Alfred hissed under his breath, trying to wiggle but finding himself unable. His lower body was numb. He was disoriented, and it meant that he was trying to figure out where he was. He knew Ivan tended to hold onto him very tightly at night, but it didn't feel very good when he was practically paralyzed.
Ivan noticed he was up, feeling him growling in his ear, and let his arms fall, moving Alfred from laying on his chest to laying on the bed, petting his cheek.
Alfred hissed at the contact. He wasn't happy. Mostly with the fact his heat had to come on the day of the party, at the party? He thought he could remember something else too, after Ivan moved him.
Oh, Ivan got in a fight. He hoped it wasn't too bad. He wouldn't be able to tell, because he couldn't fucking move.
God, his heat had hit fast. He went from normal to delirious way faster than normal. Probably because of the cannabis, he reasoned to himself. That was the only logical explanation.
"Do you want a bath?" Ivan asked. Alfred didn't respond, and he wondered if he was still in heat before he realized, "Oh, do you need water?"
A garbled sound came out of him, and he took that as a yes, taking three bottles of water from where he kept some near the bed and giving each to Alfred after he sat him up.
"Do you feel any better?" Ivan asked, tilting his head and looking him over. He'd been extra nice this time, unlike last year, which was... rough. He wasn't allowed to do that again.
"Not really," Alfred said, reaching up his hands to rub his eyes. He could feel every muscle moving, stretching and contorting and elongating, and he glared at his shoulder.
"I'm guessing you're sore?" Ivan asked, softly, sweetly as he could, Alfred looked at him and smiled.
"Yeah, no shit," Alfred groaned, leaning back onto the pillows.
"Do you want a bath?"
Alfred tried to feel beyond his aching muscles. Yes, he would want a bath, because he was dirty. He cringed when he realized, and his neck popped when he moved, which also did not feel the best.
"Ya," he replied, feeling Ivan pick him up bridal style, carrying him over to the bathtub, and holding him while he fiddled with the faucet, making sure it was hot enough.
"What time is it?" Alfred asked, his mouth feeling sticky again. He wanted more water, or some other drink. Water didn't help the feeling in his mouth.
"Um... one in the afternoon," Ivan replied, looking at the clock on the wall. Alfred groaned, burying his face in Ivan's bare chest. It was warm, and somehow it made him feel better then he did previously.
When the tub was full enough, Ivan put him in, watching him immediately close his eyes.
He started to wash his hair, Alfred melting into his hands. His black and golden hair was knotted and wild, so Ivan took the time to brush it out, Alfred practically asleep. He didn't mind. He just pet his cheek when he was done.
"Honey?" Alfred said, and Ivan looked at him, watching as he cringed in the water. He immediately went to kiss his face, not knowing what to do at the moment. Alfred whimpered when he pulled the plug out of him, tears pricking in the corners of his eyes, and he felt Ivan kiss them away, petting his hair to try and comfort him.
There was a thump on the floor, and Alfred went back to relaxing, best he could. Ivan was just thankful he wasn't bleeding, because last year he started to bleed.
"Is there anything you need from me, my darling kitten?" Ivan asked, smiling with his eyes. He couldn't stand to give a full smile when he was in pain, it made him feel horrible.
"Just... stay," Alfred said. Now that he didn't hurt as bad he just wanted to be cuddled.
Ivan nodded, nuzzling into his cheek. After a few minutes, it almost seemed like Alfred had fallen asleep, but Ivan knew better. He knew he was thinking, and he would continue thinking until he finally spoke up about what was bothering him.
Alfred sighed, picking the porcelain under his hand with his claws. He was rude earlier, but he didn't know how to bring it up. His eyes closed slightly, and he thought. He was always trapped inside his head. Thinking three steps ahead.
"Sorry."
It was a simple start, yet he never knew how Ivan would react to it. He used to be harsh about it. He never liked when Alfred apologized to him, because he knew why he did it. Because he was afraid of making him mad, and fearful of him leaving.
He reacted softer now, pulling away from where their cheeks rested together to look Alfred in the eyes. Like usual, he was staring at the wall, not back at him. He was too nervous to look back at him.
"Why?"
Alfred opened and closed his mouth twice, his brain running over the words to say. He closed his eyes, and let out a breath.
"I was an asshole earlier, I'm sorry."
"No, you were in pain," Ivan replied, kissing him under the eye. Alfred relaxed, and Ivan smiled, just large enough to make his eyes twitch but not enough to show his teeth.
Alfred didn't say anything after that. The water was starting to cool down, and it was cloudy, so Ivan pulled the plug. Alfred didn't say anything, just tried to stand. He could walk more or less, his body healing faster than the average persons.
Yet still, Ivan wrapped his arms around his knees and picked him up, carried him to the bed and placed him there.
"I'm going to take a shower, I'll be back in a few minutes," Ivan said, and Alfred nodded, knitting his fingers into his hair for a moment before kissing him.
Ivan left, and came back in about eight minutes, his hair wet and glistening. Alfred still kinda hurt, but it was a lot better now, so he was able to push himself up.
They sat in silence a few minutes, and Ivan looked around, not knowing how to bring up the elephant in the room. Alfred didn't seem to remember, so he could just ignore it, he reasoned.
"I want babies," Alfred stated, and Ivan gulped, looking him up and down.
"Sweetie, are you sure? Do you think you can handle it? I don't want you to do it if you don't think you can."
"Do you think I can?"
Ivan didn't know how to answer that. He didn't want to change Alfred's opinion. It was his own body, and his own will, but Alfred had this annoying habit of shaping his opinions to match Ivan's, and it was fine with smaller things, but...
No. Not this.
"I believe you can do anything you think you can," Ivan replied, hoping that was a good enough answer, reaching out his hand and brushing some of his hair out of his face. Alfred's face was blank, and he looked over to the hand touching him.
"I can. I know I can. I just want to know, do you want a baby?" Alfred asked, tilting his head, "Or babies? It's... it's a lot."
Ivan nearly had tears in his eyes, and he smiled, and pecked Alfred on the nose and lips, "I would love to have a baby with you."
Alfred was staring at him, before realizing he should show his emotions and he smiled, kissing Ivan.
"It's not worth it to have one, and too much work to have three," Alfred explained. While pregnacy for demons was much easier, much simpler... labor was a bit of work. It lasted for around two weeks, unless you were having more than two, in which three days would be added for every two more children, and he knew there could be up to ten, but nobody did that. Not anymore.
Not to mention, for those two weeks, his brain was basically jelly, and Ivan would have to take care of him. He made sure to explain that carefully to Ivan.
"How long is the pregnancy?" Ivan asked after a bit of time.
"Five months, not counting labor," Alfred said, brushing his hair back on impulse and averting his gaze. He didn't know why he was embarrassed. This is the same man who saw him naked on a near daily basis.
Ivan leaned forward and kissed his cheeks, "And I will be here the whole time."
Alfred nodded, feeling the hands touching his face. He'd said he'd wanted this, but now he was nervous. He looked into Ivan's eyes and saw only endless support. It made his nerves fall, and he sucked in a breath quickly.
"I'm going to do it." Alfred stated. His eyes became hard, and he spent energy to quickly heal his body. Ivan smiled, his eyes half-lidded as he saw his eyes electrify, watched as his strength returned.
"I will be here the whole time," Ivan repeated himself, and Alfred nodded, closing his eyes. This was tricky. He knew he had to use the muscles around his uterus to do this... but he had no clue how. Well, he did. He tried it before. It was just... difficult.
He felt something big come from something else and Ivan tilted his head, noticing how he looked disgusted but not knowing why.
He felt it again and cringed, stopping that immediately. That was two. He never wanted to do that again.
The next part was even harder, cause that muscle was weak, and even then, didn't like to open very far.
Ivan looked him over, noticing that suddenly his lower stomach pudge, just a little. But it happened fast, and he watched it happen.
"That feels weird," Alfred whimpered, and Ivan wrapped his arms around his neck, kissing him all over his face and neck in an effort to make him feel, if just a little bit, better.
He leaned down, kissing his stomach, just above his belly button before looking at him. Alfred looked soft in that moment, like he had no more worries, no more cares. That was until Ivan moved, and he stood up, and started putting clothes on.
"Honey, lunch?" he asked, and Ivan nodded, watching as his stomach was covered up. Alfred realized in that moment that Ivan would be spending a lot of time looking at his stomach, and he laughed, and Ivan saw he was laughing and couldn't help laughing too.
They walked out, hand in hand, immediately interrupted with Rulyn standing in front of the door. She was still in wolf, which was weird, because she hardly stayed in her wolf form, and she looked at the two.
She only took a little sniff of the air.
"You did not," she said, sounding a little awestruck and impressed.
Alfred stopped and smiled, "Good afternoon to you too."
She took another sniff of the air, "You're... you actually did it? I know you've wanted to have an actual baby since forever but... now?"
"I know," Alfred said, "it's fine."
"What, why, what's going on?" Ivan asked, and both Rulyn and Alfred let out those nervous giggles.
"Let's just say... America is... eh... right now," she shrugged, "gotta go. Alfred, you don't have to do anything today, all your work was handed off."
She waved as she left, and Alfred kinda wanted to punch her.
"What's wrong?" Ivan asked, drilling holes into him with his eyes.
"Eh, right now," America said, walking away. Ivan's eyes followed him all the way down the hallway before he finally started running behind.
"Alfred, is there something wrong with your country?"
"There's always something wrong with my country," Alfred grumbled, sighing as he held his head. He could feel it. The unrest. People were nervous. The shootings had gotten bad. People wanted to get rid of guns. Idiots were protecting their guns with all their lives. Worriers were concerned that if their guns were gone, the government would go completely fascist and nobody would be able to defend themselves.
Not that being worried is bad. In this case, it's good thinking.
Nobody could agree anymore. It was ignorant vs cultivated, progressive vs conservative- and it was starting to become a nazi vs communist problem.
He never wanted it to become a nazi vs communist problem, because the last time there was that problem, a good forty or so million died.
He did know what side he'd choose, given the circumstances... white nationalists can suck some bear cock.
"Will it-"
"Hopefully not," Alfred said, smiling with a shrug, turning around, Ivan watched as he sat on the rails for the stairs, before leaning back.
All the way back.
Ivan ran forward while Alfred was falling, watching as he did a flip before sticking the landing.
"Hurry up, I'm hungry!" Alfred yelled, the words echoing off the stairwell. Ivan grumbled something that not even he understood, running down the stairs. He was no longer gasping for breath at the end. He'd gotten used to the stairs.
"Don't do that, you could hurt yourself," Ivan said, touching his shoulder as he got down. Alfred rolled his eyes.
"I do it all the time," he shrugged, and Ivan growled under his breath. He knew if Rulyn could smell it, then he was pregnant enough to not be jumping seven stories.
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes."
"Alfred, no. You could hurt yourself."
Alfred laughed. Like, he actually started laughing so hard he started coughing. Like, practically on the floor, half-dying.
"I'm the only one who can hurt me!" he exclaimed proudly, before strutting off, and Ivan facepalmed before following him. Children ran up and around, and he heard a gun discharge far off and someone yell really loudly in a really exasperated voice 'Arkansas!'.
Florida was eating a raw fish, that at one point was probably a stripper, and trying to keep any of her siblings from getting her food, going as far as to sick the alligator on Alabama.
Someone was screaming. He did not know who was screaming.
The quiet buck-centaur that did most of the paperwork, who was named Feilon, was chatting idly over the noise with the alcoholic white tiger furry-demon-thing that they kept around named Ku.
Alfred walked over and started talking to them, so that Ivan wouldn't bring up anything, and immediately Ku noticed he was pregnant. Cats could sense hormonal changes. Dogs could sense scent changes.
Deer don't exactly have the best sense of smell, so Feilon had to try and figure it out from what Ku was muttering, and half of the stuff he was saying was in Hindu, Chinese, or Thai. The other half was stutter-y English.
Ivan walked over, watching the middle of the room carefully. He heard laughing from behind him to turn around and find Davie standing there, staring, with a far-off expression in his eyes, and no expression on his face.
Ivan continued, ignoring the angel. He had a tendency to do that.
"So Alfred," he said, walking up to the group, "are you going to tell Feilon, or leave him confused?"
Feilon tilting his head, the large golden horns on his head making it seem like he was losing his balance. He kicked a front leg, scratching at the wood with a gold hoof, waiting for Alfred to answer.
Alfred started whistling, looking over to the side. Feilon didn't look amused. He didn't really have a sense of humor. He crossed his arms, his brown skin having some sort of sheen in the light. Ivan wondered if he was shedding before remembering it was August, and that the centaur was growing more hair, not losing it.
"Sir?" he said, black eyes staring at him. Alfred smirked.
"Okay, fine, fine," he said, before motioning a baby bump with his hand. Feilon didn't get it. He hadn't been around humanoids long enough, and centaurs didn't carry children like humans.
That was until Louisiana wandered up, wrapping her arms around his neck, her black hair flying everywhere in the static that Alfred created from being surprised.
She took a deep breath, relaxing against her mother before her eyes shot open.
"Baby." she said softly, under her breath. Feilon jumped- literally jumped, all four hooves off the ground, and Alfred started laughing.
"Correct, sweetheart," Alfred said, and Ku flopped onto the ground, Feilon gaping like a fish the entire time.
"A new confederate," she said, her voice not her own. Alfred did the 'oh fuck' smile, also known as the white persons 'why the fuck are you talking to me' smile, and just... stared forward.
"No," Alfred said, looking at her best he could.
"Wait, what?" she said, her voice on right. She covered her mouth with her hand and looked confused, and the group had gone from looking at Alfred to staring at her.
Besides Ivan, who was looking at Alfred.
He had a bad feeling in his gut.