Of Ponies and Puppies

Purple

It took patience and it took sympathy. Time. Tender contact and distance all at once. Tears. Laughter at a joke they hadn't meant to make.

N hadn't meant to press the issue so much, but threatening the life of the creature was a step too far. Yes, she had been through something traumatic, but it didn't mean that she could kill something that was already here. It was a weird baby, but it was one that she'd already given "birth" to. She didn't want it - that, she made clear - but since it could live apart from her, he couldn't take her requests to dispose of it seriously.

For Uzi, just looking at it brought up the trauma from the whole ordeal again and more. Flesh was no stranger to their younger years, and flesh always meant danger. Sure, she didn't mind the wings before, but now the connection between them and the experience that was birthing this thing was made, and she couldn't look past it.

"There. It's out of sight".

Uzi didn't respond other than a small nod.

N carefully put the freshly-looted backpack on. It didn't weigh much, only containing a folded blanket and the creature (on top of the blanket) in the main compartment. He kept it not closed all the way so it could breathe...assuming it could. He really hoped the bag was warming up from the contact with his back.

"Hey", he said, "we'll get through this. I'll make sure you don't have to see it".

She nodded again, "thanks...". N smiled and took her hands into his. Uzi frowned, "hey... um...".

"What?".

"What if we had found it sooner? Was there, uh... any way this couldn't have happened?".

His face fell. "Well... I guess if it died on its own when we pulled it out, that would have worked". She looked at him, oddly positive. He picked up on this, "no, I'm not letting myself kill another baby even if it's weird looking. Uzi, I killed children. Drone and human. I'm not adding whatever that is to the list".

She frowned, face tensing, "that it?".

He disagreed, "if we found it super early on, it wouldn't have even been a baby yet. Pulling it and all the meat out would have been the end of it".

"So there was no chance...?".

He sighed, "sorry Uz, we couldn't have known". His arms tensed as he released her, eye contact breaking. A loud sigh escaped his audio output, "I should have sucked it up and just done the operation when you asked. That might've been the latest we could have done it and not have to deal with raising another kid".

"It's not a–".

The corners of his mouth pulled back in knowing, "I know. I know... I'm not exactly thrilled with it either. You know... when we were talking about wanting another kid–".

"Oh no ", she said raising a hand, "you are not attaching yourself to that thing because you want another kid".

"Because I do , Uzi!", he shouted louder than he meant to, fluster appearing when he realized how loud he was. In a quieter voice he continued, "I do want another kid, but this is... I mean you've seen it. It doesn't look like us. It's not even metal–".

Her eyes squinted at him incredulously, "so you don't think it's my baby?".

"You saw the video!", he said, "you got hungry, it grew in your belly, and it was inside a placenta within a womb. You were pregnant with this thing!".

"So what is it then? Are you trying to say that I was pregnant with... an animal ?", she said in disbelief.

His face made an uncomfortable look, "I... don't wanna think of it that way. Like it or not, it does have your... genetics. No. I want to believe that it's our second child. It's just... in a really weird form".