soon, but since adoption was the plan before—yeah."
Terezi swallowed. "Are you still freaked out about having two?"
"Incredibly," Rose said, looking out the window. "It's just…I don't know, kind of funny how the whole thing happened. I always wanted to have kids, but…it just kind of freaks me out."
"Pregnancy in general usually does that to people," Terezi said reassuringly, wondering why people who wanted no part in carrying a child were the best at conception. "Do you think you'll ever want more?"
Rose coughed. "Honestly? I don't think I'll ever do it again, unless…I don't know? Maybe in the future, but probably not. My work schedule is already a mess with so many clients, and I barely have enough time to spend with Kanaya."
"Which one of you is going to stay at home?"
"Um…" Rose's face went pale at the thought of having to stay at home with two babies all day. "I have absolutely no idea."
"I wish I could with Katrina," sighed Terezi, "but school is ridiculous, and we'll need more money soon, so…"
"If you're interested, I could maybe write you a recommendation," offered Rose. "The clinic I work through needs legal representatives for a lot of the clients, and starting pay for legal assistants starts off at about $17.50 an hour, so—"
"$17.50?" asked Terezi, amazed that anyone could start off with that much. "God, that could actually help pay the bills…are you serious?"
"Completely!" said Rose, eyes brightening. "Look, work is basically the only thing I look forward to most mornings. It's incredibly effective in combating any negativity, because you're constantly on a routine, and really, Terezi, if you're going to adopt, you'll need a lot of funds... Even though you don't have a law degree yet, you'll be a law student soon, I assume, and I'm sure the reps are always looking for helping hands."
Maybe she was going a little overboard on the sentimentality train, but Terezi nodded eagerly. "Yeah! Thank you, Rose!"
"Anytime," said Rose, sighing as they found a parking space. "It's go time"
-9:45 am / Maple Valley Regional Hospital Clinic-
"Ms. Lalonde?" called a nurse, smiling when she saw her. "Are you ready?"
"Sort of," Rose answered, struggling to get out of the seat. Terezi was sitting next to her, filling out paperwork as she absentmindedly hummed to herself. "No blood samples today, right?"
"Nothing out of the ordinary," the nurse told her, leading her down the hallway. "I'll just have to take some measurements, ask the basic questions…it's all routine at this point, right?"
"Yeah, I guess," laughed Rose. "Just wondering, when should I take maternity leave?"
The nurse frowned. "Honestly, because it's twins, I'd suggest at the latest thirty-four weeks," she said, checking the paperwork, "but because you're young, they'll probably come early."
"That's fantastic," said Rose sarcastically. "How early?"
"Oh, anywhere from thirty-five weeks onward," said the nurse. "Usually twins are born around thirty-eight weeks of gestation, but you're petite. Just be glad you won't have to go the full nine months!"
Rose didn't say anything, and merely lifted her dress and groaned at the sight of stretch marks. "Will these be permanent?"
"Unfortunately, yes," said the nurse, pulling out measuring tape and stretching it across the expanse of Rose's belly. "30 centimeters…a bit larger than normal, but since it's twins it's not really a concern."
Rose groaned, then winced when the nurse squirted the sonogram gel onto her stomach. "Ooh—oh."
The screen showed the same set of twins, but they were larger and almost curled up next to each other. "Okay," said the nurse, squinting at the screen. "There's your little boy—ooh, he's going to be cute—and…"
She shifted the wand underneath Rose's navel and grinned. "I'm assuming you would like to know the other's gender?"
"That's kind of why I'm here…"
"It's a girl," said the nurse, pointing out three tiny lines on the screen. She frowned and looked at the twins' heads. "Hmm."
"What?" asked Rose, smiling nervously. "Is something wrong?"
"No, Rose," said the nurse calmly, making direct eye contact. "Your twins are perfectly healthy, actually! Their proportions are measuring up, no abnormalities, nothing pointing to any potential physical disabilities…are you alright?"
Rose wiped her eyes. "Sorry," she said, staring at the ceiling. "I know, hormones, but...I'm really glad it's a girl. Terrible, being partial, and she might not even identify as that later in life, but...I really want to have the whole mother-daughter experience."
The nurse smiled and turned off the sonogram machine, wiping the gel off of her patient's stomach. "It's perfectly natural to have some kind of preconceived notion of how you believe raising a child will be, but really, it depends on the baby. Each one is completely unique—sure, they follow the basic set of rules, but there are always little quirks that'll make your child yours."
"Sort of...a perfect genetic cocktail?" asked Rose uneasily, sliding her dress back over her stomach. "I mean, relatively speaking."
"Exactly!" exclaimed the nurse, smiling politely. "Just wondering, but were you or your wife going to take off time after the babies are born?"
"Don't we…have to?" Rose choked. "Um, we actually haven't thought that far ahead…"
"There are some nannies' numbers on the bulletin board in the waiting room," the nurse told her. "They're usually college students looking for a part-time job, but when my sister-in-law had my nephew she hired this great nanny who's still with them three years later. Just be prepared to pay out of pocket for a lot of expenses!"
"Yeah," said Rose, struggling to sit up.
The nurse assisted her and helped her put her feet to the floor. "Alright, Rose," she told her, leading her out into the lobby. "Two weeks."
Rose nodded and scanned the lobby for Terezi. She wasn't anywhere to be found, and even her purse was gone. Maybe she's in the bathroom. She sat down and waited for her ride to return, hoping the waiting time would be only minimal.
"So I'm assuming you've never had a hysteroscopy before?" Dr. Browne asked, double-checking her clipboard. "Wait, that was a stupid question, it's written right here."
Terezi laughed nervously and squeezed her legs together.
"So anyway, it should take somewhere between ten and thirty minutes, depending on what we find," the doctor continued to explain. "First I'll numb everything with a general anesthesia, which shouldn't affect your ability to drive or walk or anything else. Then I'll put a speculum in your vagina so the hysteroscope can slide in easier, and once that's in I'll slowly slide it through the cervix into your uterus, okay?"
Terezi nodded, mentally trying to equate the human reproductive terms to her troll genitalia as quickly as possible.
"Since you'll be awake throughout the procedure I'll just tell you about the other things when we get to them, okay? There's not much else other than viewing the uterine lining." Dr. Browne opened a drawer and pulled out a disposable hospital gown. "I'll need you to put this on and put your clothes in this bag, and in a few minutes a nurse will come in and take you to the room where we'll to the procedure, alright?"
"Alright." Terezi smiled nervously and took the hospital gown and plastic bag from Dr. Browne. She was thankful the doctor was willing to perform the procedure on her despite her "differences," but was nervous and terrified at what she might find. After putting on the flimsy gown and stuffing her clothes into the labelled bag, she waited for a nurse to retrieve her.
"Mrs. Vantas?" A nurse peeked her head into the exam room. "Are you ready?"
"As ready as I'll ever be." Terezi grabbed her purse and the clothes bag and followed the nurse. "What do I do with these?"
"There'll be a place in the room where you can put them. Do you need to use the restroom? We can't move forward with the procedure unless your bladder is empty."
"No, I'm okay."
The nurse led her into a room with a table in it. As mentioned, there were several hooks on which to hang her bags, which she promptly did and sat down on the table. "Dr. Browne will be with you shortly."
Terezi was absolutely terrified. Though this was a human procedure meant to diagnose human conditions, since troll reproductive and female human reproductive parts were relatively the same (at least, as far as she understood), she was afraid that the conditions and diseases would be relatively the same as well. And since she had had the problems with the last eggs and had difficulty conceiving Katrina, she was worried.
Someone knocked on the door and Dr. Browne entered. "Are you ready?" she asked Terezi, wheeling in a cart with some instruments on it.
Terezi vaguely nodded and nervously uncrossed her legs. "Okay, could you put your legs in the stirrups here?"
Terezi did as she was told as Dr. Browne washed her hands and put on some gloves. "Are you ready?" she asked Terezi, waiting for a nod before applying the general anesthesia.
The speculum was inserted before the hysteroscope and, although Terezi's genitals were basically numb, she still winced as it passed through her troll equivalent of a cervix. Dr. Browne did something and an image appeared on the monitor to which the scope was attached to.
"So…this is your uterus…" Dr. Browne moved the scope around to get a better look at her organs, then paused. "Huh…"
"What is it?" Terezi tried to sit up, but realized that probably wasn't a good idea and laid back down. "Is something wrong?"
"Well…" Dr. Browne sighed and squinted at the monitor. "It looks like there's some…abnormalities."
"What do you mean?" asked Terezi nervously.
Dr. Browne sighed again. "It looks like you have some major uterine scarring and abnormal healing. This all points to something called Asherman's syndrome, where the walls of your uterus experienced some abrasions and healed stuck together."
Terezi gulped, immediately thinking back to Isaac and the several crushed eggs.
"Didn't you say you've had a miscarriage before?"
"Two miscarriages and a stillbirth," choked Terezi, realizing what this condition might imply.
The doctor sighed, a forlorn expression on her face.
"I just want to hear it." Terezi was trying to hold back tears and prepared herself for the inevitable.
"Well…Asherman's syndrome generally means infertility." Dr. Browne sounded sad as she said this. "But—the good news is, it can be treated."
"How?"
"It does require surgery," she told Terezi, "but it's relatively simple. The general procedure involves cutting the fused tissue with scissors, then inserting a balloon-type thing to prevent the tissue from re-fusing while it's healing. It's a quite simple procedure, but since it's a surgery it can be costly."
Terezi sighed and shuddered when the hysteroscope was pulled out of her. "Money is tight right now, so I don't think I can do surgery any time soon," she said sadly. "I'll…talk to my husband about it, though, and see what he thinks."
"Great." Dr. Browne wiped off the materials and set them back on the cart to be sterilized before taking off her gloves and throwing them away. "I'd like to have a follow-up appointment in a few weeks to look at it a bit more and discuss surgery. You can just make an appointment when you check out."
"Thank you." As soon as the doctor left Terezi quickly got dressed and gathered her things. She wanted to get home as soon as possible and didn't want to think about her diagnosis at all.
After checking out and making her next appointment, Terezi exited the hallway and went back to the waiting room. "Oh, hey Rose," she said nervously. "Sorry. I...kind of had an appointment here."
"It's okay," said Rose, unsure as to how the doctors were not freaking out about the obvious case of alien anatomy. "Are...you okay?"
Terezi shrugged and they took the elevator downstairs before stopping in front of a vending machine. "Do you want anything?" asked the teal-blood, fumbling in her purse for some cash. "I'm pretty much dying for anything red right now, sorry."
"I'm fine," said Rose, watching as Terezi quickly felt the Braille numbers and bought several packets of Starbursts. "Is—did they find anything?"
Terezi sighed and retrieved the candy, leading Rose to the parking lot. "I don't really want to talk about it," she said simply, and Rose nodded. "Is it okay if I blare some music? You know... It's supposed to be helpful with...thoughts."
Rose swallowed and buckled her seat belt.
-2:36 pm / Joseph & Roxy's house-
"Nervous" didn't completely cover how Joseph was feeling when he unlocked the front door of his house and crept in. "Roxy?" he called out, wondering if she was still asleep. Ever since she had been put on bedrest, she had essentially done nothing but skim through old astrophysics textbooks and watch Netflix while zoning out on the bed, not moving in fear of creating some kind of disturbance in her womb. He put down the bag of groceries that she had requested (all varieties of fruit and vegetables) and quietly ascended the stairs. Frigglish mewed and hissed as he opened the bedroom door. "Roxy, what are you doing?"
His wife was staring at the ceiling, eyes half open, and biting her lower lip. "Joseph."
"Are you alright?" he asked tentatively, sitting down on the bed next to her. "You look…"
"Awful," she murmured, her eyes wide open. "I know. I've barely looked in the mirror, and eyeliner won't apply itself."
"I was going to say beautiful, but if that's what you believe, so be it," said Joseph, holding her hand. "I bought some chocolate."
She made a face. "Joseph, I can't eat chocolate without throwing up," she said in defeat. "This baby doesn't want anything that tastes good. Just...Brussels sprouts."
"I could sauté them?" he offered, squeezing her hand in support. "Maybe a salad with grilled chicken and dried cherries with raspberry vinaigrette?"
"Nothing sweet," she groaned, burying her face into the pillow. "I want a cupcake so bad right now, Joseph. Just...a huge buttercream frosting thing, but the baby literally has no interest in actually letting me digest anything relatively edible."
"Hmm," said Joseph with a tiny frown, kissing her slightly curved belly. "Do you...never mind."
"What?" asked Roxy nervously, sitting up. "Has something been bothering you?"
"Yes," he admitted, not sure how to broach a delicate subject. "It's about...the twin."
Roxy's shoulders slumped. "I don't know how to feel about it."
"I," said Joseph, swallowing and trying to gather his thoughts. "I just wonder."
"Me too," sighed Roxy, closing her eyes. "Because of the entirety of the identical situation...do you think…"
She couldn't continue. Thinking about a potentially tragic future was too much, and she had been told to keep her stress levels as regulated as possible if she wanted to carry the baby to term. "Just, what if they both lived?" she asked a bit tearfully. "What if the cancer manifested later? But what if it didn't and we had two babies and they were both healthy and—"
"Don't think like that, Roxy," muttered Joseph, but the same thoughts had been plaguing him as well. "It happened, and we'll have to deal with it, but we'll still have a baby. That's all that really matters, right?"
Roxy still looked uncomfortable. "I...what if it was payback?" she asked, misty eyed.
Joseph was confused. "For...what?"
Roxy turned red. "Nothing."
"Tell me," he said, stroking her cheek. "It couldn't have been that bad."
Roxy sighed, trying to push the memories out of her head. "I never told anyone," she whispered, looking ashamed. "It…"
Joseph frowned. His wife's entire body language had changed—instead of her normal, fluidly expressive self, he was looking at someone small and drawn-in, someone who was hiding. "Roxy?"
"Please don't think any less of me," she said quickly, hands trembling. "I was really young, I didn't know what I was doing—"
"Roxy, I really have no idea what you're talking about," said Joseph, but he was starting to feel concerned. Roxy had never looked so scared before, never so frightened of potential judgement. "Did something happen?"
She took a deep breath and began.
-July 1989, London, England-
Roxanne Lalonde (not yet Roxy) took a deep breath before grasping her boyfriend's hand. "This is it," she murmured, all sixteen years of her done up in the most cultured clothing she could find at her favorite punk counterculture boutique in Paris, bright pink and black eye makeup slightly smeared across her pallid features. William grinned at her—he was incredibly handsome, with heavily lidded brown eyes and short cut blond hair—and kissed her violently on the neck. She squealed and pushed him off, laughing hysterically. "Not now, Will," she whispered. "We're barely out of the hotel; how do you expect us to not get caught?"
She had met William on one of her father's many inescapable business trips. His father was one of her father's business associates located in London, and after several awkward company meetings, they became friends and then began to date. With both of their father's schedules intertwining over the last year and a half, they became nearly inseparable, and Roxanne wondered if maybe, just maybe, he would be the one to make her complete. It was completely fantasy, of course, but when she looked at him she felt so much burning teenage desire that it was hard to not totally swoon. "Whatever, Rox," said Will, grinning as he pulled her down the street. "There's this club that we can go to. I swear, Jacques said that there's this new DJ, and it's amazing."
"Then take me there, silly!" chided Roxanne, laughing as they ran down the street. She stopped briefly and loosened her spiked choker that she had snuck on in the bathroom. "Do you think I look okay?"
"Rox, you look dazzling," said Will, shooting her one of his ridiculously bright smiles. His canine teeth were a little bit too sharp, but Roxanne liked to pretend that it was a sign of his obviously romantic heritage. "C'mon, we're almost there!"
She rolled her eyes and paused as they stopped in front of a large, graffiti-covered building. "Are you sure this is safe?" she asked, biting her lower lip. "It looks…"
"It's fine, Rox," said Will in a slightly irritated voice, and she swallowed. As much as she adored him, she was terrified by any implication of anger. He led her into the alley and knocked five times on a red door before a skeevy-looking girl with huge circles under her eyes answered. "Hey, we're here for Noir."
"Sure," shrugged the girl, and Roxanne realized that there was a gap where her front teeth should be. "Who's this?"
"This is Roxanne," said Will, nodding. "Like the Police song."
"Of course," snorted the girl, letting them in. "Welcome to Noir, bitches."
Roxanne blinked and tried to let her eyes adjust, but lights were flashing and the stairs were steep. "Will," she whispered, "I don't like this."
"Just enjoy it," he said, and they reached the bottom of a dark sub-basement that had been renovated to look vaguely like a club. A man wearing a wolf mask was drinking something fizzy through a straw, and pounding music was playing from the speakers. Another man with a cue ball on his head and a white suit was using an advanced set of turntables to create the awful din, and Roxanne inhaled, coughing on the smoke. "Hey, look, it's Jacques! Hey, Jacques!"
Will disappeared into the crowd, and Roxanne felt incredibly uneasy. The girl with the missing teeth shoved a drink in her direction. "Try this," she smiled, and she quickly took a huge gulp before realizing that it was not a Diet Coke. "Why the sad face, love?"
"Is this...alcohol?" squeaked Roxanne, head starting to spin. "I'm sixteen!"
"Big deal, bitch," shrugged the girl. "Nobody cares about your age here."
Roxanne blinked rapidly, trying to register what was happening. Her head was starting to hurt, and she felt dizzy. "Will?" she called, pushing through the crowd. "Will, where are you?"
Her boyfriend looked up from his own drink and grinned. His teeth didn't seem so romantic anymore. "You look a little tipsy," he laughed, putting his arm around her waist and grabbing her butt. She was too shocked to protest. "This here is Jacques and Fred and Mason. Wanna go for a ride with them?"
Roxanne nodded. Her head was pounding. "Take me home," she whispered, and they left the building. To her surprise, it was already dark out, and she held on to Will, trying to breathe. "Where are we going?" she asked as they got into a dilapidated Model T. "Will, Papa will completely freak out—"
"Roxanne," sang the boy named Fred sarcastically. "I bet you're just like the girl in the song, right?"
"Um, no?" asked Roxanne, feeling sick. They were speeding out of London now, in an area she didn't recognize at all. "Where…"
"You put on a red light, Roxanne?" teased Jacques, and she realized that his hand was reaching up her thigh. She tried pushing it away, but her arms felt useless. "C'mon, Roxanne."
"Please stop," she hissed, trying to reach for Will. "William, please—"
He slapped her across the face, and she found herself speechless as they stopped in a field. "She a virgin, Will?" called Mason, helping to drag her out.
"Probably," said Will, and Roxanne started to cry in realization. "What? Don't act like you don't want it."
They held down her hands and took turns. The first time hurt the most, and Jacques held a rag in her mouth as she screamed. Fred took her from behind. Mason put it in her mouth. And Will...he just laughed, his elongated canines shining in the moonlight as he dashed all hopes of ever being romantic.
When it was done, they hopped back into the car, and she stared at the sky, blackish blood dripping from in between legs. This isn't happening, thought Roxanne, pulling at the grass. I'm dreaming.
Joseph stared at her, still trying to comprehend what she had told him. "Roxy?"
"I never told anybody," she whispered, not looking at him. "It just...I ran away for a few weeks after that. Stayed with my friends, I just couldn't tell my parents, Joseph. And then—my period was late, and, I knew something was wrong, and then…"
She broke into sobs. "I got an abortion," she cried, still shaking. "And then I went home, and Mom and Pappa were so mad, but I still didn't tell them, and I had to see him all the time, and—"
"Roxy," whispered Joseph, holding her. "Roxy. Calm down."
"But I killed it," she sobbed, her body tense. "What if—what if the baby dying was punishment?"
"Roxy, you did the right thing," said Joseph, still stunned. "You were a child. You couldn't have had a baby, not with them—"
Roxy sobbed uncontrollably, turning away from him. "I just feel so guilty," she said, pulling the covers over her face. "And...Will...he was practically promoted to CEO of SkaiaTech last year, and in his profile it said that he was good and has three children and tons of grandchildren and I hate him so much!"
The last part of her sentence came out in a strangled shriek. Joseph sighed and put his hands on her shoulders. "Roxy, you need to calm down," he said in his most reassuring authoritative voice. "Remember what the doctor said about the correlation between stress and miscarriage."
Roxy gulped and quieted, holding onto him. "I'm sorry," she said, still shaking. "I just...I'm so sorry."
"You don't need to apologize, Roxy," he said, brushing her bangs to the side of her face. "It's horrible that you had to go through that, and I'm very proud of you for telling me. That must be so hard."
His wife sighed, almost in contentment. "You're so good to me, Joseph," she said, her eyes starting to well up with tears. "I...I used to think that I didn't deserve anyone as good as you, or...I don't know. I felt so worthless, and sometimes I still feel like that, and—"
"Roxy."
She swallowed and he kissed her on the forehead. "You will never be hurt like that again," continued Joseph. "I swear, if he even tries to contact you, I will do something—"
"No violence around baby," she said, looking relatively normal. "Please."
"I'll take it outdoors," said Joseph grimly. "Like gentlemen."
Roxy giggled, almost like a child. "I love you."
"I love you, too, Roxy."
-4:03 pm / Karkat & Terezi's house-
Karkat had endured one of the worst possible days ever at Starbucks (including the incident when he accidentally put ten shots of espresso in a frappuccino designated for a five year old wiggler [why anyone would give a child that young any kind of caffeinated beverage, he had no idea]. He had never heard the end of that one) and was about to collapse on the couch that he now called his bed when he realized that Terezi was sitting on the edge of the loveseat with a very forlorn expression. "Terezi?" he asked, putting down his backpack and readjusting the collar of his black shirt. "Is...everything alright?"
"I'm fine," said Terezi in monotone, inhaling deeply and attempting to come up with some kind of excuse for her mood. "Technically, I'm great."
Something seemed very off to Karkat about the way she spoke the words. "Did...Obrina said you were going to the doctor," he said quietly, attempting to bring some kind of peace between them. The last week had been rather rough on their relationship, but he still believed in the entirety of their "legally inseparable" state. They hadn't escaped to Earth for nothing, after all. "Did they find anything?"
"I guess you could say that," said Terezi blankly, not making eye contact. She had no idea how to tell Karkat what Dr. Browne had revealed on the hysteroscope. It almost made her feel like a failure. "I had a camera shoved up my nook and into my egg sac. It...really hurt."
Karkat edged closer to her. "Are you still in pain?"
"Karkat," said Terezi, trying to not let her voice break. "I'm a fuckup."
"What do you mean?" he asked, trying to not completely freak out. "Oh my God, are you okay?"
"No," blurted Terezi, feeling her eyes begin to burn with tears. "I...I really don't know how to say this, but please don't leave me—"
"Why would I leave you?" asked Karkat, completely baffled by the mere idea. "Terezi, I love you. I don't want to be with anyone else in any quadrant. You fucking complete me."
Terezi sniffed. "I...I love you too," she whispered, letting herself be embraced. "But, um…we might not be able to have any more kids."
Karkat breathed in and stroked her hair. "Why?"
"When...when I had Isaac…" she tried to begin. "The broken eggs must have done something, because I have scar tissue all over my egg sac, and it's grown together in places. Humans apparently don't have that different of anatomy, well, at least female humans, except we have the retractable bone bulge and whatever, but...in humans, when there's scar tissue and not enough space for the baby to grow, it's hard to conceive or keep pregnancies. I'm really sorry."
"Terezi, I don't care if we have any more kids," said Karkat, holding her tight. "We have Katrina, and she's perfect—"
"I just want to have a ridiculously large number of wigglers running around," murmured Terezi. " A human soccer team, but they all look like us."
"We...we can adopt," said Karkat. In an effort to quickly revive the situtaion, he deeply inhaled. "Look, I have something to tell you. Um…I'm kind of taking classes at the community college."
"What?" asked Terezi, pulling away and putting her hands on his shoulders. "Karkat, that's wonderful!"
"I...may also qualify for a scholarship?" he asked, trying to not make a big deal out of what was actually a huge matter. "Like, free associate's if I continue to have A's and a pretty good chunk of money for bachelor's if I transfer to an 'approved institution.' So, um...we may have a little more money, but we may not, because I...kind of picked a dumb degree."
"What do you mean?" asked Terezi. "You're getting an education!"
Karkat shrugged and bit his lower lip. "Yeah, I just...I was thinking. I like kids . Hell, I'm pretty damn great with kids. And...I really like educational programs. And, so...I'm trying to be a teacher?"
"Karkat, you'll be a great teacher," said Terezi, squeezing him. "But. Uh…"
"What?" he asked, a bit nervously. "Is...I mean, other than the scar thing—"
"So you know Latula, right?" asked Terezi quickly. "Don't freak out, Karkles, but I kind of may have made a super important deal with her."
Karkat nodded. He really had no idea where this was going. "She and Mituna are on Earth now, right?"
"Heh, yeah," said Terezi, flashing her teeth in a purely anxious fashion. "I really don't know how to say this, but...we might be adopting a grub?"
Karkat was silent as he processed the information. "Wait. What?"
"So Latula's pregnant," said Terezi. "Like, really pregnant. And she honestly can't raise a grub right now—I mean, she and Mituna are working as fucking janitors in a subsidized housing complex. They're not allowed to have any kids while they're on the premises, because it's mainly for people trying to revive their educations and get out of poverty, but if we're going to be honest, what human will adopt a grub? Ha. None. So, yeah."
Karkat blinked. "A grub."
"Really," said Terezi with a nervous smile. "She's due around March, I don't know... That's just a guess, but it's one egg and it may have vision twofold and potentially a genius intelligence quota, and—"
She broke off as Karkat squeezed her in an enormous hug. "We're having a grub!" he screamed, shaking in excitement. It was only after a moment that Terezi realized that her husband was crying happy tears. "Oh, my god, Terezi! This is actually really fucking great!"
"Daddy?" called Katrina, peeking her head through the doorway. "You sad?"
"No sweetheart, Daddy is happy," said Karkat, swinging her above his head before holding her in between himself and Terezi. "Daddy is so happy—Terezi, should we tell her?"
"I mean, we would have to at some point," grinned Terezi. She hadn't really expected him to react so...joyfully. "Katrina, remember you brother?"
"I-zuck," said Katrina a little sadly, pulling at her pigtail. "Miss him!"
"I know, me too," said Terezi, kissing her daughter, then Karkat. "Well, we are getting another baby. You're going to be a big sister."
Katrina's eyes widened; she squealed excitedly and wrapped her arms around Terezi's waist. "Baby in vere?"
"No, the baby isn't in there," said Karkat quickly. "You know your Auntie Latula?"
"Mituna!" shouted Katrina, rolling around on the couch and laughing. "He like tea!"
"Well, they're giving us a baby," said Karkat, trying to put the situation in age appropriate terms. "As a very special present that we can keep forever."
"Girl baby or boy baby?" asked Katrina, who was now dancing vigorously. Terezi burst out laughing—her day had been awful, but this...this was perfect.
"We don't know yet!" said Karkat, sweeping the tiny girl up in his arms and laughing. They spun around the living room, laughing and talking, and Terezi couldn't help but join in.
-4:54 pm / Rose & Kanaya's condo-
Rose stretched in her chair as the elevator opened and Kanaya rushed in, beaming. "Well?" asked the blonde, smiling. "I'm taking it that you succeeded?"
"Better than mere success, my love," sang Kanaya, putting her hands on her wife's hips. "Guess who is going to be a designer of an entire clothing line?"
Rose's eyes widened and she gasped. "What—I thought—"
"I showed the interviewers my designs, and they took them to the CEO, and she literally hired me on the spot!" screamed Kanaya, dancing around the room in an overtly enthusiastic manner. "I have funding for two years and get up to 70% on commission for everything that I design! Rose, we're going to be rich!"
"Aristocrats of a sinful nature!" shouted Rose, laughing and throwing one of the goose down pillows at the hysterical jade-blood. It was impaled by her horns and immediately exploded, feathers flying all over. Kanaya stopped momentarily, then threw the pillow's twin at Rose, who burst out laughing. "Kanaya, this is wonderful! God, we should celebrate!"
"Speaking of celebration," said Kanaya, narrowing her eyebrows dramatically and giggling. "Have we discovered the sex of the twin?"
Rose went silent and leaned in. "Prepare yourself, Maryam."
Kanaya nodded eagerly. Please be a girl, she thought, please at least identify as a girl—
"Lock your doors," continued Rose, breaking her train of thought. "Attempt to paint one of the bedrooms pink. Buy lots of princess bullshit."
Kanaya broke into a huge smile. "Really?"
"Be ready to beat up potential suitors," said Rose, smiling as well. "Get ready, Kanaya, because our daughter will be the most fashionable, eloquent, well-versed child that has ever walked on—"
She stopped as Kanaya leaned in and kissed her. Her hands stopped moving, and she let herself disappear in the kiss, feeling her wife's hands travel down her sides and around her shoulder blades. "Thank you," whispered Kanaya, and they proceeded to wreck the penthouse in its entirety.
