No Regrets, Just Love (The Hammel Babyverse)

[Joshua Bernstein]

Since the babyverse now has multiple stories and spinoff AUs...I figured we could collect babyverse stories here. Right? Anyone can write babyverse stories. Even if your character wasn't mentioned in the first one you can assume meta men got pregnant. Right? Right

---

This is a sequel to No Regrets, Just Love which was written for the August 2011 writing challenge. Mads requested it and some other people wanted to read it as well so here you go, Hammel!



"Chase."

The trainer didn't turn around, too engrossed in filching gummy worms from the pantry to hear the other man at first.

"CHASE."

His name was spoken a bit louder this time, and he turned, flinching guiltily, gummies still in hand. "Uhhh...I didn't do it?" He offered.

James had both hands on his hips, eyes narrowed at his spouse in suspicion. "This has been going on for two months now." He commented, nodding to the candies.

Chase opened his mouth to defend himself; they hadn't had gummy worms in the pantry last month. He would have noticed! But James kept talking, not acknowledging his stance at all. "Gummy worms and horse radish. Oreos and tabasco. Ice cream and peppercorns. And then throwing up every morning. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were pregnant."

There was a pause as the two men stared at one another.

Oh, shit.

Half their friends were pregnant. Chase carrying a baby Campbell was a very real possibility.

James' face went pale. "....We need to see a doctor."

---

"I'm sorry." Ginny folded her arms across her chest, glancing back and forth between her dad and her step-dad. "But I don't think I heard you right the first time. Come again?"

"We're having a child, Gin." James rested one hand protectively across Chase's stomach.

"Uh-huh." Both tone and expression signified disbelief; her father was known to be a bit of a prankster at times.

Niko, on the other hand, looked vaguely intrigued. "So I'm not gonna be the youngest?" He questioned, and James smiled.

"No, you'll have a baby brother or sister. It'll be a few months before we'll know for sure what gender..."

He was interrupted by a groan from his partner. "Six more months, Jaime, I have to do this for SIX MORE MONTHS."

Ginny quirked an eyebrow at that. The sulking made their claim more believable. "Okaaaay." She conceded with a nod, "So that means Chase is....ummmm....what's the word, intersex?"

Her step-father gave her a dirty look from between splayed fingers, doubling over with nausea, but she ignored this, looking to her dad for answers.

"No, Gin." He removed his hand from Chase's stomach, ruffling the younger man's hair affectionately. "It's ummm....well, to be honest, I don't know how it happened, but he's not the only male pregnancy in Pilot Ridge." He shrugged helplessly, "Doctor Neville is expecting, he's due in about three months."

".....you're kidding."

"I need to go to the bathroom." Chase mumbled, standing hurriedly and lurching out of the room.

Ginny watched him with mingled pity and uncertainty, "Mmmkay. That's weird, dad. But uhhh..." She noted the pleased look on his face and finished with, "Congratulations?"

---

"Jaimeeeeee" Chase whined, curled up on the couch, all seven throw pillows supporting his back, which ached constantly. He hadn't been comfortable in months, couldn't sleep in bed with his husband anymore because whatever side he laid on became numb. He'd taken to sleeping in the recliner, feet elevated. It still wasn't comfortable, but it was the best that could be done.

"Yes, Chase?" James peered around the doorway, taking a quick break from the lasagna he was baking.

"I'm hungry."

"I know. Dinner is in the oven."

"I'm going to starve to death before it gets done."

"You're not going to ----"

"FEED ME NOW."

James rolled his eyes and disappeared back into the kitchen. Chase's shoulders slumped and his brow drew down into a glower until James reemerged minutes later with a bag of tortilla chips and a cup of guacamole. "Here, that should tide you over."

As soon as he placed his offering on the coffee table Chase leaned over and began shoveling chips into his mouth. "MMmfffanks, Jaime, you're the best." He sighed.

A small smile tugged at the corner of James' lips.

"Y'jus'dunno how hungry I get." His words were mumbled because of the chips, making him sound unfortunately like Vincent Verax or Horus Richmond. James wisely chose not to mention that. "An'when I'm hungry th'baby moves a lot. Kicks."

"I'm sorry, Chase." James placed one hand on his partner's shoulder. "I need to go check on the lasagna."

---

For the last two months James had tried to convince Chase that he ought to stay home. It wasn't that the work was particularly hard physically : he always kept a mug of water beside him, and he was confined to his chair. But emotionally he was....unbalanced.

Not that James was about to say that.

Not if he wanted to live.

The students had become afraid to step a toe out of line; even the Idiot Brigade stepped softly around Chase these days. Even Verax had become wise enough to stay away after the trainer had made it apparent he had no qualms about using his powers in creative and probably not entirely school-sanctioned ways.

There was nothing quite so bafflingly intimidating like a man bursting into tears because his class wasn't behaving and then controlling their bodies in jerky, violent fashion.
James was convinced that Chase really ought not to be working.
And as he burst into tears for the tenth time that day, because he'd said hello to John Thornton in the halls and the other trainer hadn't noticed, he was beginning to think that maybe James was right and he should have stayed home.

He leaned against one wall, wrapping an arm around his stomach. He hated being pregnant. He hated the mood swings and the back aches and the fact that he sweated all the time. He hated that he couldn't see his feet anymore, that he felt undesirable. He hated that he couldn't sleep at night and that he had to pee every five minutes. Sean had taken to being pregnant with the same unruffled calm he always had; Chase couldn't bring himself to be even a quarter as serene as the therapist.

"Stupid stomach." He whined. Standing made his back hurt, so he wobbled his way to the nearest classroom, intent on finding a chair. He would just sit down for a minute.....
And that was when he felt it, an entire ocean of water dumping down his pants.

"Shit." He whispered, staring down at the floor in annoyed disbelief. "This isn't supposed to happen until next.....ow!"

He'd never had to endure menstrual cramps, otherwise he would have been familiar with the sharp pain that lanced through him. "Dammit." He fumbled for his phone, speed dialing Jaime's number. The other man picked up immediately, but all Chase could manage was an incoherent "Jaime....ow....I need....ow"

"I'll be right there."

---

The next day Chase Campbell was discharged from the hospital with a healthy baby boy and a beaming husband. The past nine months were forgotten in the presence of the bundle slumbering in Chase's arms.

James caressed the younger man's fingers, his gaze intent on the baby. Their baby.

"Welcome home."

[Dryope *]

The original

---

No Regrets, Just Love
This is all Sean's fault

---

"You're pregnant."

The news was delivered with a faint air of disbelief tinged with disdain, as if Dr. Marst was offended by the news he was delivering. If he'd had less confidence in his abilities, both medical and meta, he would have assumed he'd been incorrect, but as it was....

"Are you sure?" Nervousness, shock, confusion. The student sitting in the office exhibited all of those emotions, twisting long-fingered hands together in distress.

"Of course I'm sure," Dr. Marst snapped, "Do you think I would joke to you about this? Ughh," He pinched the bridge of his nose. "If you decide to carry to term you're going to have to schedule regular appointments. If not, I....actually have no idea what you'll be able to do." He confessed honestly. This wasn't a typical case.

"But that's not even possible..." The comment was diffident, fear of going against an authority figure warring with the unlikelihood of the situation.

"Look at the sonogram." Another terse statement, followed by a wave of one hand in the direction of the sonogram, which showed the beginnings of a tiny fetus. "I don't know how it happened, Mr. Brackett, but you've got a bun in the oven."

Evan slumped out of the room, dejection written across his features, and Dr. Marst pinched his nose again. Medical school hadn't prepared him for this...

---

"You're what?"

"Pregnant."

"....that's...what?"

Josh followed Sean into the den, face creased with worry. He was familiar with Sean's teasing face, knew when his partner was joking, and this didn't fit the profile. He looked happy, but his tone was serious.

"I'm not sick; I merely had morning sickness." The telepath replied, settling onto the couch. They'd both been so worried when he'd thrown up every morning for a week, though this was the furthest scenario from any they had predicted.

"You're serious." The lawyer dropped down beside his partner, placing one hand gingerly on his stomach (admittedly he'd privately thought Sean was gaining a bit of weight) as if he could perhaps feel the child inside. It was an odd thought, that he'd gotten someone pregnant. That was something he'd never expected, though he felt oddly virile having done so. "....but we used protection...." He protested, focusing on the least important reason this was impossible.

"Remember that one time, when we got the Chinese take-out..." Sean answered.

Josh's eyes widened. "But that was three months ago."

Sean smiled in response; he'd come to happy terms with reality, a reality that was providing him with the biological children he'd never thought he would have. "In six more months we're going to have a family."

---

"Why are you lying to me?" Ben placed his hands on his hip, narrowing his eyes at the shadow manipulator, face the picture of displeasure.

"Why the fuck would I lie to you?!" It was the middle of the day and yet Cobalt was so far shrouded in shadow that he was barely visible, shadows coiling protectively around him from the edges of the room. "I can't...Ben, the doctor....they showed....I think I'm gonna be sick."

Ben could hear the sounds of retching, though the shadows thankfully hid that as well. "If you're not lying then what are you doing? You're a smart man, you know that's not possible." He insisted stubbornly.

"Fuck, Ben, that's what the doctor told me. Do you want to see the goddamned sonograms? Because I left them on the fucking kitchen table."

Ben took a step backward, feeling the full force of his partner's glare even without being able to see it. "If this is a joke it isn't funny." He warned, but he carefully walked backwards into the kitchen, placing one hand behind him to feel for the papers on the kitchen table.

He looked at the picture, and then at the name printed across the bottom.

"Oh shit."

---

Griff had been sure that he was dying.

For the past month he'd been violently ill; the mere mention of food made him nauseous.

And when Riley began having similar complaints, though without any vomiting and with a lot more simple exhaustion, he'd been sure that he had passed along something deadly. He was waiting for Danny to catch it, too. He'd infected both his partners, consigned them to die with this....this....this....

"Pregnancy?" Riley's lips turned down into a frown, incomprehension clear upon his face. "I hate to doubt you, I know you have more medical knowledge but...." But he knew that his lover could be a bit melodramatic when it came to medical ailments, and he was perhaps slightly concerned that this was an extreme manifestation of Griff's hypochondria.

Griff held up the results of the pregnancy test he'd taken. "It says positive." He pointed out, "and while I'm ever so concerned about how this is possible, I feel this explains rather a lot. You should take one too.

---

"Ah, and, so both of us are expecting...." Riley explained, one large hand covering Griff's, the other covering Danny's. Across from them sat Janice, mouth open wide as she gaped at her brother and his two partners in shock.

"R...really." She managed, uncharacteristically silent as she took in this news. "So that makes me an aunt." She gave the three a crooked grin before placing one hand to her temple. "I...I'm sorry. I think this news was a bit too much for my system. I need to...I need to go home."

---

She sat in her car outside her apartment, cell phone pressed to one ear. "Dammit, Kateri, I forgot." She whined, twirling a strand of brown hair around one finger. "Omigod. I can't believe...is there a way to reverse it? Can you check?"

There was a rustling of pages on the other line, followed by a small sigh, "Sort of. Not really. It won't help your brother." The tone wasn't apologetic. "We can reverse it so nobody else is affected, but those already expecting have to carry to term. Or terminate." Both options would involve being cut open; it wasn't as if male bodies were made to deliver babies.

"Shiiiiiiit." Janice inhaled sharply through her nose. "I forgot! I thought....agh." Sbe grimaced, slinking down into her seat to place her head upon her steering wheel in abject misery. "Kateri?" She asked after a moment.

"Yeah?"

"Never let me drunk cast a spell ever again."

[Benjamin Rhodes]

Pairing: Ben and Cobalt
Baby: Danielle Leanne Weaver

The rain started the night before. It was light, steady and comparatively warm for Pilot Ridge. All Ben could do was smile at how soundly Cobalt was sleeping, the rise and fall of his swollen belly still a strange sight but a welcome one each and every day. They've actually started crossing off the days until they would be able to greet Danielle to the world.

Ben had serious doubts about the name, truthfully. But he was smart not to tell Cobalt, especially after the hell the first two trimesters were. He did get used to it though. At least Cobalt let him choose the middle name. Something he was still deciding on as he stayed up late just because seeing Cobalt sleep like this, however creepy it made him look, put him at ease.

Sipping the cup of tea he'd made for himself, Ben slid one hand over Cobalt's stomach and whispered a soft 'hi' and went back to smiling at Cobalt's sleeping form. But shadows were starting to coil around the smaller man's frame at rapid speed and suddenly Cobalt woke up, gasping. It wasn't like the times when Cobalt woke up from his nightmares. He usually struggled and made noises before he stirred to consciousness. It just alerted Ben to something he knew just wasn't right.

"What's wrong?" Ben asked, his hand going up to Cobalt's shoulder. The man didn't seem to be able to articulate as one hand went over his bump. "Are you getting uh...contractions?" the psychologist asked, his worry starting to build up. Cobalt shook his head before trying to breathe properly through his nose. Ben frowned and set his mug on the side table, sliding his hand down to Cobalt's waist, massaging it to try and soothe whatever pain Cobalt was feeling.

"This is...different. It's...she's not even moving. It's just..." Ben didn't let him finish as he got out of bed and grabbed the overnight bag Sean had advised them to pack. "You don't have to change, right?" Ben answered his own question as he helped Cobalt out of bed. The fact that the lawyer didn't even put up a fight was incredibly worrying. But Ben didn't really have time to think too much about it as he brought Cobalt down to the car.

The drive over to the hospital was a quick and mostly silent one. Mostly meaning that for every red light they encountered, a slew of curses left Ben's mouth. And difficult though it was to believe, Cobalt was the rational one as he tried to calm Ben down with soothing strokes to his death grip on the wheel.

He was quick to dispose Cobalt on the wheelchair when they arrived and for a second, Ben saw the panic in Cobalt's eyes as he was wheeled away by his gynaecologist who was, as both Cobalt and Ben were, still mystified that this was even happening. She assured Ben that everything would be fine and chances are this was just a hiccup, not even the real delivery time. Dani was way too early; three weeks too early, but everything will be manageable, Dr. Simran smiled encouragingly.

Ben didn't think to call anyone as he sat in the waiting room, wringing the straps to the overnight bag he had brought with him for Cobalt. There was nothing but Cobalt and Dani occupying his mind as he prayed to any God who was listening to keep both of them safe.

After what seemed to be an eternity [it was just half an hour], Dr. Simran's nurse called Ben in who almost forgot the overnight bag as he raced to the delivery station. Cobalt looked surprisingly calm. Ben was always suspicious of his husband when he was calm, call it intuition or just years of being with the same infuriating cranky bastard. "What's going on?" Ben asked just as Dr. Simran walked in, handing over a clipboard to her nurse before addressing him.

"The baby is definitely coming. We've run into some complications but we won't know the extent of it until the baby is out but she's alive." Her soothing voice lulled Ben into security as he went to Cobalt, who immediately grabbed the other man's hand. The tightness of his grip told Ben that Cobalt's calm facade was just that. A facade. "Everything will be fine. Dani will be fine." Ben claimed automatically, a part of him also reassuring himself that everything will be fine.

The look on Cobalt's face pained Ben extensively but the psychologist knew not to show any of his panic to his husband. "I trust you." Cobalt gave a tiny smile before bringing Ben's knuckles to his lips. "It's time." Dr. Simran nodded to Cobalt whose grip slowly loosened from Ben's and within minutes, the man went under anaesthesia and Ben had to leave.

About two hours later, Ben was ushered into a room and Cobalt was lying on the bed, the bump half gone and the baby nowhere in sight. Ben hadn't seen Cobalt cry since they first started dating. It was a painful experience then and it was ten times worst now given the context. Ben approached the bed and sat on the chair beside the bed, brushing Cobalt's hair off his forehead. "Coby..."

Cobalt nodded but didn't say anything else and Ben didn't ask. The nod signified hope and Ben didn't have to worry about his baby's life. But things were still not okay. Not until the baby was in their arms. "Mr. Weaver," both Cobalt and Ben look up and Dr. Simran patted Ben's shoulder and gestured outside. Ben pressed a kiss on Cobalt's forehead before following the doctor out.

Dr. Simran explained that Dani was breathing through a tube. After she was cut out, her heart stopped beating so they had to manually restart it. Ben's own heart sank to his knees and he pressed a palm flat against the wall to steady himself. He asked the doctor if it could get any worst and Dr. Simran reassured him that her condition was stabilised and her heart was pumping regularly with the help of machines. It was no less concerning but at least their baby was still alive.

She went on to say that once Dani was stable, she would be up for visitors but for now, it was better for Ben to stay with Cobalt. And that was what he did. His heart was a little heavy and he couldn't help but tear up at he soft sobs coming from Cobalt when the shadow manipulator thought Ben was asleep. How could he sleep?

Cobalt grew tired and doubled with the medication he had been taking, Ben found him on his side, curled up in a ball. It was then that Dr. Simran came in with a smile on her face. "Mr. Weaver, would you like to meet your baby?" Relief washed over Ben like he'd never felt as he woke Cobalt up and both of them went to the room where Dani was in an incubator. She was so tiny.

Ben's arm wrapped around Cobalt just as the lawyer leaned against him, burying his face into Ben's shirt. "Oh God," Cobalt softly sobbed. "She's fine, Coby. She's fine." Dr. Simran urged them both to talk to Dani and they were allowed to touch her through the holes in the incubator. It wasn't what they wanted but it was good enough. Ben's eyes were red with tears as he looked at Cobalt softly speaking to Dani, telling her not to worry and that they were going to go home soon.

Dani stirred a few times, once leaning into Cobalt's touch, ballooning the hope in Ben. Everything was going to be fine. Absolutely fine.

---
"Did you call anyone?" Cobalt asked as they prepared to go home. Ben was packing up when he shook his head in response. "I don't think I brought my phone. I'm sorry. Did you want Elaine? Or Danny?" He asked, looking up to his husband who smiled and shook his head tiredly. "It's okay...we'll just call them when we get home. Elaine'll kill me for not calling earlier but at least Dani will be in her arms when she's threatening to do so." Ben laughed at Cobalt's reply.

A knock on the door alerted them to a newcomer. It was Dr. Simran's nurse wheeling in a clear bassinet with a snugly nestled pink bundle. Both Ben and Cobalt turned to each other with a relieved smile as the nurse pulled Dani out of the basinet and into Cobalt's arms, leaving them alone to marvel at the tiny bundle. "Hey baby." Cobalt softly greeted their baby. Ben sidled up against Cobalt on the bed, leaning his head on Cobalt's.

"You gave us quite a scare back there." Ben chided gently, which earned him a resounding smack against his chest by Cobalt. "Shut up, Ben." He laughed before cuddling the baby close. They stayed in that position for awhile.

Finally, Ben wiped the tears from his face and stood up, extending a hand to Cobalt. "Let's go home."

[Hart Kenney]

The boy's dorms had been in an absolute panic ever since Evan's pregnancy came to light. It wasn't as if this could be hidden, exactly, and school official's had found it necessary to move him into a separate dorm, away from his peers during times staff couldn't watch him.

Today, three more boys were moving in with Evan.

Three boys he couldn't stand.

At least Sammy was Levi's friend, though that didn't make him like the pyro one bit, but he was better than Robbie and Zac. He didn't know how the authorities thought this was a good idea after the fiasco that was the sex ed seminar.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door creaking open, and he half-stood, hoping it was Levi.

Instead it was a very uncomfortable looking Mr. Makarov and a stern looking Ms. Vasiliev accompanying a snarling, spitting Zac LaRousse.

"This isn't fair!" Zac was shouting, wrestling as he was frogmarched into the room by Mr. Makarov, Ms. Vasiliev following impassively behind. The only indication she was using her powers was a sheen of sweat on her forehead.

Evan immediately sat back down, hunching over in the hopes that maybe when he looked up again Zac wouldn't be there; he could hear the thrashing and protestations of the rich boy, but Zac was slightly hysterical, and it was hard to make out exactly what he was saying.

The phaser slouched down even further as the noise drew closer, squeezing his eyes shut and praying they would just go away. They couldn't think it was a good idea for him to room with Zac, even a pregnant Zac. Even a pregnant Zac who didn't have any idea who his baby's father was.

And then he felt a sensation as of falling, and his stomach dropped into his feet. Oh. No.

The floor moved past at rapid speed, and he fell with a surprisingly light thud onto something surprisingly soft and springy.

His first instinct was to clutch his stomach in panic, hoping that his twins weren't hurt. His second instinct was to realize that there was someone singing, and he looked up to see a pretty dark-haired girl with her eyes closed, obviously lost to the world.

"...Adrianna?" He croaked, only now realizing he'd fallen into a girl's dorm room.

She opened her eyes, taking in the fact that a boy, and not just any boy, but the one who was pregnant, was sprawled out across her bed. To her credit she didn't shriek, though her singing faltered and trailed off.

"Are....are you all right?" Her question was hesitant but her worried expression was genuine.

Evan's response was equally tentative, a slow nod followed by, "I think so. But I think...I think I should go see Dr. Marst just the same." He gingerly lowered his feet to the ground, wobbling as he tried to stand.

She was beside him before he could blink, draping one of his arms across her shoulder. "Here, lean on me." She offered.

He did so, giving her a grateful smile. "Thanks...sorry to have startled you."

"Not a problem." Adrianna replied, helping him to the door. "Let's just get you to the doctor..."

---

Robbie was having a fit. "I don't wanna move." He whined, clinging to Estelle's leg. "Especially not with....with..."

With Evan. He'd been instrumental in helping the older boy hook up with Levi, and somewhere in the back of his mind he was proud that Evan was now with child and took credit for this occurrence, but he did not want to think about what would happen if they had to share a room. Not when Evan hated him. Not as much as he hated Zac, of course (and poor Zac, having to room with Evan now, too) but he was still an Enemy, and all because of some stupid, innocuous prank.

At least Estelle was on speaking terms with him again, though this was more because she was concerned about his impending child than because she'd forgiven him, and she'd made this much clear.

"You have to." She responded firmly, unsuccessfully attempting to pry him off, "You can't stay in your dorm, it's too dangerous, the faculty agreed."

"The faculty also agreed I had to help Eli," Robbie grumbled, burying his face against his friend's jeans.

She rolled her eyes, disappointment that he still didn't get the problem with his prank coloring her voice, "Yeah. You deserved that." She leveled a glare at him, though it had zero effect since his face was still planted against her calf. "And I'm sorry, but I'm not the one who got you pregnant-"

"wasVincent."

The sound was muffled, and Estelle squinted down at the blonde in confusion. "What?"

"was Vincent. That...you know." Robbie mumbled, peering up at her just long enough that she managed to disentangle herself.

"Shit. Moe..." She stared down at her friend in horror. Moe had been through so much already, to find out that his fiancé had impregnated Robbie of all people might break the poor Japanese teen.

"Moe?" Robbie whined, grabbing for her legs again; she stepped back, out of his grasp. "What about me? I'm the one who's four months pregnant!"

Their conversation was interrupted by the arrival of Bill Collins and Yulia Sokolov.

"It is time for you to come with us, Mr. Wilkes." Yulia beckoned, and Robbie began to scream.

"Oh, for the love of..." Estelle rolled her eyes, shoving her pregnant friend gently toward the two trainers, "Come on, Robbie, I'll help you move in..."

---

Sammy was equally distraught by his pregnancy. "Four months." He whispered, face pale, "I've been pregnant four months?" Ember would never sleep with him again.

Spencer pushed a strand of blonde hair back behind one ear, massaging his shoulders soothingly. She was a tiny, itty bit sad that her crush was pregnant, but this did nothing to diminish her interest. "It's probably more difficult to tell as a guy," She reasoned softly, hoping to cheer him up. "It isn't as if you have a period to go by. And Dr. Neville is having a baby, and so is Mr. Kilbourne."

Sammy scowled at this, not finding that reassuring at all, but he leaned back into Spencer's hands. "Yeah, whatever." He muttered.

One of the problems with being pregnant was that the faculty had suddenly begun paying more careful attention to the illegal substances that somehow always ended in his hands. No marijuana or alcohol for five more months, and Doctors Marst and Prideaux were already expressing worry over his unborn baby, because he'd been almost four months along before anyone knew, and so it could already have problems.

He didn't want his baby to have problems.

And despite the fact that Horus had begun teasing him ever since he found out the news, and he knew the rest of the students would as well, he didn't even think about not keeping his baby. He just wished Ember would want to raise it with him. She would be a good mom.

As if sensing his thoughts Spencer smiled sadly, her hands moving down his back, "You'll be fine, Sammy. Don't worry. I'll help."

And so when Thomas and Honor arrived to escort Sammy to his new dorm she dutifully carried his belongings, trailing along behind them worriedly. She would be true to her word; she would help, even if he didn't notice.

---

"....ふたり" Moe whispered, his face paler than usual, wide eyes staring at the floor, rubbing the plastic wedding band his fiancé had given him only days ago.

Vincent scratched the back of his neck, looking uncomfortable. "Dun' mean anythin'." He muttered, tone apologetic, "We weren' even back t'gether. An' Zac..."

Moe's jaw clenched in fury at the thought of his former friend, someone who had comforted him when he'd thought Vincent no longer loved him.

Vincent nodded helplessly. "I'n he kinda...yours?"

Brown eyes widened further at this news as Moe's head jerked up in shock. "...Mine? That scumbag?"

"When you'n'he...y'know...y'kinda got 'im too." He patted his stomach to show what he meant.

Moe placed both well manicured hands on his own swollen belly, only two months along but already showing because he was simply so tiny to begin with, staring at Vincent with round, shocked eyes. He hadn't considered that a possibility at all. If that were the case, he really couldn't hold it against Vincent that he'd gotten both Robbie and Sammy pregnant, not when he'd slept with them before their reconciliation.

"Do you have..." Moe hesitated, searching Vincent's face for reassurance, "Do you have paternal responsibility?"

Vincent chewed at his lip ring, worry etching his normally carefree face. "Iunno." He admitted, sitting down beside his tiny fiance with a grunt. "Iun' think they gon' want m'help."

Moe gave a tiny nod to that, sure that this was true. Zac probably wouldn't want him involved with their baby, either, though he ached at the thought of not interacting with his child. Even carrying one didn't mitigate the loss of the other.

"I suppose...I suppose we should make up with them." He said in a small, determined voice. He didn't want their children to grow up thinking that one of their fathers had abandoned them. "If...if they don't want them...." He trailed off, glancing up at Vincent.

The other boy seemed to know what he was thinking, and grasped one small hand in his own. "'f they 'un wan 'em we'll take care of 'em. We're a fam'ly."

Moe smiled then, his anxieties temporarily abated. It would be a struggle, reconciling with Robbie and Zac (Sammy would be less of an issue) but it would be worth it for their children. He knotted his fingers in Vincent's, then, snuggling against the other boy's shoulder. "Yes. We're a family."

{fin}

[Cobalt Weaver]

Adventure Time

It was amazing, really, how Pilot Ridge trained its denizens to adapt to almost anything. A few years ago, Pilot Ridge had seen its first (and hopefully last) slew of male pregnancies, which cast the whole little town in a bit of an uproar. And they’d never really figured out how such a thing had happened, but it had never happened in the ten years since. The children, affectionately called the Miracle Babies in town grew up healthy and happy and (unsurprisingly) the best of friends. And as four best friends are wont to do, they liked to have “adventures”.

“What d’you wanna do today?” The four were sprawled out on the grass by the pond, soaking up the summer sun and warm breeze. Three little heads shifted lazily to glance at the one who spoke.

Danielle Weaver-Rhodes had short, stringy, sandy blonde hair like her daddy, Cobalt (the one who had given birth to her. They were still working on what to call that), and his thin frame and face. She got her other daddy’s—Ben’s—brown-violet eyes and wide, unabashed smile. It was a rare moment when she was sitting still, and the summer sun couldn’t keep her sitting for long. Naturally, she turned to her best friend—and de facto leader of the group—Eleanor Neville for direction.

The dark-haired girl considered this for a moment, her long hair swept up in a high ponytail. Eleanor was well-respected in her group for having the best plans and daddies with the interesting books. She was the calm to Dani’s energy, and they were the best of friends. “I don’t know,” She said finally, turning blue eyes to Dani, “We could go feed the ducks.”

Dani pouted slightly, “Don’t wanna feed the ducks. It’s boring.” She petulantly tossed a piece of grass at Carwyn Jones, the little boy sprawled out next to her. He batted her hand absently, his brown eyes closed, “What’s wrong with ducks? They’re cool.”

“We always feed the ducks.” Dani retorted, reaching over and ruffling Car’s curly brown hair roughly. Car opened one eye irritably and rolled away from her, closer to his sister, Michelle Adams.

“S’a bummer Toby and Bernie are away,” Car mumbled, “They have good ideas too.” Everyone nodded in agreement. Toby and Bernadette were twins like Michelle and Car. Only…a little different because they came from the same person. The children were still working on that.

“Or Drake,” Dani mentioned, thinking about Drake LaRousse, “Although Daddy says that Zac’s a hooligan.” Everyone looked mystified by that; Zac seemed cool to them. And much younger than their parents.

“What do you wanna do then?” Michelle asked meekly, the spitting image of her daddy, Riley, except for the thin glasses perched on her nose. She was the only one of the troupe to have them and she felt rather self conscious about it until Eleanor assured her they made her look dignified and Dani assured her that if anybody made fun of her, Dani would take care of it. She just didn’t understand why her daddies got so upset about it. Particularly Cobalt. She supposed her daddy had never gotten into any fights when he was younger. He just wouldn’t understand.

Dani wiggled in her seat, suddenly weighted with the task of having to decide for the group. Suddenly, she brightened, “Oh! So, did you guys know that there’s an old building over in the woods, right?”

Carwyn straightened up, the more adventurous after Dani. His brown eyes were wide, “For real? How’d you know?”

She shrugged, “I heard about it somewhere.” Dani was always hearing about things, but never remembered where she heard it. It could be that she never bothered to pay attention to who was talking to her. But she always remembered the facts, and as far as she was concerned, that was good enough. And it was good enough for the rest of the group as well, for Car nodded and leaned forward in rapt attention.

“Anyways,” Dani said importantly, “I heard that it got exploded before we were born. An’ now it’s full of ghosts and stuff.”

Car was looking more and more excited about this, “Wow! It got exploded? How?”

“I don’t know,” Dani lowered her voice mysteriously, clearly enjoying her audience, “That’s the mysterious part. Nobody knows how it got exploded. Except that there was prob’ly people inside and they all were exploded too. So now there’re ghosts and stuff there.”

Car was positively enthralled by this tale, “We should go find it! Maybe we’ll see some ghosts!”

Dani and Car were up on their feet instantly. Eleanor and Michelle were less enthusiastic. Michelle tucked her knees under her chin and nervously adjusted her silver-framed glasses, “But—but. Ghosts are scary!”

Car sighed long-sufferingly, “Ghosts can’t hurt you, Mishie. They’re like…see-through. And you can walk right through ‘em!”

“That’s right.” Dani piped up knowledgably, “They’re…they’re…incorpal or something. Means you can’t touch ‘em.” She glanced at Eleanor, the stubborn set in her thin face relaxing as she looked at her best friend, “What do you think?”

Eleanor paused, glancing over at Michelle, who still looked worried. “I think we should think of something else. Something everyone wants to do.”

Dani opened her mouth to argue, but Eleanor was the only person she wouldn’t fight tooth and nail with, so she let it go. Michelle colored red, “No, I wanna do it. I just…was wonderin’, that’s all.”

Eleanor frowned slightly, “Are you sure?”

Dani hesitated. She really, really wanted to go and have an adventure. But if there was one thing her daddy had taught her, it was to watch out for your friends. And Michelle was the friend who always needed watching out the most, the way Cobalt watched out for Uncle Riley. Finally she let out a little sigh, “Yeah, Michelle. You don’t haveta do anything if you don’ wanna. We can do other stuff.”

Michelle set her jaw and she suddenly looked more like Uncle Danny. “No, I wanna go. Let’s do it.”

Car didn’t need any more persuasion, leaping to his feet and beaming with excitement, “Awesome! Let’s go!”

“Wait,” Eleanor turned a questioning gaze to Dani, “…Doesn’t Uncle Cobalt have a rule about you going into the woods without an adult?”

Dani flushed guiltily, “Wellllll…kinda. He just said I can’t go by myself. An’ I won’t be by myself! I’ll have you guys.”

Eleanor affixed her with a look, but Car distracted them both by tugging on Dani’s sleeve. “C’mon,” He whined, “Let’s go!” Dani grinned and batted his hand away, but followed behind him, Eleanor and Michelle bringing up the rear.

The woods were cool and shaded and a relief from the sun. Dani hopped over rocks and balanced on logs, flushed with excitement and the thrill of rule-breaking. Car was all smiles, as usual, and Eleanor looked intrigued. Michelle, however, still looked worried, and Dani felt a little guilty. So she hopped down from the rocks she was climbing all over and looped an arm around her friend.

“Don’t be scared, Mishie,” Dani assured her authoritatively, “Nobody’s gonna getcha. We won’t let ‘em. It’ll prob’ly not even be that scary. Just some dumb building.”

Michelle adjusted her glasses and gave Dani a smile, “You think?”

“You guys!” Car called out from ahead, “You guys, I can see it!! It looks so cool!”

Dani gave Michelle an excited glance, which Michelle returned (albeit a little nervously). Eleanor bounced a little as she ran up to join Car, Dani and Michelle.

“…Wow.”

Danielle had never seen an exploded house before. It was…awesome. The house must have been ginormous back in the day; what was left of its frame was mostly grown over with moss and ivy and shrubbery, giving it an ancient feel, even though it wasn’t that old. To their left, although they didn’t notice it in their excitement, was a sign that read “NO TRESPASSING”.

Car turned, his round face flushed with excitement, “Let’s go!” With thrilled grins, the others followed him, Dani and Car taking the lead. They stumbled down the overgrown path, giggling and shushing each other in turn.

“You know what this makes me think of?” Eleanor said, grinning, “Y’know how Uncle James let us watch some of Lord of the Rings? Like that.”

Dani giggled, “It does! We’re like Hobbits!”

“I hope the ghosts aren’t like those guys in the cloaks that scream a lot.” Michelle said quietly. Everyone looked a little concerned about this possibility.

“Uncle James doesn’t know we watched that part.” Dani said absently, not picking up on the concern of the group, “He thought it was too scary. Good thing Ginny’s cool.” Dani thought Ginny was almost as cool as Morgan, who was sort of her brother even though he was an adult. That got a little confusing too.

But she didn’t have a lot of time to dwell on Lord of the Rings or pseudo-stepbrothers. Because they were now standing at the foot of a huge, partially destroyed building, the doorarch still present, yawning before them. Sunlight streamed through the trees, filtered green and giving everything a soft glow. It looked far less like a haunted house, and more like a secret castle. Michelle stared up with huge brown eyes, trepidation gone from her features. “What do we do now?” She asked quietly.

“Let’s go inside!” Car piped up, the light of adventure in his eyes. Dani nodded enthusiastically and strode purposefully inside, pausing to look back at Eleanor.

“You guys coming?” She asked, glancing at Michelle before turning her eyes back at Eleanor. Both girls hesitated a moment before following Car and Dani into the gaping maw of a doorway.

The air was thick and dusty and untouched and their footfalls were muted by a decade of dust and moss and ash turned into dirt. The four children huddled together as they walked, looking about at the trees and bushes intertwining with piping and brick and mortar.

“What do you think happened here?” Eleanor asked quietly, her blue eyes curious.

“I don’t know,” Car murmured, scooting closer to his Dani, finally put off by the muted sorrow in this place. Eleanor knelt down and scooped up a broken old picture frame, whatever contents that may have been inside it were lost, faded through time and nature and violence.

“What’s this?” Everyone turned to see Dani fish out a hollow, metal tube about the length of her thumb and a bit thicker from the foliage. It glistened in the dim light, even though it was dirty. The rest of them huddled around her find, looking at it curiously. Finally, Carwyn’s eyes grew wide.

“I know what that is!” He gasped dramatically, “I saw it on T.V. once! That’s a bullet!”

It wasn’t really a bullet, but it was a casing, which is what he meant. Either way, it had the same effect on the group. Everyone went deathly quiet, and they all looked at it, mouths slightly open. Suddenly, this was more than just a fun game, or a silly adventure. This was real, people got hurt here—they understood this without any proof besides one out of context casing, but it was real enough for them—and they were trespassing on somewhere terrible.

“Where’s Michelle?”

Eleanor was looking around, her little face frantic, “Where’d Michelle go?” Dani and Car looked up to see that Michelle was nowhere in sight. Dani blanched, Car jumped in horror, spinning around in search for his sister.

“Michelle?” Car called, the name sticking to his throat, reluctant to break the stillness of the space.

“Michelle!!” Dani yelled, clearly not limited to the same qualms. All three children dashed off in the same direction, unwilling to be parted from each other lest the house swallow them up too. They sped through the broken remains. Car slipped and skinned his knee on a patch of gravel. Dani fell to the ground more than once, trying to climb over large rocks, skinning her hands and forearms. Eleanor slid on fallen leaves. Suddenly, they turned around a corner of large rocks and ran right into Michelle, who was looking ashen and scared.

“I-I didn’t mean to go that far,” She stammered, “I just wanted to go see something and-and I got all turned around and—”

“It’s okay,” Car said, still shaken, “Let’s go home.”

-

Dani didn’t pay much thought to how long she’d been gone until the four friends parted for the night and Dani was suddenly aware that the streetlights had probably been on for quite some time. She looked down at her torn jeans and cut up forearms and winced. There was no way her parents were going to ignore this.

When she approached her house, she saw her daddy standing in the doorway, his features uncharacteristically worried. This gave Dani pause; her daddy was never worried. He could sometimes be cranky—though never at her—and usually sarcastic or smug. But never worried. She was in so much trouble. With growing trepidation, Dani walked toward the front driveway, and Cobalt spotted her once she reached the front sidewalk.

“Dani,” Cobalt breathed, and rushed over to meet her, scooping her up in an embrace that swept her off her feet. “Ben!” He called, slightly breathless, “She’s home.”

Over Cobalt’s shoulder, Dani could see Ben rush out of the house, and with an audible sigh of relief, he walked over to them and hugged them both. Danielle was suddenly sure that she had been gone far longer than she thought. Far, far past curfew.

Finally, Cobalt pulled her back, his features back to being stern, “Danielle Leanne, where have you been?”

-

“Hi Toby.”

“Hi Dani. Me and Bernie were wondering if you wanted to come over to play today.”

“I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“I’m grounded. Me an’ Car an’ Mishie an’ Eleanor went into the woods and I wasn’t s’pposed to.”

“Ohh… you guys do all the fun stuff when we’re gone.”

“We don’t do it on purpose!”

“Well, why’d you get grounded, but not Eleanor?”

“She says it’s ‘cause her dad doesn’t give punishments. They just talk.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah. Daddy says it’s cause Uncle Sean is a hippie. I asked Dad why Daddy and him can’t be hippies too, and he just laughed. It stinks.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Yeah. Talk to you later, Toby.”

“Hey, next time, invite us on your adventures.”

“You were away! We didn’t invite Drake LaRousse either.”

“That’s just ‘cause your dad thinks his dad is a hooligan. You told me.”

“Yeah. Well. I gotta go. Bye Toby.”

“Kay. Bye Dani.”

END

[Dr. James Campbell]

Really, James was happy about the checkup. Really. Chase was healthy and so was the baby, and he should be thankful. Instead, he was fearing the discussion that would come later. As they entered the final month, the doctors said they'd made a mistake. The baby wasn't the little girl they had been expecting.

Which means they couldn't very well name him June Meghan Campbell, now could they?

When they got home, Chase headed straight to the recliner while James went to go ladle out some stew from the crock pot that had been cooking all day. "Kids, dinner's ready!" James called, and Ginny and Niko came out of Niko's room, closing the door to hide the fact that the floor was covered in Lego bricks.

"Gin, we're eating in the living room tonight." He handed her two bowls of stew with a shrug. "I know, I never let you do that before, but he's really uncomfortable in any other chairs, and we need to have a family discussion."

Nikki's eyes went wide, "Is Chase all right?" After all, they'd been gone all afternoon at the hospital.

James put down the spoon to lean over and wrap his son in a hug. "Yes, he's fine. It's just that we need to pick a new name. You're getting a brother in about a month."

"Really?"

"Yes. So we can't name him June."

"Yeah, we really can't."

***************************

James waited until his husband was almost done devouring his dinner--he didn't like comparing them, but Lucy had never been this cranky when she was pregnant. Or maybe it was just hard to compare someone who could control minds to his ex-wife--before broaching the subject. "So, we need a new name for your brother. Do you have any suggestions?"

"Samwise!" Ginny grinned. "We can call him Sam."

"No," Chase grumbled. They had argued for weeks before deciding on June for a girl. They probably wouldn't have time to finish this fight before the baby was born.

"Peter?" That was Niko's suggestion, but his older sister shook her head.

"No, that's my other step-dad's name."

Finally, James contributed what he'd been thinking about, "How about Arthur?"

"No," Chase shook his head and handed his husband his empty bowl. (He couldn't lean over to put it on the coffee table himself.) "It sounds old. Emrys."

"No, Chase. How about Oliver?"

"I like Emrys." The blond man grinned at his husband and reached for his hand. "Or Neil?"

"No, Chase."

"Oh, what about Raoul? Or Erik?" James gave his daughter a little glare, but didn't say anything, because Chase spoke.

"Eric? I like Eric."

"It's from..." James cut himself off though. He didn't have any problem with the name Eric, and the fact that his daughter had pulled it from a musical didn't have to be public knowledge.

"It's from what, Jamie?" With a rare genuine smile, the trainer added, "We should have decided on Jamie. Works for both."

"It's from Norse, I think. The name Eric. I like it too." He pulled Chase's hand up to his mouth and kissed it. "And no. You're not naming our son after me."

***************************

"Dr. Campbell?"

"Five and a half pounds. Yes, they're both doing fine. One second." James looked up from his phone to the nurse who had spoken to him.

"Mr. Campbell wants you to come back and help him finish filling in the birth certificate."

"Help him...finish?" That didn't sound quite right.

"He says you get to pick the middle name, because he did the hard part."

"Ma, I have to go."


***************************

Chase was smiling down at the little bundle of baby and blue blanket in his arms. Gently, he stroked his son's little downy head, and asked his husband. "What do you think?"

James sat at the edge of the bed, shaking his head. That didn't stop his smile, though. "Why do you do things with my name while I'm not looking?"

"Because it's the only way I'd get to do them. Look, his hair is just like yours, all fluffy." Chase had always been a little uncomfortable around babies, but that seemed to disappear once he had his son in his arms. "And brown. You won't be completely outnumbered by blondes."

"It's still three to two, love." James leaned over and gently touched the baby's hand. "His middle name is Grant then. The Campbells weren't the only ones who got him here."

"Okay, Jamie. Can you go get the kids now?"

"Yes."

A few minutes later, James returned with their two other kids right behind.

Chase waved them closer and said, "Ginny, Niko, meet your little brother, Rhys."

[Dryope *]

I was told this info needed to be consolidated in case other people wanted to write miracle baby adventures .If you have more info to add then just PM or IM me (or edit it yourself if you are another staff member, I don't care)

The Miracle Babies

[/center]

Name: Rhys Grant Campbell
Parents: Chase Campbell nee Kilbourne and James Campbell
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Brown
Power: Assumed Muscle Memory
Personality: Rhys got some of the best traits of both his fathers. He is intelligent, athletic, charismatic, and observant. The problem is, he knows it. He's cocky, bossy, and a show-off, and he can't figure out why he has a hard time making close friends. Strange, the way the name "miracle baby" can go to someone's head. He's fiercely loyal, though, so if someone is willing to put up with his antics, they have a friend for life.
Play By: Alexander Arnold (short hair)

---

Name: Carwyn Jones
Parents: Griffin Jones and Daniel Silverman (and Riley Adams)
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Brown

---

Name: Michelle Adams
Parents: Riley Adams and Daniel Silverman
Hair: Brown
Eyes: brown with glasses

---

Name: Eleanor Robin Neville
Parents: Sean Neville and Joshua Bernstein
Hair: Dark brown
Eyes: Blue
Personality: Stubborn and opinionated and curious

---

Name: Tobias Pele Brackett
Parents: Evan Brackett and Levi Xu
Hair: Black
Eyes: Dark Brown
Nickname: Toby
Power: Adhesive skin/Wallcrawling
Personality: The more troublesome of the two, Toby is the one who gets into everything. He's impulsive, and once his power manifests, thinks it's hilarious to climb on the ceiling, out of reach of his dads.

Name: Bernadette Carey Brackett
Parents: Evan Brackett and Levi Xu
Hair: Black
Eyes: Dark Brown
Nickname: Bern
Power: Pyrokinesis
Personality: Of course, Bern is also related to Levi, and gets into her fair share of trouble as well. Or, to be honest, she's the planner that gets her brother in trouble, and she manages to make people believe it was his fault. She's the one with the imagination, and she can convince anyone, particularly Toby, to go along with her schemes.

Both of the twins physically resemble Levi more than Evan, except for Toby being taller. Evan's parents helped them raise the twins, and they were given lessons in Chinese, Hebrew, and horseback riding from an early age. They had an easy time with the two daddies thing, as they always called Evan Dad or Daddy and Levi is Bà or Abi. They don't exactly speak their own language, but when they're talking to each other and want to keep something from their friends, they will switch to a mess of English, Hebrew, and Chinese even Levi can't really understand. Their powers manifest pretty young, at eleven, and yes, they did brag about it to their miracle baby friends.

---

Name:Danielle Leanne Weaver
Parents: Cobalt Weaver and Ben Rhodes
Hair: Blonde
Eyes: Blue-grey

Danielle Leanne Weaver has dirty blonde hair and blue-grey eyes that change slightly depending on what she’s wearing. She has a thinnish, sharp face and a tiny, lean frame like Cobalt, but she has Ben’s wide smile and sweet disposition. She usually wears jeans (probably embroidered with something like butterflies or flowers because her dads are weird) and any old T-shirt. She doesn’t have many cutesy, nice clothes because she ruins them instantly with her rough play and her “searching for adventures”. She is quick to anger, but even quicker to forgive and she likes to be the center of attention. She is loud, and a little rude, and her favorite word (and Cobalt’s least favorite word) to say is “why?” She likes knowing things, and won’t see the harm in asking people what may be deemed as personal questions. Danielle is nothing if not loyal, and is fiercely protective of her family, which includes her fathers, her Mama Elaine, her kind-of stepbrother Morgan, and all her “uncles” and their children. She sees things in a straightforward manner, and is stubborn to a fault. But she is also very loving and empathetic, and hurts when other people hurt.

PB: blonde Joey King.

---

Name: Valerie Wilkes
Parents: Robbie Wilkes and Vincent Verax
Hair: Dirty Blond
Eyes: Blue
Personality: Talkative, troublesome, hyper

---

Name: Sakura Verax
Parents: Misato Verax nee Hazukashi and Vincent Verax

---

Name: Alexandre Drake LaRousse
Parents: Zac LaRousse and Misato Hazukashi
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Personality:
It’s often said that Drake has Moe’s looks and almost all of Zac’s personality, mostly because the moment he was born, the LaRousse family (Zac’s father especially) took it upon themselves to raise the boy, considering how special the circumstances of his conception, pregnancy and birth was. He’s rather loud, self-assured and just a tad bit spoiled (he’s mastered the art of scowling and throwing a temper tantrum whenever he doesn’t get what he wantsneeds). He’s not opposed to exploring and all that, but get dirt on him and he’d flip.

PB: Mason Moon

---

Name: Gabrielle Flora Richmond
Parents: Horus Richmond and Kenneth Lee
Hair: Platinum Blonde
Eyes: Green
Power: Dreamwalking
Personality: Gabrielle absolutely adores her "mother" believing him to be the best thing ever. While she loves both parents, she has a desire to be a clothing designer just like Horus and Uncle Anubis. She's bossy, and very driven, with some of Kenny's stubborn streak.

Name: Khai Ankh Richmond
Parents: Horus Richmond and Kenneth Lee
Hair: Platinum Blonde
Eyes: Green
Power: Super Hearing
Personality: Khai is a Daddy's boy, and likes to be loud and obnoxious. He's often constantly trailing around after Gabrielle, and despite the fact she's just as strong as he is, he protects her. He does have Horus' ability to injure himself without intention, but he's also quite stroppy, and dislikes being told no.

---

Name: Anthony Rixon
Parents: Samuel Rixon and Vincent Verax
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Hazel
Power: Tiger Shapeshifting
Personality: Brat. Anthony is generally a lot like his father. He's stubborn, he's quick tempered, and not the brightest when it comes to academics. Once his power hits, even though his Dad's favorite thing to do it tote him around like a giant house cat, he finds the teeth and claws quite handy. If nothing else, it buys him some time to get out of bathtime. He does like most of the other Miracle Babies, save for Mr Show Off. (Mostly because if someone's making a competition of something, he is IN, and he hates to lose.) He rarely listens to his father, but he'll listen to Spencer. And cuddle with her. And purr in his Tiger form. Can we say Mama's Boy?

[Levi Xu]

Not everyone was allowed into the dorm suite now nicknamed the "paternity ward." A lot of the other dorm rooms kept their front doors open and people would poke their heads in and chat. Not this one.

Of course, that meant little to Levi, as he was one of the few that none of the occupants minded visiting. But he was surprised when he saw a girl he vaguely recognized knocking on the door. She had a ton of curly brown hair, and a small ferret perched on her shoulder. "Hey, who're you?"

"I'm Germaine Annika Sharpe!" The girl turned and looked at him, and the ferret wound its way through her hair so it was draped over the back of her neck. "Who're you?"

"I'm Levi Xu."

"You're Levi? Sammy talks about you all the time!"

"You know Sam?" Levi grinned and pulled out the key he had borrowed from Evan, letting them both into the dorm.

The Gerri grinned back. "Yup. We're gonna get married!"

"Really?" Out of all of the ridiculous things Levi believed every day, that one just stretched the limits of incredibility a bit too much. "Even though Vincent got him pregnant?"

Of course, this was Levi, so impossible things were easy to believe. "Unless...did you get him pregnant, Germaine?"

"That's not how it works, silly. And Gerri is good." She rolled her eyes at the boy and crossed her arms. "Didn't you go to Dr. N's sex ed seminar?"

"He's a lion, what does he know? I didn't think guys could get pregnant except from aliens in the Sims." Levi turned to head over to Evan's room. He had his boyfriend's assignments for the week, since Dr. Marst had prescribed bed-rest until the twins came.

"Dr. Campbell is an alien."

That, however, made him stop and turn around. No one ever believed him when he talked about the things his power told him, and here this girl was, already knowing it. "You...you know that too?"

"Yeah! Think he got your boyfriend pregnant?"

Levi's eyes went wide as the blood drained from his face. Evan would never cheat on him, so that would mean.... "I....I'm gonna go talk to him about it. Can you stay here? I don't want to make him upset." The girl nodded, so the boy headed down the small hallway and knocked gently on the door before heading inside.

As soon as the door shut behind him, Gerri was sprawled on the floor, ear to the crack between it and the door.

"Hey, Evan? How are you doing?" Levi kicked off his sneakers and climbed into bed with his boyfriend, spooning up behind him and wrapping his arm over the bump where (their?) babies were. "Can I ask you something?"

Evan shifted slightly, then relaxed into Levi's hug. As miserable as it was to be seventeen, gay, and pregnant with twins, he wasn't minding bed-rest so much. People didn't bother him a lot and Levi constantly brought books for him to read to keep him from being bored. And no matter how strangely attractive it was whenever Levi did something irresponsible, he was enjoying the fact that his boyfriend had voluntarily stopped doing stupid things. "Sure, Lev. What's up?"

"I don't know how to ask this, but..." His arm tightened a bit as he felt a tiny kick hit his palm, "Did Dr. Campbell molest you?"

...

"What?"

Levi hugged a little tighter and nuzzled his face into the back of Evan's shoulder blades. "It's okay to tell me. I'm not going to be mad at you or anything, and I know you wouldn't cheat on me."

"Levi, what are you talking about?"

"I thought that might be how you got pregnant. Since he's an alien. I still love you, even if he did. But if he did, you have to tell me and we can go report him before he does this to another student."

"I was not molested. I don't think I've never even met Dr. Campbell and he's not an alien!" See, this kind of excitement was exactly what Dr. Marst didn't want.

Of course, Levi!logic couldn't just accept that. "Gerri said he was too, and if you've never met him, how can you know?"

"Because babies don't come from aliens! It doesn't work like that." Evan groaned into the pillow. "You know that. Dr. Neville talked about it in The Talk."

"I left the auditorium thinking I couldn't get you pregnant either." Granted, up until the little sideshow, Levi hadn't been paying too much attention, not between footsie and Sidra's tits. "Unless....Evan, did you know I could get you pregnant? Why didn't you tell me? I would have worn a condom!"

"What? I didn't know! That's ridiculous!" On top of everything else, Evan just sounded hurt that Levi would suggest that.

"Evan, this whole thing is ridiculous." He nuzzled his boyfriend again and pressed a kiss into his back. "But I love you and am going to stay with you. No matter how ridiculous this gets. Even if your babies are aliens."

"I love you too." The older boy sighed slightly, but there was a little smirk in his voice when he added, "And that is a very you thing to say."

"I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing."

"It's a good thing."

"Good. And I'm glad you weren't probed." With another gentle squeeze, Levi asked, "Do you want to see your assignments now?"

"No. Let's just stay like this for a bit."

[Horus Richmond]

Try and Cover This One Up

Horus found the spread of pregnancies through the male side of Pilot Ridge absolutely hilarious. He'd even managed to forget about the scars on his hands and wrists, and literally howl with giggles when he found out half the male population of the school were pregnant with Verax's kid. He'd shared this news with Kenny over the phone, and the pair of them had chortled about it, though Kenny-who-was-Jesse found it more appropriate to throw a few swears into the conversation. He'd teased that Sett would have gotten Thomas pregnant, or maybe Nub was carrying a little Zaclet, and even cheekily mocked the school janitor with threats of his beau getting knocked up too. The attack from the mop was totally worth it - because for once drama wasn't happening to him.

In fact, he'd never felt better! He was eating loads more than normal and he felt all... healthy and stuff. Even Jesse had commented that the short pierced blonde looked a lot better than he had. But he had no morning sickness or anything else that would indicate he was to join the baby-club, so he'd pretty much just enjoyed the fact that he was going to be a cool uncle. Even better still, everyone's attention was so focused on the pregnant men that there'd been no notice of Jesse's frequent visits to the Richmond house. At all hours.

There wasn't a chance in hell he could be pregnant - Jesse and him had only really gotten intimate once and they'd not done it again recently - especially with his family being all over him like white on rice. Or at least, that's what he'd happily been telling himself as he sat eating an entire cheesecake to himself. This was nothing TOO new, since before the breakdown he enjoyed eating quite a lot. Okay so eating cheesecake with a little sprinkle of bacon was weird. And Jesse was STARING at him while he did it with a face that said "I really hope you aren't pregnant."

So, for the reassurance, Horus had bought a test and had sat it on the sink. He knew he'd have to take it some time soon but if he was pregnant then he'd have to say who with and that would kind of be painfully awkward. So he stared at the test a while more, while he heard Jesse demanding he just piss on the damn thing and get it over and done with.

A week passed and finally our dear little blonde mustered the courage to pee on the stick and sat, crosslegged on the bed waving it around as if that would help the result come faster.

"It's a pregnancy test not a fucking polaroid." Jesse growled from the side, leaning over and looking horrendously nervous. Horus simply made a face and went back to shaking it, free hand curled in Crimson's fur. When the bar turned to two, Horus practically yelped and threw the damn thing on the floor, scooting away from it as if it were the devil.

"What? WHAT?" Jesse hollered, seizing the stick and then jumping back as if it had bitten him. "Richmond you little shit." He said bitterly, setting it down on the table and rounding on the shorter boy. He was about to shout and yell, but... he found he couldn't. Shit, this kid was carrying a baby.

...

Actually, it was two babies.

Jesse had practically facepalmed when they'd gone to the doctor about it the day after, and Griff had rather worriedly said that the stumpy blonde teen was carrying twins. Horus' remark that Evan was carrying twins didn't help soothe the brunette, and he spent the drive home in silence, looking deep in thought.

"'m sorry." Horus eventually mumbled, looking over at Jesse with a sad expression. Oh god there was no way he could yell at him. Not when he looked so sad and he had this tiny tiny little bump on his stomach and he was glowing and... shit.

"Don't be." Jesse finally said, pulling up in front of the house. "C'mon, I'll take you upstairs." And Horus willingly complied, practically clinging to the taller boy for some sort of support. In all honesty he was feeling absolutely terrified. He couldn't be a good mum! Or a good dad! He was Horus and he was a narcoleptic and lazy and liked doing stupid things with Sammy and Vincent.

As he lay down on the bed, he pulled Jesse over and chewed on his pierced lip.

"'m scared."

"Yeah. Me too." Jesse admitted, running a hand over Horus' stomach. "But... we've got to be strong for the twins." And with that, he bent down and pressed a small kiss to the tiny bump on Horus' stomach.

[Chase Campbell]

Bad Chemistry

Rhys Grant Campbell was a precocious child. And why wouldn’t he be? He was the lucky recipient of so many of his parents’ good qualities. He was intelligent, athletic, and charismatic. He had a knack for learning, and though his power hadn’t yet shown itself, he knew it was only a matter of time before something spectacular changed him.

This was, of course, because he was also very, very cocky. Of all the ‘Miracle Babies’, he was one of the most confident. He was sure of himself in every aspect of life. He was good at sports, at the top of his classes with his grades, and he had lots of friends. … People that followed him in his antics. … People that found him interesting. Okay, so he didn’t really have a lot of friends, but more a following.

Oddly enough, very few of those people were the other Miracle Babies. He had always had a good habit of alienating himself from them. After all, whatever any of them could do, he could it better. Except for Bern and Toby. Despite all his bragging, he couldn’t deny the fact that they’d manifested before him. They were already at Hammel, and he was still stuck in crummy normal school.

Of course, normal school wasn’t all that bad. He’d learned something cool that day, and as he biked home, he honestly couldn’t wait to show someone. Nikki would probably be the first home, which was a point in his favour. Nikki would probably help him get the supplies, and actually appreciate the demonstration. Nikki was a cool big brother, even if he had to do a lot of studying. University didn’t seem like a lot of fun, but Nikki seemed to like it.

Rhys burst into the house, abandoning his bike on the front lawn. Kicking off his shoes instead of placing them on the little rack by the door, he bolted through the hall and skidded to a stop in front of Niko’s room. “Niko! Are you home? Open the door! I wanna show you something!” There was a soft thump, and then the door opened.

“What’s up, Rhys?” His brother wasted no time in grabbing his hand and tugging him out of the room.

“I wanna show you something!” He dragged Niko into the kitchen and hurriedly pulled out a new bottle of soda from the fridge. “We learned it in school!” Nikki rolled his eyes and pulled himself up onto the counter.

“Whatever you’re going to do, do it in the sink. Dad’ll kill you otherwise.” Rhys wasn’t listening.

“We need Mentos, stat!”

“Stat?”

“… Shut up, Nikki. Mentos. Now.”

“That’s not nice, Rhys.”

“Mentos please.”

“What, exactly, are you doing?”

“You’ll see!” Niko sighed, giving in (like always) to his little brother. Disappearing back into his room, he returned with half of a pack of the mints.

“Don’t make a mess,” he warned. Truth be told, he knew exactly what Rhys was up to. It was an old trick. But the kid was excited, so he’d let him have his fun.

“I won’t!” Rhys grinned as he slid the remaining mints out of the package. Putting the bottle in the sink, he pulled off the cap and looked over his shoulder. “Watching?”

“I’m watching,” Niko affirmed, crossing his arms and leaning against the counter. Rhys dropped the mints into the soda in rapid succession. His teacher had only used one, but if he used more, it would make it better, right?

In seconds, the bottle started fizzing, and the geyser shot up. The ceiling, the cabinets, the floor, everything got covered in a wet, sticky mess. Rhys’ eyes went wide, and Niko scrambled out of the kitchen. Even the pets moved, albeit slowly, from the experiment.

“Oh shiiiii-”

“Rhys!”

“I didn’t say it!” There was a beat of silence. “… Dad’s gonna kill me.”

“Yeah. You’re dead.” Rhys turned on his brother, his hands in his shirt.

“Help me!”

“Why should I? You did it,” Niko teased.

“Niko!”

“Rhys!”

“Boys!” Ginny sauntered in, looking every inch the smug big sister. Leaning on the counter, she rested her chin in her palm. “What happened?”

“Science,” Rhys started to explain. “It was an experiment!” She eyed the damage in the kitchen and arched an eyebrow.

“Science, huh? Looks like a mess to me.”

“That’s because it is a mess,” Niko chimed in.

“Ooh Dad’s gonna kiiiiill you~”

“Stop saying that!” Rhys scowled, his temper flaring. “I don’t need your help.”

“You were begging for it a minute ago,” Niko grinned, leaning back to look at Ginny. “How many weeks is he going to be grounded for?”

“At least two. Maybe three, and no T.V.”

“Shut up,” Rhys hissed, grabbing a cloth. Shooing Milo away from the massive puddle on the floor, he started mopping it up.

“The mop might work better,” Ginny pointed out.

“Quiet.”

“Hey, just trying to help.” The two older siblings watched in mutual amusement as Rhys did his best to soak up the mess. There was no helping the stain on the ceiling, but he did manage to get most of the rest by the time he heard the key in the door. He bolted up and tossed the cloth in the sink, wringing it out.

“Hey, Dad,” Ginny greeted with a smile. She got up and kissed his cheek, wrapping her arms around him.

“Gin!” James grinned and hugged his daughter. “What brings you here?”

“Just came to make sure the boys were okay. And to see you. I miss you.”

“I miss you too, Gin. The boys are fine.”

“Yeah,” she managed, biting back a laugh. “I saw that.”

While she talked to her father, Rhys was throwing furtive looks to Niko, silently begging him not to tell. Niko glanced at him, smirking.

“Dad…”

“Niko!”

“What is it, Nikki?” The blond grinned and leaned across the counter.

“Want to see a chemistry experiment? Rhys has a great one.” Rhys glared at his brother, balling his fists. He was so dead. James turned to look at his youngest child, smiling patiently.

“Sure,” he started, but his attention wandered up. His breath hitched. “… Boys? Why is there soda on the ceiling?” The question came out somewhat strangled.

“I can explain!”

“Told you, Dad.” Niko grinned as he sauntered back to his room. “It’s a great experiment.”

[Chase Campbell]

** I am sorry for flooding the bbies thread. Blame Tony. <3

Balancing Act

“Hey! Hey, watch this!”

Words spoken just a little too often by one Rhys Campbell. Almost all the students of Hammel knew him. He was the annoying little twit that spent more time goofing off than studying, and still managed to pull good grades.

He was also a flamboyant show off.

Rhys was currently crouching on a railing outside the building, looking every inch the confident teenager he was. He’d watched this particular stunt over and over again, and had practiced twice as many times as he’d seen it. (He knew what happened when he didn’t practice before showing off a new stunt, and he was not taking another blow to his ego.)

It had all started a few weeks ago, while channel surfing. Rhys had come across some gymnastics competition, and the only thing that had held his attention had been girls in those tight leotard things. Then, as he’d watched them work the balance beam, he’d realized that this could work to his advantage. He’d closely watched their movements, itching to repeat them.

It had taken a lot of practice – mostly on the railing of the porch at home – but he’d finally gotten the routine down. He was sure he could pull it off without incident. That was exactly why he was perched on the railing now. It wasn’t as thick at the railing at home, but that didn’t really matter. He could still pull this off.

Despite her desire to walk away, Dani couldn’t help but pause and watch Rhys and his latest moronic stunt. It never failed. Come to school, see him do something stupid. It was astounding he was as intelligent as he was. She would have assumed with intelligence came common sense, but apparently the two failed to go hand in hand. Staying off to the side, she just hoped he wouldn’t notice she was –

“DANI! HEY DANI!” Rhys waved and grinned, blowing a kiss her way. “This is for you, pretty girl!” Dani blushed furiously, wishing she could phase. Stupid boys. Stupid Rhys.

“Get down before you kill yourself,” she muttered, wondering what the hell he was going to pull this time. It appeared he was waiting for a bigger audience before he did whatever he was planning. That wish was granted as more students stopped to look up at the boy perched precariously on the rail.

“What’re you gonna do this time, Campbell?”

“Don’t fall, your fangirls might cry!”

“I’m not gonna fall!” Rhys called back to the group, standing up when he saw the twins arrive. “TOBY! Get up here!”

“Why?” Toby called back, smirking.

“’Cause I need someone to make a video of this! It’s gonna be awesome.” Toby rolled his eyes and gave his sister a nudge before launching himself at the wall. He climbed with a surprising grace, pausing once he got to Rhys’ level. Holding out his hand, he waited for the other boy’s phone. Rhys handed it over and Toby climbed higher for a better view. On the ground, Bern had her own phone out. If nothing else, it would make for entertainment later. And if he failed, it would be even better. They’d have their own copy of the video.

“Ready,” Toby called from the wall. The phone was recording, and Rhys was ready. He stood up properly and stretched his arms up like he’d seen the girls do. This was going to be great. The memory of the routine rushed forward, and he sprang onto his hands. As he twisted around, he grinned at Dani, upside down, and winked before jumping back onto his feet. Dani glared and looked away, clutching her bag to her chest. Moron.

As he reached the end of the railing, Rhys shifted back onto his hands and jumped back down to the ground, flipping in a somersault as he did so, and landed perfectly on his feet. So what if his muscles were going to punish him later? It had been perfect.

With a smug grin, he dashed over to Dani, throwing in a handspring in the middle just for good measure. She rolled her eyes and stepped away. “Congratulations on making yourself look like an ass.”

“Aww Dani. Jealous much?” She scowled.

“Not on your life.” She was normally well mannered, but Rhys struck a bad nerve with her.

“What would Daddy say if he heard his baby girl say stuff like that?”

“Shut it, Rhys.” She shouldered her bag. “Thanks to you, we’ll all be late to class.”

“It’s just training. No one cares if we’re late.” He glanced away as Toby deposited his cell phone in his hand and pocketed it. He was about to further prove his point when he heard his name being called.

“RHYS CAMPBELL. GET OVER HERE.” He flinched, trying to ignore the smug look on Dani’s face. His trainer had a hell of a voice on her when she wanted to.

“Go to class, Campbell,” Dani said sweetly as she walked away, leaving him to his fate. Ego slightly wounded, Rhys shuffled over to his trainer, who had her hands on her hips.

“Sorry, Ashley,” he mumbled. She didn’t say anything. She just pointed into the school. There was no point in asking what he’d been doing. She knew.

[Cobalt Weaver]

[For Mads, with love <3]

Dani Hates Rhys. The End.

“Hey. Hey. Dani. Daaanieeellleee~”

Dani grit her teeth, heaved an exaggerated sigh and turned to glare at the person next to her. Rhys Campbell. Douchebag extraordinaire. Dani and Rhys were part of the same crop of Miracle Babies, and she spent the majority of her fourteen years of life wishing Rhys would just shut up. Because they were only a few months apart in a small town, they were always in the same classes, the same after school activities, the same birthday parties. Dani was really starting to regret inviting him to her eleventh birthday party. He seemed to be under the impression that this meant that she liked him or something. Gross.

“What do you want?” She hissed, giving him her best impression of her Daddy’s glare. If nothing else, her Daddy could give the best glares, even though she’d never been subject of one.

Rhys put on a mock hurt expression, “Ouch, Dani. Why don’t you ever wanna talk to me? What have I ever done to you?”

“Existed, opened your stupid fat mouth, sat next to me in every class we have together…I could go on.” Dani hoped he would just get bored and leave her alone, “I’m trying to pay attention.”

“Why?” Rhys leaned back in his seat, a crooked, smug grin on his face, “It’s not like you don’t already know the material.”

Well, that was certainly true, but Dani blinked, taken aback that Rhys would pay her such a compliment. Suddenly very suspicious, Dani scowled, “What do you want?”

“What do you mean, what do I want?” Rhys looked up at her, the very picture of innocence.

“I mean, what do you want?” She demanded, trying to keep her voice hushed, “You never say nice things to me. Not unless you want something. If you blew something up, or will blow something up, I don’t wanna hear it.” It certainly wouldn’t be the first time.

“Chill out, Dani, jeeze.” Rhys rolled his eyes; Dani bristled, “If I blew something up, we all know it’d be your fault too.” Which was a fair point, but didn’t make Dani any less suspicious. “Besides,” The boy continued, “I wasn’t saying anything nice to you. I was sayin’ you were lame.”

“Campbell, I swear, I am going to—”

“…And since Mr. Campbell and Miss Weaver seem to already have some ideas, they can work together on this next project.”

Both teenagers turned to look at their teacher, who was staring them down sternly, as though inviting them to protest. Dani flushed brightly and slumped over in her seat. “Jerk.” She muttered, loud enough for Rhys to hear.

Rhys smirked, “You love it.”

“Yeah, like I’d love a hole in my head.”

“Why would you wanna hurt that pretty little head of yours?”

“…You’re stupid. It’s a good thing you love yourself so much, because nobody else ever will.”

Rhys just laughed.

[Chase Campbell]

It’s Not A Date

Sometimes, Rhys didn’t know how he got himself into situations.

On the other hand, sometimes he knew exactly how he landed himself in trouble. This was one of those instances.

Betting, dares, it was all part of a day in the life of the Miracle Babies squad. When Rhys deemed it a good enough use of his time, he’d tag along with the others. He actually got along with a few of them. He wouldn’t call them friends, exactly, but he did like being with them. Things got interesting, because the majority of them were competitive. A flurry of dares would ensure, and it would devolve into an all out war between them.

It was usually at that point that Rhys would storm off in a huff, nursing a wounded pride.

Today was promising to be no different. Tony was racing around the field in tiger form, occasionally knocking over the others with a loud meow, alternately licking and pawing at them. The girls were running away, Toby was watching from a perch in the trees, and Rhys was starting to get bored.

“Come on,” he grumbled. “Let’s do something better than watch the kitten be a moron.” At that, Tony paused in his pouncing and hissed. “Shut up, Tony.”

“You think of something, then!” Dani called from across the field, stroking Tony’s fur. “We were having fun.”

“You were. I’m bored.”

“Then go home.”

“Maybe I will.”

“I know!” Toby crawled down from the tree, a wicked grin on his face. “Let’s have a dare contest.”

“Again?”

“It’s better than feeding the ducks,” Carwyn pointed out.

“Give me one, then,” Rhys demanded. If he had a dare, he’d have something to do. Toby exchanged a glance with Bern before clearing his throat.

“We dare you to ask a girl on a date.” Rhys just stared. That was his dare? A date? … Okay. He could do that.

“What girl?” Before they could answer, Carwyn looked just as mischievous. This could be fun for all of them. They all knew that Rhys and Dani fought like cats and dogs.

“Dani,” he said simply, grinning. “You have to ask Dani out.”

“What?!” The shriek came from Danielle. “No!”

“You have to!”

“I do not!” Wasn’t it enough that Rhys made her school life a misery? Now they had to go and do… this? Ugh. She eyed him from across their loose circle. “Try anything funny and I’ll neuter you.”

“Sexy, Dani. You might wanna try acting like a lady sometime. Guys don’t really dig the caveman thing.”

“CAMPBELL!”

~

“What do you mean you have a date tonight?” This was news to James. He stirred the pot on the stove.

“Means I have a date,” Rhys mumbled, his chin in his hands.

“You don’t sound very happy about it.”

“That’s because it’s with Dani.” That made James pause. He was well aware that Danielle and Rhys didn’t get along.

“… Please don’t tell me this was the result of another dare.”

“Yep.” Rhys passed his father the cumin without having to be asked. “It’s okay, though. I’ll make sure she never wants to go again.” James sighed and placed his hands on the counter.

“Rhys…”

“No! I mean, I’m gonna be nice and stuff. She hates it when I do that.”

“This is not a good idea.”

“Blame Toby and Bern.”

“Just behave,” James asked, turning back to the soup. “If I hear different, you’re grounded.”

“That sucks.”

“Life sucks. Be good.”

~

Rhys tugged at his collar awkwardly. He’d decided to go all out. If the others were going to make him go out with Dani, he was going to make damned sure it was never going to happen again. How, exactly, was he going to manage that?

Simple.

He was going to treat her like a real lady, not the rough and tumble gorilla he’d known all his life. He was wearing a polo shirt, though it wasn’t tucked into his jeans, and he even had a flower for Dani. Chase had told him that girls liked flowers, so he’d pulled one out of the backyard before leaving. He had no idea what it was, but it was purple, and seemed nice enough.

Yeah, this was never, ever going to happen again.

When he spotted Dani, he grinned. This was going to go perfectly. She already looked annoyed, and if he was nice to her, she’d be even more put off. She was still wearing the jeans she’d been rolling around the field in, though she had switched out her shirt. Her dads had probably been responsible for that. “Hey, Danielle.” Rhys copped a deceptively sweet grin and held out the flower for you. “You look nice.”

The compliment was met with exactly what he’d come to expect. A suspicious glare before she snatched the flower. “Thanks,” she muttered, rolling her eyes. “Let’s just get this over with, jerk.”

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that. Come on.”

“Where are we going?”

“To get ice cream.”

“I’m not buying your fat ass ice cream, Rhys. Don’t even try.”

“Nope. I’m buying.”

“Is that seriously your idea of a date, Campbell? Ice cream? Then what?”

“I figured we could go for a walk, maybe go to a movie.”

“So you can feel me up in the dark? No thanks.”

“You’re hurting my feelings, Dani.”

“Yeah, right. The only thing you hurt is your stupid ego.”

“See? That hurts.”

“Oh, shut up.” Dani purposely stepped on his foot as she sped up. The faster this was over, the better for the both of them. It wasn’t going to be in the slightest big pleasant.

“Dani, wait. Come on. I promise, I’m not going to try anything.”

“I’m not listening. I just don’t want to lose the dare. That’s the only reason I’m here.”

“I’m the one that’s gonna lose.”

“Not really. If I back out, I lose. If you back out, you lose.” Rhys smirked. He knew that. And that was exactly why he was doing what he was. He was going to make Dani leave first.

Of course, she had exactly the same thoughts. And she was not going to lose.

~

“… Rhys?”

“What?”

“What are you doing?”

“Opening the door for you.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s a nice thing to do?”

“Well, stop it. It’s creepy.”

“It isn’t! It’s… chivalrous.”

“Don’t use big words, Campbell.”

“It’s not my fault I’m a genius, mon chéri.”

“Ew.”

~

Danielle. Was. Creeped. Out.

Rhys was never nice, unless he wanted something. And he had been nice all night. She had no idea what to think. She’d already been thrown off her game several times, and had become more focused on trying to stomach his nauseating display of… she didn’t even know what.

But it was gross.

As he walked her home, she was busy trying to find reasons for him not to. Nothing was coming to mind, though. She wouldn’t admit he had her flustered, because he would take that as a sign he’d won, and there would be no stopping the bragging that would accompany that.

They paused outside her house, Dani eager to disappear. This was Rhys overload and she’d had enough of the little creep. He seemed to have other ideas, though.

“Hey, Dani?”

“What?” He grinned.

“I just wanted to thank you for a lovely evening.” And before she could respond, or stop him, he leaned forward and stole a kiss. Dani stood motionless for a moment, her mouth agape in slight shock.

The triumphant look on his face cleared that right up in seconds. Now she was just fuming. “Rhys Grant Campbell!” He chuckled as he walked away.

“Bye, mon chéri.”

“UGH!” Dani stomped her foot, the disgusted squeal alerting her fathers that she was home. She stomped her foot on the sidewalk. “I HATE YOU!” Rhys kept laughing quietly to himself, even when she managed to nail him in the back of the head with a pink flip flop.

“Love you too, Danielle!”

“You are SUCH a jerk!”

~

“Hey, buddy. How’d it go?” Chase glanced up from the crime drama they were watching, James’ head in his lap. Rhys just grinned as he pulled off his shoes and shoved them on the rack by the door.

“Awesome.”

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Darling Lorraine

Month seven of pregnancy proved to be more difficult than the previous three, and Sean only counted three since he’d been unaware for the first three.

For the past couple of day’s he’d been sadder than usual. He was together at work, always careful around the students and the other faculty members, because he was Sean Neville and had to be a role model. But after work, he’d spent more time at the piano or more time lying in bed with Graceland or the live album of The Concert in Central Park playing on the stereo.

He always had supper ready for Josh when the latter returned home from work, although some days he was too tired to do anything complicated; those were the nights of takeout from the Chinese restaurant or the diner. Tonight he’d had the energy to make chicken cutlets, but he remained tired.

Tonight would be a night of napping on the sofa or going to bed at 10:00p.m.

He was doing his best with the pregnancy; considering the complaints of the other men, he thought he was doing rather well. He kept his emotions carefully in check with meditation and other coping exercises he’d learned at Hammel. He read appropriate medical literature but didn’t obsess over what could go wrong, although he was prepared for disabilities since he was fifty-four and the risk of certain disabilities increased with age. But he was tired and hungry and he missed coffee and wine.

It could be difficult because he was the furthest along in his pregnancy of everyone else (ironic considering his lectures about condom use as more than birth control), and thus he was often discovering first. He coped by shopping online for baby clothing and toys, and by going to Lamaze classes in Burlington to broaden his circle of friends. All of the women thought it was so interesting that he was a pregnant man, and they always asked questions about Josh, and they got together for cookies and knitting - since he could knit baby blankets and so could several of his new friends; he even taught a few of the younger ones. He was a shoulder for them all to lean on as well, and as everyone in his class was a first-time mother, they were all learning together.

The only experienced person he wanted to commiserate with over pregnancy wouldn’t take his telephone calls. He faulted her, since he didn’t legitimize or excuse her prejudices, but he didn’t expect her to answer; still, he’d been there for her entire pregnancy, had been at her beck and call and had driven her to the hospital. It hurt a bit.

So he’d called Samantha to talk, because she understood what it was like to be pregnant; she understood him and she was legitimately happy for him and Josh, knowing how much Sean had always wanted children. Still, she wasn’t in Vermont; she wasn’t close to Vermont and their interactions were limited to emails and telephone calls and the $200 gift card to Babies R Us.

That money had disappeared quickly. The baby had a menagerie of stuffed animals, and he had taken a picture and sent it to Samantha to thank her. Josh had given off a vibe when he found out that Samantha had been responsible for the new stuffed animals, but he had said nothing, and thus neither had Sean. It was for the best.

And Josh wasn’t home yet, which made Sean frown to himself. He was late.

The telepath busied himself with the task of checking on Mopsy and filling her food bowl. Mopsy’s care primarily fell to Josh, as part of their division of labor. The rabbit looked up at him and twitched her nose. Sean carefully patted her ears before shutting the cage door. He couldn’t have her running or hopping around and chewing wires; he couldn’t get on the floor easily to pick her up (certainly not when home alone, without Josh to help him stand up again), and running was out of the question.

Now out of tasks and still alone, the telepath moved to the sofa and carefully lay down. He could rest for a bit, until Josh came home. And if he fell asleep, supper was already cooked and his partner knew how to take chicken out of a stove that was already shut off.

A while later, the front door opened and Josh stepped into the foyer. “Sean?”

In the den. The telepath didn’t sit up in anticipation; he was tired and his feet hurt.

His partner entered the den and held out a bouquet of wildflowers, smiling apologetically. “I’m sorry I’m late. There’s some construction on Main Street and Elaine had another sneezing fit when I was buying flowers.”

“You should stop buying flowers from her,” the telepath remarked, as he slowly pushed himself into a seated position, now that Josh was in the room with him.

Josh frowned, concerned that he’d done something wrong. “Do you not like them? She said she’d thought you’d like the colors-”

“They’re lovely,” Sean said, quickly cutting Josh off before his partner could spiral into an anxious rant about unacceptable presents. He smiled lightly and explained, “But you give her a sneezing fit every time you visit. I think she’d appreciate the respite more than the money from the sale.”

“Ah, well...” Josh had noticed that she tended to sneeze when he was in the shop but he hadn’t thought anything more of it than making a note to buy her allergy medication, which he never got around to doing. “What should I do with these?”

“The vase on the kitchen windowsill is empty. If you fill it with water and cut the stems on the flowers near the bottom, at an angle, they’ll be fine.”

Josh looked down at the bouquet reluctantly, doubting that anything he might do with the flowers would be fine, given his history of killing plants. “Are you sure you wouldn’t rather do it?”

“I trust you,” Sean told him. “And I don’t feel like getting up right now.”

That earned him a concerned look from Josh. “Are you okay?”

“Just tired, and the back and foot pain. You know how it is.”

Josh didn’t know what it was to experience any of this, although Sean was open about discussing his physical symptoms. As such, the attorney nodded. “All right. I’ll go put these in water for you. Do you want me to bring them in when I’m done?”

“No, thank you. Leave them in the kitchen.”

“All right.” Josh crossed to the sofa and leaned down to kiss Sean briefly on the lips. He then disappeared from the den. A moment later, Sean could hear the sound of running water, and he closed his eyes again.

A few moments later, there were footsteps followed by the sofa shifting under another person’s weight. He opened his eyes and found Josh sitting beside him. “I took care of the flowers.”

“Thank you.” The telepath smiled softly.

Josh was hesitant for a moment. Despite everything he’d read in the books, and which he’d been told by specialists and by the other fathers, and what Sean had told him outright before the pregnancy about initiating touching and continued to communicate during the pregnancy about needs, the attorney still had some difficulty with asking questions and taking the initiative. But he tried. After the hesitation passed, he said, “Let me give you a foot rub, since they hurt.”

“You don’t have to.”

“I know that.” Josh adjusted his glasses which were sliding down the bridge of his nose. “Let me help you feel better.”

Sean smiled again and nodded in acquiescence. He shifted carefully, moving so that he leaned against the arm of the sofa for support, shifting to rest his feet in Josh’s lap. The attorney picked up Sean’s left foot and began to rub gently. “How do you feel otherwise?”

“I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” That didn’t sound right, since of course Sean was sure about how he felt. Josh rushed to continue, “I’m glad, I mean, but I don’t want you to think you have to keep your feelings in if you’re not. It’s okay if you’re sad or irritated.” He sighed and added, “Not that I want you to be sad or irritated. It’s just-”

“Slim, I know.” Sean quirked his eyebrow at the other man. “Mood swings are normal because my body is producing hormones in wild disproportion to their normal levels, and then other hormones that it wouldn’t normally produce at all. I’ve been paying attention at the appointments too, you know.”

“I know.” Josh gave him a nervous smile before adding, “I worry.”

“I know. It would be troubling if you didn’t.” The telepath then sighed softly in pleasure. “That feels nice.”

Josh ran his thumbs along the arch of the other man’s foot. “Well, I, ahh, I could do this more often if you wanted.”

“The other men made you feel guilty for having it so easy again, didn’t they? And now you’re trying to prove them wrong.”

The attorney was about to stammer out a flat denial coupled with the assurance that his desire for his partner to feel good had nothing to do with the perceptions of their social circle, but then he noticed Sean’s expression. He was only teasing.

It was safe to tease back, and Josh changed tactics. “For an optimist and a telepath, you sure like to question other people’s motives.”

“I never said I was an optimist.”

“Right, and I’m not a Democrat,” Josh said with a smile.

That comment was met with a chuckle before Sean closed his eyes. “In all seriousness, that would be nice of you, and greatly appreciated. They’ve been getting swollen.”

Josh had noticed. He didn’t think it appropriate for him to say so, although he assumed Sean knew that he’d noticed. Decades of knowing the telepath had taught him that, even with Sean’s awareness, it was different to make assumptions and speak them aloud. There were still rules of social courtesy. “I’ll help with that,” he promised.

The telepath didn’t open his eyes, but he asked then, “Are you hungry?”

“I can wait. I still owe you another foot.” Josh set Sean’s left foot down gently and picked up the right. “Unless you’re hungry.”

Sean was steadily, but he ate enough. “I can wait. Just keep that up.”

[Cobalt Weaver]

[another for Mads <3]

Wherein Eleanor and Dani are Growing Up and Rhys is a Jerk

Puberty brought a slew of surprises in its wake. Power manifestations and growth spurts and voice changing. And, for Eleanor and Dani, it brought about a special trip to the mall to buy something called “training bras”. Sean sat Eleanor down and explained everything that she would need to know and what exactly was going on with her body.

Cobalt called Elaine.

However the two girls came about the knowledge, both of them arranged to meet and go shopping that weekend. Michelle, as it turned out, had already had a training bra for quite some time. Dani was a little miffed that Mishie had been holding out on them. Eleanor didn’t say anything.

Sean dropped them off downtown and agreed as they wanted to try this on their own. After all, they both decided they were both almost sort of grown-ups now. So they should try and do this on their own. They were familiar with the store, and had a time to meet Sean at the front of the store when they were done, so they were free for a few hours to go searching for their strange new undergarments.

They quickly located the children’s underwear section—denoted by a helpful sign—and began poking around.

“So…these are just like…tiny shirts,” Dani commented, slightly disappointed, “I thought they’d be more exciting.”

Eleanor shrugged, “They’ve got some that have pink and designs and stuff on them.” She picked up one and inspected it carefully, “We should ask someone about size.”

Dani nodded amiably. Having not inherited either parent’s preoccupation with personal space, she had no problem asking one of the lady storeclerks what size training bra she should get. Thus equipped with this crucial information, Eleanor and Dani dove back into the pile of little training bras.

“I wonder why some of the adult bras are, like, lacy and stuff.” Dani commented vaguely as she rifled through the racks, “I mean, what’s the point?”

Eleanor, who had already wondered this, asked, and gotten an answer, opted for the shortest response, “’Cause sometimes girls just like pretty underwear.”

Dani made an incredulous face, but didn’t press the issue. She certainly didn’t see how any of that would be particularly comfortable; she was already having doubts about these, and they didn’t have lace on them. She picked through the ones in her size, and procured a blue one, a white one and a black one. Sensible colors. She peeked over at Eleanor, who was –by virtue of being taller—a larger size. She had a light pink and white striped one, a white one and a purple one. She eyed her own choices.

“D’you think I should get ones with more colors?”

“Mmm…” Eleanor pursed her lips, “Maybe. Only if you want to.”

Dani chewed on her lip, “I don’t know. Maybe.” She spied one that looked promising: it was pink with a little ribbon on the front. There were little swirly…things imprinted on the cloth. Hm. She tilted her head, considering. Dani lifted the bra over her head, intent on showing Eleanor over the rack separating them when—

“Oooh, Dani! What pretty underwear you’ve got!”

Oh no. No, no, no. No.

There, smirking on the other side of the aisle, was Rhys Campbell, raising his eyebrows suggestively. He wiggled his hips in some attempt at being lascivious (which, as he was a twelve year old boy, was extremely unsuccessful). “Planning on showing those off, Danielle?”

Dani couldn’t be sure what happened next. All she knew was that she was so mad and she was running over. The next thing she knew, Rhys was doubled over his shin, a pinched look on his face.

“Owww~ Dani, why did you do that?” Rhys howled melodramatically for a moment before straightening up, flashing her a cheeky smile, “Just kidding, Dani. I was totally expecting that. You’re so predictable.”

“You—what—I—Grah!” Dani balled her hands into little fists, “Just shut up, Rhys. You don’t know anything.”

“I know that you’re buying girly underwear.” Rhys crowed happily, looking as though Christmas had come early.

“Rhys, go away.” Eleanor rolled her eyes, “This isn’t any of your business. We can do whatever we want without being teased by you.”

“Whatever,” Rhys shrugged dismissively before giving Dani another little smirk, “Seeya, Dani.” With a jaunty wink, Rhys sauntered away.

Dani was bright red. “I hate him,” She muttered. Eleanor patted her on the shoulder.

“I know.”

{end}