Chapter 39
Scarlet
Scarlet was exhausted, but her work was far from done.
And she could hardly claim to be more tired than Peony, so she had no right to complain.
Instead, she carefully and methodically went about her duties tending to mom and baby.
The High Imperium had them sent on a fast shuttle back to the embassy compound so Scarlet could bring Peony to her scanner where she had all her previous scans and data uploaded.
Fixing up her friend took some time. The line she had cut through her perineum to allow the baby to get out was actually the easiest thing to fix.
At the end of the day, that was just a laceration – even if it was a deep one, cutting through skin and muscle alike.
The real healing had to be done to the entirety of Peony’s reproductive tract.
The trauma done to her body from the birth wasn’t at all different from human labor, but the healing process took weeks on Earth. It would take at least a full mark in the scanner.
Peony, exhausted, napped as Scarlet repaired her body. She wouldn’t even need to wait six weeks to have sex again. Though, by her request, Scarlet did turn off her ovulation. Peony was not ready to be pregnant again so soon.
Scarlet thought for sure Atem would protest – he had been so excited about the barefoot and pregnant idea after all. However, the male had nothing to say, and he maintained his silence as Scarlet healed Peony before turning her focus onto the pup.
He wasn’t officially named yet – though Alanna had called him Steve the entire ride over just to make them laugh and Peony protest. Peony had a name that she picked with Atem, but they had kept it to themselves so far.
So, to Scarlet, the pup was Steve the Alien for now. She checked him over while Peony rested, using her second scanner table. The pup was asleep as well and didn’t protest at all while Scarlet investigated his body.
Most importantly, he seemed healthy. All his organs were performing optimally, and his body seemed to be as developed as a full term domini pup, though he was technically born too early for that. No birth defects, no metabolic insufficiencies, no abnormalities at all.
Except that his camouflage reflex was astoundingly perfect.
“How is he?” Atem asked, the first words he had spoken since Peony had snapped at him because she hadn’t liked the sound of his voice during labor. Alanna had told him not to take it personally, but he had still maintained his silence long after Peony apologized.
“He’s fine,” Scarlet assured him as Peony’s eyes openly lazily, woken from her doze by their soft voices. Scarlet smiled at her as well. “He’s perfectly healthy. He’ll probably wake up hungry soon. Ready to give breastfeeding another try?”
Peony grimaced at the reminder of the first time the baby latched on their way over.
They didn’t have a good reason to delay the first feeding, and it was important for mom and baby.
But it had been stressful and messy, and they hadn’t done it properly.
Scarlet was going to teach them how to properly feed now that they had space and privacy.
“Thanks, Scarlet,” Peony smiled, putting a hand to her belly. Flat again since Scarlet had sped up the process of her uterus shrinking back down to size. “I’ll love him even if he does turn prematurely gray. He’s my boy. And he’s wonderful.”
Scarlet smiled. “Well, actually, his cells show no signs of fatigue at all. Not when he changed color to the bed, or the new blanket, or my skin tone. For the domini, there’s always a little bit of fatigue when their cells change color. It’s normal, and it goes away, but he’s not experiencing any.”
Peony laughed, sniffing a bit from her high emotions. “Told you. He’s perfect.”
“Do you have a name I can put in the system for him?”
Peony looked to Atem. His entire face softened as he hummed in affirmation. His head lifted and his shoulders set proudly as he declared, “Our son shall be named Viktor Hoffman Astani.”
Scarlet was already adding it to his medical profile even as she smiled. “You gave him a human name?”
“Actually,” Peony chuckled, “It’s a human and domini name. ‘Victor’ means winner in our language, but in ancient Domtri, ‘viktor’ means ‘understanding’. Hoffman is my family name. Astani is Atem’s clan name. He’ll keep them both until he earns his own name later.”
Scarlet beamed at them, oddly touched by how much thought had gone into the name. He wasn’t even her child, but the hybrid pup was still probably going to be her legacy. That Peony and Atem chose to honor him with a dual species name made her happy.
“That’s a great name,” she said, picking the pup from the bed. He immediately attempted to curl into a ball in her arms. “Not as good as Steve, but it’ll do.”
“I will kill anyone who calls my baby ‘Steve’,” Peony said, looking for all the world like she was perfectly serious.
Scarlet was laughing as she passed Viktor to his father.
Atem immediately lifted him up and pressed him against his neck.
Reflexively, the pup curled up again. Only, instead of turning into a ball, he turned into a ring.
Arms locked into place, his tail curled up and around, his little face pressed into the back of Atem’s neck.
Scarlet had already explained to Peony that this was how domini babies held onto their parents, but she still looked concerned when Atem lowered his hands.
Baby Viktor’s grip remained strong though, and he immediately started to doze again.
Once the mediring finished healing Peony, she was only too happy to rush back to her nest. The pup was out, but Scarlet hadn’t reset Peony’s hormones back to normal.
Not only would that take much too long, but it would likely interfere with breastfeeding and normal healing.
So, her domini instincts hadn’t fully worn off yet.
Scarlet followed and taught Peony how to breastfeed.
Viktor latched immediately and, with some instruction, they soon had him drinking properly until his little belly was firm.
Scarlet then checked him over one last time before telling the new mom and dad that she was going to be in her room if they needed anything.
Then, finally, at last, she could find her bed and collapse.
She had only taken a few steps into her room, however, when she spotted Havali rising from one of the lounge seats in her common area.
“Hey,” she smiled, barely any energy in it. Now that she wasn’t around Peony and Atem, she didn’t feel the need to act more alert than she actually was.
Havali said nothing at first. He approached and carefully examined her face before suddenly bending low and scooping her up into his arms.
“I can walk,” she protested, chuckling, even as she put her arms around his neck.
“You are tired, Healer. Let’s get you to bed.”
That sounded magnificent, so she didn’t argue as he set her on the side of her bed and began pulling off the simple robe she had pulled over her body suit when she got back.
Her skirt that Peony had claimed for her nest in the orbital was still in Peony’s possession and she didn’t want to bother asking for it back.
She honestly didn’t want the outfit anymore; it was probably ruined.
Once undressed, Havali carried her to the shower and, like they had just finished having sex, began washing her body for her. She wasn’t in a blissed out, submissive mind state like she was after sex, but it still felt incredible to have him care for her.
“How is Peony and the pup?” He asked as he rinsed the soap from her hair.
Scarlet hummed contentedly, smiling. “They’re wonderful. Getting a well-deserved nap. They both worked hard today.”
“They are not the only ones.” He kissed her cheek sweetly before rinsing off her body. The same soap that was used on her hair was used on her skin, and it felt incredible. Trust aliens to master three-in-one technology. “I always knew you were impressive, Healer, but what you did today…”
“Peony did most of it, I promise.”
“No. I will not let you dismiss your own efforts. I am used to modern medicine. I’ve never seen a female give birth without the aid of it before.
Peony was amazing, I will not deny.” He paused, shuddering a bit.
“I could not have imagined that… Anyway, never mind. The point is, she would have been lost without you. The birth would have been more traumatic. None of us would have known what to do. Healer, you were irreplaceable.”
Scarlet found she was holding her breath as her heart skipped in its chest.
He had not only called her healer, he had called her irreplaceable.
Being pretty was all well and good, but throughout her pageant years, there was always this strange, strangling undercurrent of understanding that they all worked under.
None of them were irreplaceable, and all of them had expiration dates.
Youth and beauty didn’t last forever, and nothing they did wasn’t something that another beautiful girl couldn’t do just as well.
This was the first time that someone had called Scarlet irreplaceable. And it was because of her efforts, not her looks. She had done something. Something valuable and meaningful that served a real, tangible purpose.
And the recognition made tears well up as she threw her arms around Havali’s neck. She held him tight, sniffing discreetly. He hesitated only a second, out of surprise, before he returned the embrace, nuzzling into her hair.
“It was always your choice, of course, but I understand now why you do not want to get pregnant so quickly. It is something I want dearly, but you are right to delay it as long as you need. Or if you never want to go through that at all, I understand.”