Playing around with little Air dragon hybrids didn't cheer Chiya up. Not significantly, and not for very long. In fact, her longing expressions and heavy sighs only seemed to get worse. Ketvia couldn't understand it, but it wasn't getting any better. To be blunt, it was disturbing, seeing her friendly friend so sad, and Ketvia wanted to find some way to help. The trouble was, she didn't have any idea how to help.

Aedelian and his mate, Vyly, were both friendly and didn't mind putting them up for a few weeks, since Ketvia insisted on paying them for the privilage. They didn't have much else to spend their Guard stipend on, really, since for most of the year they lived in Guard barracks and ate Guard food, on Tris'Hath. Ketvia found Vyly rather fun, for she was a young sort of mother, and acted more like a sister to her two kits than an actual mother. The Fire wondered, amused, if Aedelian felt like he was looking after three children, rather than just two, sometimes.

The two guests had plenty of fun playing babysitter for the two kits, Chiya's strange sadness notwithstanding. Or, at least, Ketvia did, and thought Chiya did. There was bronze Dyva, who really did seem like she'd grow up to be something of a diva, and black Audaxo, who, though a laid back sort in general, still enjoyed rough-housing with Ketvia as much as listening to and watching Chiya's stories-made-real with illusion. Not much ever got past Aedelian, though-- when one had no concept of "privacy" and very strong psionics, not even thoughts were safe-- and he drew Ketvia aside after only a week.

"You know, I think I might have something that will help your friend, Ketvia," he told her without preamble. "If you don't mind taking an extended vacation from adventuring, that is."

"Don't tell me you're going to fix her up with some man," Ketvia warned with a growl. "She doesn't want a mate."

"Yes, I know, and you don't want her to find a mate, either." Aedelian looked far too smug when he said that; Ketvia had to resist the urge to whack him with a closed fist.

"What? She's my partner; as much as I hate to say it, I'm dependent on her. We make a good team, anyway." Leaving Chiya behind with someone else, while she went out to vanquish evil all by herself, was just plain out of the question. Even leaving Chiya behind without someone else was better than that. But still not something she wanted to do. 

"Well, I didn't plan on playing matchmaker, anyway," Aedelian replied, brushing aside her excuses. "I know of a way for her to have children without having to have a male's help. Well, not in that sense, anyway." Ketvia coughed pointedly, suggesting without words that he get to the point. He smirked at her. "There's a man named Doctor Schroeder in a space ship orbiting the station who offers his services as a gene artisan and amniomancer, of sorts, to dragons who otherwise would not be able to have children. This is including barren pairs, same-sex pairs, situations meriting multiple parenthood, physically incompatible species, and even unpaired dragons."

"Gene artisan?" Ketvia repeated suspiciously. "He's a daemon?"

"Oh no, no," Aedelian chuckled. "He's human. His artisanry and amniomancy isn't magic, really, it's technology. Genetics and synthesis."

"Say what?" Ketvia said blankly.

"He can give Chiya children," Aedelian explained more simply, "without her needing a mate or even going into heat to do so. I would be glad to take her to his ship and apply, if that's what you both want. I would have already mentioned it to her, but I didn't know what you thought on the matter."

Ketvia didn't know what she thought of the matter. "So Chiya'd have kits."

"Mmmhmm."

"Real, honest to gods, blood-related kits."

"Mmmhmm."

"I've gotta think about this," Ketvia muttered.

"Take your time," Aedelian chuckled. "But not too much time. You'll want to time it so that you can say she simply got pregnant, and take leave from the Guard for that."

"Right, right," Ketvia snorted; she could have told him that. "I'll get back to you well before then."

"You do that," Aedelian replied, looking far too satisfied for her comfort, and left her to think.

It was Ketvia who broached the subject with Chiya. She still didn't know her own feelings on the subject, but Chiya's thoughts figured considerably in what her decision would be. It would be pointless to come to the decision that she'd like to help Chiya raise a couple kits, only to find out that this particular method was entirely disgusting to the Light dragoness, after all. So, after treating her friend to a nice dinner at one of the many, many restaurants on the crowded, metal station-place, she cleared her throat and asked, "So... you wanna have kits, you said?"

Chiya blinked at her, presumably for the odd subject matter. Ketvia hardly ever talked about that, and for good reason: it made her uncomfortable to think of Chiya tending a hoard of little brats, with a mate doting on her, and not in small part because she was certain Chiya would be quite happy to be nothing but a mother. Since Ketvia was selfish on top of all her other faults, she didn't want to encourage that particular outcome, so she didn't talk about Chiya's newly-admitted dream of motherhood.

"Well... yes. But it just doesn't seem possible...."

"What if it were?" Ketvia asked, tracing a claw along whorls in the fake wood tabletop. "What if you could have a kit or two, no mate needed? Would you do it?"

"What are you talking about?" Chiya asked, frowning. "That's not possible."

"It is," Ketvia said, eyes still on her claws on the tabletop. "'Del told me about this place called Abstract Destiny, where they'll give you kits, mate or no mate. It's some kind of gene artisanry-amniomancy sort of thing, only without the magic part. I don't really understand it, but 'Del says it's had two batches of gene-manipulated little mutts, so far, and it's open for more...."

"Oh, that would be so...." Chiya's voice trailed off mid-sigh, and she looked solemnly at Ketvia. "But I shouldn't. We're at war, we're due back in two months...."

"Pah. You just tell them you got pregnant. It's sort of true. They're not going to make a pregnant mage fight. They're not going to make a pregnant mage do anything; you know how hard having kits can be."

"What about you?"

Ketvia shrugged awkwardly. "What about me?"

"What do you think about this?"

"I don't know yet," Ketvia answered truthfully. "I just want you to be happy, that's all, and you haven't been."

Chiya reached over and stilled her restless claws, taking her hand. "Will you stay with me? Help me, maybe?"

There was, of course, only one thing to say to that; Ketvia squeezed her partner's fingers and grinned. "If you want me there, wild demons couldn't keep me away."

Chapter Three

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