In the Strangerville Police Station...
After being arrested and charged with three charges of kidnapping, attempted simicide and endangering the entire town and the surrounding city, Circe was taken to a secure facility to live out her sentence.
But she wasn't the only one, as the officer led Circe down to her new cell, Dina scowled out at her from the shared cell she had with her unfortunate sister.
"This is all your pluming fault." She hissed as Circe passed by, "I'd be rich right now if it weren't for you messing it all up!" "Shut up, Dina, you were the one gloating on simstagram." Nina lamented from the back.
"Plum off!"
"No, you!"
Circe stalked past the two bickering sisters without a word, glaring at her new roomie before the woman even had a chance to open her mouth.
This wasn't the end. She had to set some pieces in motion but to do that she needed a certain someone to aid her from the outside...
The inmates had thirty minutes allotted to an outside guest visit and Circe knew exactly who to call up to speak with her. There was little time for pleasantries, if her plan was to work, it needed to be cultivated immediately.
"I knew you would come." Circe exclaimed, "You were always so loyal."
"I suppose curiosity got the better of me." The figure replied, "But why me?"
"What I need is of great importance and I cannot entrust it to just anyone." Circe continued, "You're the only one I can trust."
"Now that you've burned all your bridges." The figure commented bluntly, eliciting a soft scowl from Circe. "And you haven't? Why else would you be here?" Circe reminded, keeping her tone level even when her temper was anything but. If she messed this up she'd have no one to help her.
"...Fair enough." The figure relented with a heavy sigh, "What do you need?"
And so Circe told them her plan, she had already set it in motion before she was captured but it needed constant surveillance for it to succeed.
"If even one thing were to fall out of place, the whole experiment would be for naught." Circe warned, leaning forward with a pleading look. "I know you'll see it through, Vidcund, I know you'll succeed where I cannot."
Vidcund Curious' heart melted, along with any good common sense, as it normally did when Circe was concerned. "I'll make sure of it, Circe, you have my word."
"Thank you, Vidcund... You have no idea what this means to me." Circe's lips upturned into a vicious smile once Vidcund had truly turned to leave, he was always so easy to manipulate, that's what she loved about him.
The only thing, really.
Back onto our normal programming, Aelia reached the top of the scientific career and had a very specific thing she wanted to do to celebrate her new promotion.
"As the lead extraterrestrial explorer, I would like to request that we take a quick trip around the moons of Sixam." Aelia suggested with a coy smile, "It is a flight path flown by many a young sixamian couples."
Pascal chuckled, "Well, lead explorer, I think that sounds like a fantastic idea." He replied, taking her hand with a wink, "I'm sure our... research will prove quite useful."
The two suited up and blasted off towards a romantic getaway for completely scientific reasons and nothing else.
After their trip across the stars, Pascal brought Aelia to Barry's diner to continue the celebration of her promotion with her friends.
Aelia stood dumbfounded in front of the entrance to Barry's as Pascal chatted,
"So, yeah! This is my favourite place to eat. They shut down for renovations a bit ago but they're finally reopened!" Pascal exclaimed, but his smile faded at the look Aelia was giving the establishment.
"That is my ship." Aelia mentioned towards the large saucer that now capped off the freshly added wing of the building.
"That's your...? Oh my Watcher, Ally, I'm so sorry, I had no idea-!"
"No, it is... quite alright, I am glad it found a purpose other than as decommissioned scrap." Aelia assured with a bemused smile, "At least I know what happened to it now, it had vanished not long after my sudden arrival."
"Are you sure it's okay? We can eat somewhere else if you would rather." Pascal insisted with a wince.
"Nonsense! I wish to experience your favourite place with you." Aelia smiled, "Besides, I think it looks rather fetching atop the food establishment."
"...It does look pretty cool."
Most of the gang made it to Aelia's celebration dinner and even Buzz and Nine who still very much did not trust each other made sure to be on their best behaviour.
Nervous seemed, unsurprisingly, a little nervous. But even though most of that was probably the crowd of people, the stolen glances towards Cassandra, only to quickly look away suggested another underlying reason.
And of course, what is a celebration without breakfast for dinner? A rather successful dinner was had by all and the two long standing enemies even cracked a few smiles while in each other's presence while talking about their children. It seemed the two protective fathers had more in common than they initially thought.
Recently, Aelia had started a new hobby, knitting tiny clothes. Seemingly for Atlas although some of the articles of clothing seemed a bit too small for the quickly growing boy.
The ladies went out on one of their weekly lunches where Cassandra kept smiling much too wide and the others kept side-eying her strange behaviour.
"Okay, girl, spill." Brandi finally exclaimed, "You've been smilin' like a fool all day."
"What, I can't smile?" Cassandra scoffed, her cheeks colouring.
"Not like that! It's the 'something real good has happened' smile! So spill!"
"She's right, dear, it's pretty obvious." Jenny added, leaning forward expectantly, "We're just dying to know."
"My health is not failing but I too wish to hear of your good news." Aelia piped up.
"Not you too, Ally." Cassandra groaned, but her smile still remained plastered to her face.
The gossip party was briefly interrupted by the waiter but as soon as they vanished back into the restaurant Brandi drummed her hands excitedly on the table.
"Oh, wow, this looks really good.." Cassandra attempted.
"You're not distracting me, girl!" Brandi pressed.
"Ugh, fine... okay, Nervous uhm, asked me out." Cassandra finally spilled, causing the table to explode into excited buzzing.
"He is quite timid, it took a vast amount of courage to ask you out!" Aelia exclaimed while Brandi and Jenny squealed on the sidelines. "That must mean he is quite enamoured with you."
Cassandra snorted but her cheeks burned brighter, "Yeah, must be..."
The next day Aelia woke feeling particularly uncomfortable, it only took a quick self scan later to find out the culprit...
"Pleasant morning, my love." Aelia cooed, sneaking up behind Pascal and embracing him.
"Ohm! Good morning, to you, too!" Pascal exclaimed, dropping his toothbrush on the sink, "You seem quite chipper today, any special occasion?"
"Well, I never need a reason other than regaining consciousness in your presence, but..." Aelia trailed off coyly.
"Oh come on, now, I'm curious." Pascal turned to face his wife fully.
"You have never stopped being so." Aelia giggled but her excitement bubbled over, "I have been pollinated!"
Pascal winced at the choice of words before his eyes went wide as the context sunk in. "Wait- wait, we're pregnant?" His hands patted at his own stomach subconsciously, "You're pregnant!?"
"I am! It is a joyous day!" Aelia beamed, wiggling with uncontained excitement, "Only the Pollinators deal in, well, pollination. Having a new life growing within me is... amazing."
"It's incredible! Oh my Watcher, I thought I was the only one in this household that got pregnant!" Pascal babbled jokingly, his smile nearly splitting his face in two. "Oh my Watcher, this is real." "It is." Aelia confirmed, Pascal's excitement redoubling her own, "Would you like to feel them?" She questioned, patting at her large belly.
"Hah-ahah, is that even a question?" Pascal sputtered out, already reaching up to her tummy, "Woah, you're so- uh." His words halted with a nervous cough.
"Large?" Aelia supplied with a smirk, "Perhaps the child is growing quickly."
"You're glowing." Pascal added, drawing Aelia's attention about herself,
"My aura is showing?"
"No, I- aha, you're beautiful." Pascal blurted out, tugging Aelia into a hug, "I'm so happy."
"As am I." Aelia murmured, "I never imagined I would ever grow my own child, our child."
The two settled onto the couch to watch their favourite cooking show, The Great Bagley Bake-Off, a tradition of theirs that was now being shared by the new life growing inside Aelia's tummy.
But of course, watching cooking shows makes one hungry and so while Pascal left to go make breakfast, Aelia ushered a newly awakened Tycho over to the couch.
"Greetings Ty, I have fantastic news to share with you!"
"We're getting another puppy?" Ty asked hopefully.
"...No, but we are getting a new addition to the family!"
"...A kitty?"
"Why don't I just show you." Aelia stood, patting at her stomach expectantly.
Tycho hopped off the couch, glancing about before realizing what the gesture meant, "Oh... another sibling? That's cool!" He grinned, patting at her round belly, "I didn't know you could have babies, too."
Aelia didn't seem to notice the moment of hesitation, "Nor did I! On Sixam only the Birth Queen and her Pollinators deal with child bearing, so this is... strange and exciting."
Meanwhile at the supposedly abandoned Beaker residence...
Vidcund was hard at work on the project Circe had requested he finish on her behalf. She had the framework already in place, the samples needed, now all he had to do was put it all together and make sure it grew into fruition.
He thought there were easier ways to accomplish a similar outcome, a way that he would be happy to help her with, but she was bound and determined to do it this way and he wasn't about to argue with the woman he had a crush on since high school.
Vidcund carefully extracted the samples, placing it in stasis as he looked over the monitor.
"Alright... so far so good, just need to resequence this string here." The machine dinged, green data text drawing across the screen and Vidcund grinned,
"Eureka!"
The next step could commence, hours ticked by, days as Vidcund and his robotic companion spliced the project together. It needed to be perfect, Circe would surely love him if it was.
After days of incubating, the project was finally taking shape. Two infants floated in stasis, made with DNA from Circe herself and the late Loki. Vidcund didn't question why Circe had DNA samples of both of them on hand, or whether she had samples of anyone else in storage, but the thought certainly crossed his mind.
He was just too afraid to ask, lest she be upset at him.
"Don't worry, little ones, your mother will be back soon." Vidcund murmured to the pod clones, "As long as she's on her best behaviour and doesn't fight with the other inmates." He added in a mutter, shaking his head with a scowl. He did not relish the idea of raising Loki's clones, even if they did have Circe's genetics as well. Plus he really rather not have to deal with children at all so it would be nice if Circe got out in a timely fashion.
Of course Aelia had to tell the good news to her friends as well and who better to tell first than her oldest and dearest, Jenny.
"Oh my watcher, hon, I'm so happy for you! I have some things that Jill doesn't need anymore if you need anything, nappies and blankets, oh and I also have-"
"Jen- ah, Jenny!" Aelia interrupted with a laugh, "Thank you, I will tell you if I have need of supplies."
"Awh, lookit you, big as a globe!" Brandi squealed, "I think I have some onesies that Skip Jr can't wear anymore and-" Aelia laughed, "Please! Jenny already suggested giving me an alarming assortment of items, but thank you."
Against Pascal's suggestions, Aelia went to work even through she was near her due-date, science stopped for no one, she felt.
"Ally! You look positively glowing." Cassandra smiled.
"Why do people keep saying that? I thought I had control of my aura." Aelia replied, dumbfounded as she looked down at herself.
Cassandra laughed, "No, it's just a saying that you look happy cause you're pregnant."
A few hours later, Aelia was rethinking her stance and wishing she had listened to Pascal.
"Uh, hey, Ally!? You're glowing and not in the good way!" Cassandra hissed out, glancing about to make sure there were no witnesses.
"Cassie, I require assistance." Aelia gasped, pain wracking her body, "I think I am dying."
"What!? Oh, oh no, your water broke!" Cassandra exclaimed, "I'll call Pascal! An Ambulance! Awh, plum, I'll just drive you, they'll take too long!"
One panicked trip to the hospital later...
"Is she going to be alright?" Cassandra questioned while Pascal inwardly panicked about everything that could go wrong in this situation.
"What? Yes of course she is." Jenny waved the question away, "I know you haven't had children before, honey, but the pain is normal." She then assured Aelia who looked at her friend dubiously.
"...The Birth Queen never mentioned this before."
"Does the Birth Queen normally have casual chats with people?"
"...No."
"Exactly."
"Your vitals are just fine." Jenny confirmed, putting Aelia somewhat at ease.
"So I am not near death?" "No, dear."
"Thank you for bringing me here, I may have perished if it were not for you." Aelia hugged Cassandra who gently rolled her eyes, "You weren't going to die, Ally."
"I feel as though I may still." Aelia complained.
"Come here." Pascal instructed with a soft chuckle, swaying Aelia gently, "Does that feel any better?"
"...It does, ahh, mild relief."
Too bad the mild relief was short lived.
"Okay, dear, you just have to push, alright?" Jenny instructed.
"I am pushing!" Aelia gasped out, eyes screwing shut.
"It's okay, Ally, it will be alright." Pascal attempted to soothe her, although in truth he also looked as if he was near panicking.
"Almost there!" Jenny soothed, moments later carefully handing Aelia a newborn, "It's a boy!"
Aelia and Pascal only had eyes for their new child but Jenny made a small, 'oh!' noise and turned away.
"Oh, and here's the other one!" Jenny exclaimed happily.
"The what?!" Aelia near panicked, having thought she was over with all the agony and pushing.
"Don't worry, they're almost out..." Jenny replied, "Just a few more pushes, and- here!" She handed the second bundle of joy to Aelia who held the two infants close.
"A little boy and girl!" Jenny offered with a smile, letting the two fawn over their new additions to the family.
And so the twins, the boy, Jericho and the girl, Calypso have joined the Novis family!
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