Red Queen One-Shots

Questions

A/N: This is some old  request. I HC this only works in-universe; if this was in a modern AU, Farley would (let Shade do this) buy one of these books written exactly for the purpose of telling Clara.

Mare POV

I follow Clara in her determined gait, trying to keep myself from grinning. When she started to ask her awkward questions, laughing and an abominable lightning reference were my only answers, reasonably leading to her frustration. I recommend to query her mother instead, thus we find Farley, with Ada beside her, in her office which is full of papers and folders spread everywhere.

When they look up from their work, Clara's resolve falters, as if she realizes the touchy subject of her curiousity.

"Mama?" she asks.

"Yes," Farley answers, still having an eye on a paper.

"Mama!" Clara's insistence surprises them but demands their attention. I lean against the doorframe with my arms crossed, undecided between wanting to vanish and to hear the fun waiting in this situation.

Clara hesitates no longer. "Mama, where do babies come from? Where do I come from? Mare only told me nonsense!" She might've said more, but the shifting emotions on Farley's face are entertainment enough. It's the acknowledgement that the day she knew would come has arrived and now she's at loss for words, despite all preparation - if she prepared. Yet Farley's helplessness rather spurs Clara.

"Please, I don't understand. Mare said that Daddy - "

"What did she say?" Farley retorts, slightly panicked. "Oh, never mind. Come here." She lifts Clara onto her lap.

"Umm, well ..." Farley gives me a glare and when I evade it, I see Ada snickering to herself.

She probably knows exactly how to explain, I think. But Ada merely smiles back at me like a partner in crime.

"Okay," Farley continues, "You might've seen that. Babies grow in their mothers' bellies for about nine months, as you did in mine, until you were around this large." She gestures. "Though I've learned you were a rather big baby," she jests and her smile contains the hope Clara will be satisfied with that.

"You came to a number of places with me back then. Time to tell you about those," she adds, clearly trying to dissemble. But no such luck, and all of us know it. Clara frowns, curiousity still written on her face.

"And what did Daddy have to do with this?"

Farley swallows. "Yes, Daddy was with us. So were Mare and Cal, Ada and Kilorn. That was at the notch, in the north of Norta. It was cold there, not like here. But we might go there again too, how about that, Clara?"

I have to flinch when I think of the notch. Our stay was an autumn of fear, hiding, and loneliness. But Farley smiles as she narrates, and not only to placate Clara. Because unlike me, I realize, she has fond memories of the place. She was happy there despite the dangers, as she and Shade were together and in love. A shiver goes down my back. I banish these thoughts, it's not what this is about. I glance at Ada again and her expression changes from neutral to encouraging when she catches me. As if she's always aware of our needs.

In the end, Clara isn't lured by Farley's blatant dodge. "Mama," she insists, "I wasn't asking about that. Where do -"

"Right, okay, okay," Farley stops her. "Yeah. So, Daddy and I made you -"

"Made?" Now Clara's intense frown stops her mother.

"Ah, that's a bad expression, I'm sorry," Farley corrects herself. "No, well. We made love; that is, we had sex." She pauses, now definitely entering the embarrassing zone and blushing more than usual whereas Clara remains adamant about getting her answers.

"There're many words for it. Sex is what couples do. Adult couples. It's fun, and sometimes, babies come from it." Despite Clara's doubtful expression, Farley just goes on, perhaps hoping to be done with it sooner if she keeps the stream of words flowing.

"But sex means commitment and trust. You and your partner give and get something in return and for a moment, you become ... one. That's it, basically. It's similar about children." Farley pats one of Clara's shoulders. "You've got one half of you from Daddy," she says, then pats the other one, "and one half from me. Though it's not as simple as that, as you're entirely your own, new person ... " she loses her thread but I think it's the most poetic thing I've ever heard her say. Although she's clearly improvised and it was a little silly and convoluted.

"That was well-put, Diana," Ada comments. Indeed, Clara appears convinced, finally.

"Umm," she mumbles, with an adorable pout.

"Any more questions, dove?" Beneath her smile, Farley seems relieved.

"No ... maybe later. But ... Mama ... " Clara can't continue. Instead she's looks like she's about to cry. "I wanna see Daddy," she sniffs, urging Farley to pull her close.

"I know, dove," she replies, and stands up with the girl in her arms to leave the room, but not before giving Ada an apologizing glance. "Who doesn't?" she adds quietly.

I couldn't agree more.

Ada sighs, her amusement slightly deceased. "May we look at your power plant's data now, Mare?" she proposes, remembering the reason I came here to begin with. Yet I doubt she has only work on her mind.

"Is it always like this?" I wonder.

She shrugs. "It's worth it, for me, for us. Like even painful memories can be beautiful."