by Viola Grace
“Uh-huh. You and I need to have an in-depth conversation, kitten.”
“You keep saying that, but we always find something else to do.” She laughed.
“You got to me fast.”
“I could have gotten to you faster if I was there as backup.”
“You would have been distracting.”
“Like Torenne and me nearly having sex in the car wasn’t distracting?”
He grinned. “That was a coffee break.”
She unhooked the canister from her suit. “Drink this.”
“I would rather get it directly from the source.”
She blushed, “Right, but I am wearing a very tight suit.”
“We have been through this before. The suit adapts, and I know where all the closures are.”
“Yeah, but you are still down on fluids. Drink this, and if you still want something extra, we will discuss it.” She held out the canister.
“Help me like you did at the warehouse.”
She grumbled and slid an arm under his head before giving him the canister. It had the effect of mashing her breast against the side of his head, which she didn’t remember from the warehouse.
He drank slowly, then sighed, and settled back with his eyes half-closed. “Now, you have promised me dessert.”
“I did no such thing.” She eyed his erection, tenting the sheet. “You are a little quick off the mark for someone whose leg was nearly severed.”
“But, with your quick arrival and Torenne’s help, I am right as rain.”
She lowered him to the bed. “You are weak as a kitten. You lost a lot of blood, and I am sure you were dotted with internal injuries.”
Torenne muttered from the prone position. “Broken shoulder, broken arm, broken ribs, crushed femur, collapsed lung, damaged spleen, and he pulled his groin somehow.”
“Add that to all of the burned skin I first encountered, and you had quite the evening.”
He smiled sleepily. “Am I going to get taller again?”
“No, but I might make you flame retardant and armour-plated.”
“But would I still be able to move like I do now?”
“Probably not, but if I turn you into a statue, we can put you in Jennela’s foyer. I think you would look charming holding coats.”
She watched, and his ear flexed. There was a click. “Wow, you really do that while wiggling your ears.”
Torenne chuckled. “Told you so.”
She stroked the tip of his ear. “Good thing it repaired well then, or my sins would remain uncounted.”
Salat yawned. “You are up to seventy-three, minus the few Torenne has given you, so sixty-seven.”
“Well, you need sleep more than you need foreplay, so you sleep, and I am going to take out some of this nervous energy on the babies. They are helpless before me.” She stood and bent over to kiss him softly. It was fairly chaste considering that they had been apart for days, but he was in no shape to be left to her mercies. She currently didn’t have any.
Torenne reached out, and Khytten took her hand. “Good job, Khytten.”
“Good job, Torenne. He will live to be a pain in the ass another day.”
Salat murmured, “I am right here.”
“I know, love. Now, be a good boy and get some rest. We can always play in the morning.”
He grabbed her arm with a surprisingly firm grip. “I am rarely a good boy.”
She grinned. “I know. That makes you fun to be around.”
She patted his hand. “Now, let go. The people who actually need me are on another floor.”
He let go. “Come back as soon as you are done. I don’t want you wandering the hospital.”
“Why not?”
“Because you may be oblivious, but your figure is noticeable. Now that I am too weak to come to your aid, I am a little nervous. And Torenne is out for the count.”
“I will be fine.” She smiled. “My wrist bands have a full charge.”
He smiled. “Good girl. Fine, go play with the babies.”
She kissed his forehead. “See you soon.”
She saw the family gathered around the incubator and backed out of the room. “Khytten, get back in here. You were going to feed her, weren’t you?”
Khytten winced as she saw Salmet and Riko. They were standing with a young couple staring at the baby with near worship in their eyes. “I don’t want to intrude.”
At the sound of her voice, a small mewling sound came out of the little person in the incubator.
The young woman smiled and wiped her cheeks. “Please, come in and do what you have to. Good god, were you in a fire?”
“A few of them. Busy night. But, since your brother is passed out, it is only right that I keep working.”
She walked to the incubator and could see that there were a far fewer tubes than that morning. Baby Acudan was getting stronger.
Embarrassed, she opened her suit, got ready, and then opened the side of the unit to take the baby out. The chart indicated that the baby had taken a feeding a few hours earlier. “Do you know if she was given formula?”
The young woman said, “They said she was given the milk you sent in.”
“Oh, good. What I gave her earlier was a priming charge, so to speak.” She looked at the young couple. “When did you want to take her home?”
The husband said, “They said we could take her home when she weighs five pounds.”
“Right. You didn’t answer my question.”
Salmet said, “The end of the week. We can have the baby’s room ready by the end of the week.”
“Okay. Good. It lets me know what to feed her. Four days should be plenty of time.”
She started with a few drops again, then again. The young mom encouraged, “Come on, baby, drink.”
Khytten smiled. “She doesn’t have the reflex yet. That is one of the things I am trying to give her. It will get stronger every time until she can be fed without tubes, and then the weight will really pack on. You don’t seem freaked out by me.”
“Mom explained. Dad explained. Auntie Jennela explained with charts, and Uncle Halko just sighed and waxed poetic about your cleavage.”
The baby started to suck Khytten’s finger, and then a few more minutes, and she latched on. Considering how weak she had been that morning, this was a helluva grip. The baby must take after her uncle.
Salmet smiled. “She has a good grip.”
“Yeah, she does.”
“She reminds you of Salat.”
Khytten turned bright red. “There are some similarities that can be accounted for with scale.”
“Is Acudan her last name or first?”
The father blinked. “Oh, right. It is my last name. We didn’t... there have been other... we didn’t know.”
“Well I am Khytten, you are?”
He blinked. “Oh. I am Noring Acudan, and this is my wife. Leodai.”
“Leodai. It is a pleasure to meet you; now, who am I holding?”
They looked at each other and nodded. “Delia.”
“Delia Acudan, that is a serious name for a serious face.” She stroked the little cheek as the skin went from creamy to rosy with effort.
Leodai reached and paused. “Can I touch her?”
“Sure. Don’t worry about bumping into me. I get groped by your family members regularly, so a bit of accidental contact would not be amiss.”
Leodai reached out and stroked Delia’s cheek as the scowling baby pursued what it wanted. “Wow. She really wants it.”
“Yeah, she’s getting psychological development, immunity, strength, and growth in this cocktail. She’s going to be smart, fast, and strong.”
“Is this because she is Salat’s niece?”
Riko said, “She didn’t know anything about who’s baby it was when she came earlier. She just picked her up and fed her according to what she needed to survive. Khytten wasn’t told who she
was until much later.”
“Oh, so you really do this? Like, as a regular thing?”
“I really do. Your brother can’t consume it all.” She smiled with her lips twisted.
“So he really... I mean, I have heard the rumours, but I didn’t think they were credible.”
“His pleasure centre is wired to consumption of human-based lactation. Or, in my case, active based.”
Click.
“Oh, come on. Don’t be such an ass. They are family. Your fucking family.”
Click, click, click.
“Go back to bed, you idiot.”
Click.
“Noring or Riko, please get a nurse for a larger diaper. She just went up a size, and the crying is about to start.”
At the threat of crying, both men bolted from the room.
A nurse came in and said, “What’s going on?”
She looked at the three assembled women and blinked. She pointed at Khytten. “You can’t be in here.”
Khytten snickered. “Okay. She’s not done yet, but you are welcome to try and get her off.”
The little body expanded, and Khytten snapped the diaper connections a moment before the wailing started. Riko brought in four different sizes, and Noring watched as Khytten took the stack in one hand and eased the baby onto a table that Salmet wheeled into place. The changing took seconds, and the baby had moved into the seven-and-a-half-month weight class.
Leodai asked, “How much does she weigh now?”
“The scale will have to tell, but I am going to guess around four pounds. I will have to feed her directly in four hours, but by the weekend, you will need to have that room ready.”
Khytten got the baby into the more comfortable diaper and looked to Leodai. “Would you like to hold her?”
The hands were extended eagerly, and Delia was cuddled by her mother. Khytten closed her suit, and she swayed. Salmet had been looking at her granddaughter, but she suddenly focused on Khytten.
“Are you all right?”
“Yeah, building a person takes a lot out of you. Pulling back so I don’t turn her into a toddler overnight is difficult. One of the hardest things I do.” She chuckled. “Too much self-control does me in.”
Salmet smiled. “Are you sure you are okay?”
“I am fine. I will just head back to Salat’s bed and shove him over.”
Salmet smiled and looked at the baby. “Thanks for this. She’s our first granddaughter. It has been such a hard time for Leodai and Noring. How tall do you think the baby will be when she’s grown?”
“How tall is the tallest woman in your family?”
Salmet grinned. “Excellent. This is excellent. Riko, can you walk Khytten back to Salat?”
“Certainly. It will be my pleasure.”
Khytten was about to decline, but another wave of fatigue came over her.
Riko offered his arm, and they went. Khytten smiled at the baby and the new parents who stayed close and the nurse who was frowning at her the entire way.
She sighed, and as they were in the lift, she swayed again.
“Is something wrong?”
“No. Just tired. Despite my heroic efforts at dinner, I have burned through all of my calories and have started consuming my reserves. My body doesn’t like that for obvious reasons, so it is shutting down. I just need to rest and then get a bunch of food when I wake up.”
“So, sleeping next to Salat will be good for you?”
“You can just drop me into a chair. I will be fine. Or the floor, the floor is good, too. Oh, here it comes.”
The world went black, and she felt arms come around her as she dropped.
Khytten woke up warm, and the world felt slippery. She was sitting up, and there was something new. A few things new. Not only was she wearing a silk gown, but there was a small person attached to her being held by Salat.
“No, this isn’t weird at all.”
He pressed a kiss to her temple. “You were out for two days, and she needed to be fed to continue her recovery. Your body recognized her the moment she made contact. Torenne brought the pack so that we could keep the NICU and pediatrics supplied. There are a few bitchy nurses that have had their ears pinned back by their seniors. Jennela showed them the increase in stats overnight, and they have come around.”
“Yay. I don’t give a frosty fuck.” She yawned and looked at the baby that was nearing six pounds. “She’s all big and healthy now. Delia can go home as soon as her doctors verify that she is what she is.”
“What do you mean?”
“Folks don’t trust that the change is just controlled and accelerated growth. Why am I dressed like this?”
He ran his hand over her abdomen. “I like it when you are all silky.”
“I mean, where did the clothing come from?” She sighed and then exhaled deeply. She was still tired to the bone.
Delia nodded off, and Khytten was relieved. Her body had continued burning its resources while she slept. She held up her hand and saw an IV. “What the hell happened here?”
“We were trying to keep your body going. You were still generating a lot of fluid without anything being input.”
“Where is Torenne?”
“Getting some of your wardrobe packed up and brought here.”
She eased the sleeping baby into the clear hospital cot, and then, she collapsed on the bed with a groan. She clumsily tucked herself in and tried to get back to sleep. She knew this heavy feeling and didn’t like what it meant.
He pressed his warm hand over her belly and massaged gently. “Your body has been very busy.”
She shivered. “And I am wearing underwear, so that means my period has arrived. Which explains why I am exhausted and feel like hell.”
He rubbed her back with one hand and her abdomen with the other. She groaned and relaxed into him. “You have already been released from hospital, haven’t you?”
He chuckled. “You two took such good care of me I was out yesterday. I stayed for you.”
She sighed. “They scanned me, didn’t they?”
“Several times. Zera had trackers in you?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“They are gone. So is the implant from your abdomen.”
“So, Torenne is out of town?”
“Yes, why?”
“I want to kick her ass. She did something, and I started glowing. I think that is when the birth control dissolved.”
“Was that when you were talking about having kids?”
“Yeah. She doesn’t want kids but is fine if you do, so she’s either going to have to neutralize herself, wear a condom, or only fool around with me while I am pregnant.” She yawned. “Or, resign herself to being a second mom or parent.”
“I will take her children as mine.” Salat’s tone was serious.
She turned toward him, and her body twisted in pain. She slowly returned to her original position. “Fuck, I hate this part.”
“Can you take anything for it?”
She chuckled. “No. Not if I am going to continue feeding the little miss and the others. No booze, no pills, and minimal cabbage.”
He kissed her shoulder. “I agree with the cabbage. My nose is sensitive.”
He paused. “Can you make anything for it?”
“Sort of, but it’s just a sedative, so I would be out again.”
“Try it. I will be here when you wake up.”
“Right. Too much whining. Got it.”
“That wasn’t what I meant.”
She took a deep breath and took her medicine, so to speak. She looked at him and sighed. “I know it isn’t what you meant, but with this hormone cocktail running through me, I take everything at face value.” She dropped out and exhaled slowly. “Just get me out of here as soon as the baby is discharged. I don’t like being in hospital.”
“I will; you will be home as soon as you are not required here anymore.”
&
nbsp; She nodded, and then the warm wave of sleep came over her. She might have been in pain, but her own creation kept her under for a day.
Chapter Sixteen
Torenne was kissing her forehead when she woke next. They weren’t at Torenne’s house; they were in a large room with a bed that was wide and long. “You were quite out of it, Khytten.”
“Working with that baby took a lot out of me. Wait. It’s not on me again, is it?”
Torenne chuckled, and the thundering of feet in the hallway told them that Salat had been looking and listening.
“Kitten, I was worried. We were worried.” He rushed to her side and pulled her up out of bed to hug her.
“Why do I think you aren’t just thinking about you and Torenne?”
Torenne sat in a comfortable chair next to the bed while Salat pulled Khytten into his lap.
Salat took her hand and pressed it between his. “Don’t do that again. You have been out for too long.”
“How long?”
Torenne smiled. “Your period is over.”
“Ouch. All I remember is the pain and wanting it to stop. I have never slept through it before.”
Torenne snorted. “Next time, just wait for me, and I can get it over within a few minutes. You were in a light coma.”
She winced. “I did wonder why it wasn’t an instinct to take care of it myself. Now I know.”
“It was a bad suggestion.” Salat held her close. “Sorry.”
Torenne sighed. “You didn’t say it was your idea.”
“I was a little panicked.”
“You didn’t realize she was going to be out for nearly a week. She programmed the milk to keep her out as long as her body was going through the motions.”
She sighed. “Right. I need to get up, get dressed. I don’t feel weird, so you have been bathing me, which should make me feel weird, but I am too hungry to care.”
“Okay. Food is on the way.” He pressed a kiss to her head, but she was numb. Her body was exhausted and tapped out.
Torenne smiled. “First, you are going to replace fluids, and then, you can have solids.”
She grimaced at Torenne’s glee. “This is some kind of weird green smoothie, isn’t it?”