Chapter Text
After dinner with William's parents, things settled into a sort of routine. Since neither had classes for a while anymore, work was at the forefront for William while Markus hopefully healed. When he heard there was a chance he wouldn't recover he was worried about his boyfriend and the babies and what it meant for his job, but he was feeling stronger every day so he was hopeful things would work out.
In the meantime, Nolan had come to invite his son from another dimension to his coronation. "It's mandatory for all Viltrumites," he told Markus.
Markus hummed thoughtfully. "Does that mean William has to attend as well? His morning sickness has gotten pretty bad."
Nolan frowned in confusion. "Isn't he a human?"
Ah. So he didn't know. "Uh, not really," Markus answered, feeling awkward. His alternate father raised a brow, silently telling him to explain. "See, in my dimension, someone developed a serum for William. It was supposed to go to the one in my universe, but since he was murdered and I came here… anyways, yeah I don't know the specifics but William is part Viltrumite as well, now."
"That's amazing, Markus. Could we possibly recreate that serum?" Nolan asked.
"I assume Cecil has already tried here, but has probably failed since the person who did help create it died in my universe and all his papers and research was destroyed. Besides," he added. "Can you imagine giving it to a bunch of humans? What would be the process to make sure they won't abuse the power they'll have? I'm sorry, but I think it's just better to not try to do it."
Nolan was silent for a moment. "No, you're right. It's probably for the best. I can make an exception for William not attending the coronation, if he wishes. But I would like to see him, and you as well, more often. Your father in your world was not fair to you, and I'm not asking to replace him, but at least offer you some support here. These are also technically my grandchildren as well, after all. If you prefer, we can have our doctors look after William— they're far more advanced than Earth's doctors," he offered.
Markus chuckled, thinking of his boyfriend. "Don't let William hear that, he wants to become a doctor someday. I'll talk to him about it."
"My coronation is in a week's time, on our base on the moon."
"One more thing. Can I ask what you're planning to do with Thragg?"
Nolan gave a brief sigh. "He would rather I kill him than face exile. I fear what he might do, but we have to set an example. I don't want any more violence for our people, and that includes even the likes of him."
"Just be careful, okay? We want peace but sometimes forces work against us and demand we respond to their violence with our own. I don't think someone like him will take this thing lying down— he'll be back, and you should be prepared," warned Markus.
Nolan paused, searching this version of his son's face closely. "Do you know something? Anything from your own world?" He eventually asked.
Markus shook his head. "No, not much. It's just a feeling, is all. Maybe it's because I'm going to be a father," he shrugged.
Nolan's face softened. "I wish you luck in that; I'm sure you'll do better than I, or your own father, ever tried to do. But do keep in mind that you are in line for the throne, especially with two children borne of a similar half Viltrumite partner. You and your family are royalty, like it or not now that we know Argall's blood run through our veins."
Markus made a face. "I hope you live a long time because I really am not sure about all that."
"It's not so bad. And William can study being a doctor from new schools with better technologies, if you're worried about leaving Earth. But this is our adoptive planet now, and while we will be on missions to end the reign of Thragg, this is part of our home, too," Nolan reminded him.
"I'll think about it, but make sure you talk with Mark as well."
"Oh he's even more reluctant to take the throne than you are, but I know that you two can figure it out if need be. But for now, you are my successor. It's unofficial but soon enough our people will know."
"Not looking forward to that," Markus grumbled, but waved goodbye with a smile nonetheless, watching Nolan fly off. "Does that make William a prince consort or something? Shit, wait, we should get married first, right? When's a good time to propose??" Damn, now he wished Nolan had stayed just a little longer. Who else could he talk to? Mark, maybe?
Ugh, this was so not the time to have a crisis. Or no, maybe it was— they were both powerless right now and could make the time to talk. And since William would be working for a while, maybe now would be a good time for that conversation to happen.
William at work was having a bit of a hard time. He was tired and nauseous and his pants were getting too tight— he was about three months along and already had a noticeable bump. He'd been reduced to wearing sweatpants except for work as he had a uniform, and the discussion with his boss was not very pleasant or productive, but they couldn't fire him just for being pregnant at least. He'd have to pay for new pants every so often and he'd probably have to be careful not to mess up orders (more so than usual) but otherwise work went on as usual.
He was glancing at the clock, counting down the time he had left before he could leave, when a familiar person walked in.
"Hey William!" It was Amber, and she greeted him with a friendly wave. "Things have been busy for us lately but I figured I could drop in and order a coffee, see how you were doing."
"Yeah, things have been getting pretty wild these days. I'll have to tell you about it later, but for now, what can I get you?"
Amber rattled off her order and William went to work on it. No one else had stopped by so they weren't too busy yet, but some things would have to be explained in detail at some point. He noticed her sharp eyes went to his midsection when he moved back as yeah, if you knew him well, it would be surprising to see. He decided to address it first.
"As you may have noticed, I've gained a bit of weight. I've decided to keep them, and it's twins. That's why I'm showing right now. I meant to say earlier, but," he looked around, sure nobody was eavesdropping. "I was kinda kidnapped for a bit and I just wanted to experience some normalcy before I said anything. My parents were just barely told, actually," he told her, voice pitched low.
Her eyes widened in alarm. The door to the shop opened but neither paid any mind to it. "But you're okay now, right? You and the —did you say twins? Wow."
William nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, we're doing better now. It was really scary for a while there, but luckily the person who kidnapped us had a change of heart and saved us again. I had to drop out this semester though, which sucks, but I'll continue my studies later." He gave her drink to her while he rang her up and told her the total.
Amber handed her card over. "I'm glad you got it sorted out and that you're all doing well. I was worried about you, you know. I'll try to keep in touch better as well, especially with those babies on the way— you can count on me to babysit some times for you."
"Really? That would be amazing, I'm sure we could use that but are you sure?" He asked worriedly while processing her order and gave her card back.
"I'm sure it'll be fine, I do have some experience, you know." Amber glanced over at the customer that had walked in a bit ago, now in line. "Oh shit," she whispered.
"What— oh, shit," he repeated.
It was Rick who had walked through the door, standing nearby with wide eyes and looking straight at William.
"I'll um… I'll just take a seat over here if you need me," Amber hurriedly said, rushing to sit down and keep an eye on things.
It's not that William was worried, exactly, but Rick had avoided him after their first friend outing and ignored him pretty much since then. He figured that maybe Rick still had things to work through, but they no longer kept in touch. This was sure to be awkward. How did he miss Rick earlier when he was checking that nobody was close enough earlier?
"Uh, hi, Rick."
"You're… Amber said something about twins?" Rick choked out. "When did…"
"Ah," William replied, placing a hand on his stomach. "It's recent. About three months along. So…" he drawled when Rick didn't say anything. "Can I get you anything?"
Rick mumbled something William couldn't hear.
"Come again?" He asked.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to listen in, but when I entered I just couldn't help myself. You were kidnapped and you're pregnant? I broke up with you because I thought you'd be happier, safer, but now—"
"Woah, hold on there, Rick!" William said, holding his hands up in a placating gesture. "Just calm down, things are okay, the babies are Markus', and we're excited for this. Trust me, I wasn't even in danger for very long! That doesn't sound too much better but seriously it wasn't even like two full days I don't think. I wasn't hurt, well I mean, look, it's fine now, okay?" He rambled, seeing Rick's guilt was making him feel anxious so he took a breath. "I'm okay. The babies are okay. Markus is okay. It wasn't your fault."
"But you had to drop out of school! If I had stayed with you, this wouldn't have happened."
"Excuse me?" William asked incredulously, hand on his hip and angry now. "What are you implying?"
Rick was the one trying to placate now. "I just mean you probably wouldn't be pregnant and have to drop out of school! I would have been more careful."
In the corner of his eye, William saw Amber shaking her head at Rick's words. Yeah, Rick was being kinda stupid, but to be fair he did just hear some shocking news about someone he used to really care about. Might still care about, it seems.
"Accidents happen, Rick," he said blandly, trying not to get into an argument with a potential customer. He was still at work, after all. And on that note… "look, I'm working, so can I get you anything to drink? I can't really chat right now."
"Just… be careful with Markus. Stuff he says can really get under your skin. Make sure you aren't making any mistakes, William."
"Good bye, Rick." There was more he wanted to say but his manager would be on his ass if he wasn't careful. Like, what did he mean by that? And they're mine to make, and I'll own them, as a rebuttal. But Rick turned around and walked out before he lost his composure.
"Ugh," William moaned, hand rubbing his forehead. He felt a headache coming on.
"Yikes," agreed Amber. "Wonder what he meant by that, though."
A conversation he had had with Markus previously came to his mind. "I have an idea, but honestly? I don't think it's anything ominous. Rick was kind of a mess on account of you-know-who and all that, and while I had thought he was getting better, he was just getting better at hiding his emotions from me. I don't think we would have lasted for very long. Markus already mentioned something about it, but I think Rick just feels unnecessary guilt and is lashing out."
"Probably. So long as you and Markus are on the same page."
"Yeah, oddly enough he felt like he had also caused the break up but if anything he just exposed the cracks. Rick was adamant on leaving me, Markus was insistent on giving me space, so there's nothing to worry about. I feel good about things, but maybe it wouldn't hurt to have a conversation again."
"It's weird hearing your voice over the phone like this. Is that what I really sound like?" Mark asked.
"Dude, come on," Markus whined, curling up on his couch. "Don't give me a hard time. I'm already first in line to the throne!"
"Ha ha! Sucks to be you," Mark teased. "But seriously, I'm sure you'll be great at it. I just want to be normal for once. Sorry Dad kinda sprang it on you like that, though. I think he'll be glad to have another kid around, one he didn't traumatize, and I know he'll love the grandkids. He's really changed and you and William are gonna be spoiled. At least William will— I don't know when the last time twins were born in the empire."
Markus hummed, thinking back to that morning when he saw his boyfriend's swelling stomach. He was enthralled by it, that there was tangible proof already. William had grumbled a bit and pushed him away to go throw up not long after they woke up, but it just made Markus love him even more for willing to go through the perils of pregnancy. It wasn't just for Markus, but it was for their kids.
"He deserves it," Markus sighed. "Morning sickness is really giving him a hard time right now."
"Oh, he hates throwing up. I'm surprised he decided to keep them because of it, but he's always wanted kids someday anyway," mused his alternate. "Better now than later, I guess. He'll be about 21 when he gives birth. You doing anything for his birthday?"
"Kinda what I called to talk about, actually. Before we got sidetracked. William is essentially going to be a like, King with me, right? Consort or something, whatever. When is a good time do you think to propose?"
"Woah, moving kinda fast, huh? Or maybe not," Mark quickly said. "You guys have been together, what, almost a year by now? Why not do it on your anniversary?"
"That's in just a month! I don't even know what kind of ring he'd want. I don't even know if he'd want a ring at all," groaned Markus. "Besides, shouldn't it not be a surprise? Like thinking about marriage, I mean. What if he's not ready yet?"
A thoughtful hum through the phone. "I don't know, man. I guess you're right. This kind of stuff is complicated. Eve and I have been together longer and we've never even had that talk, actually. We probably should though. I'm sorry I'm not of more help," Mark apologized. "This is the sort of thing I would probably talk to my mom about."
"You're right. I miss my mom a lot. Wish I could ask her for advice. You're pretty lucky your dad was closer to human than mine ever was," he sighed out. He was pretty jealous, actually— while this Debbie wasn't hostile to him and did defend him to Mark a bit, that was pretty much the only interaction they'd had.
"Well she might be around more since William's pregnant. He's practically part of our family so you are by extension. She'll probably want to throw him a baby shower even, with his mom of course."
"I appreciate that. Maybe I'll get to know her soon, then. Thanks, even if you don't know exactly what to say, you at least know people who do," Markus laughed.
"Hey!"
That afternoon, when William finally got off work, he dropped on the couch exhausted. He'd been feeling nauseous all day, as well as tired. What Rick had said to him worried him a bit, but not fully. It got him thinking about the future. They were almost moved in together, but were waiting for Markus to feel better before moving any of the heavy stuff. William also wasn't allowed to help much despite his powers not really being affected, he was just tired a lot.
Markus greeted his boyfriend and fussed over him. "You want anything? Water, tea, food?"
William shook his head. "I just want to rest for now. Today was exhausting."
Markus rubbed William's neck, giving him a little massage. William's headache eased up and he sighed gratefully. "That's amazing, thanks." Things were quiet for a bit as Markus gently massaged his partner.
"Hey, so I ran into a couple people today. Amber says hi, and she's caught up to date now. And um.. Rick also stopped by." William spoke slowly.
"Oh? How's he doing?" No pausing the rubbing, no hesitation— just continuation and curiosity.
William hummed, closing his eyes. "He was shocked to learn I'm knocked up. Says he feels guilty, like if he hadn't broken up with me I wouldn't be pregnant."
Now the massage stopped. "But it was an accident. You saw me put on the condom."
William opened his eyes and yawned. "And I forgot my pills. It's not just your fault, plus it was my decision to keep them. No, but he did imply that you were somehow behind us breaking up, me and Rick, I mean." It was casual, off-handed, because he wasn't worried.
"I kind of was?" Markus winced. "I didn't tell him or threaten him, he came up to me and told me to keep my hands to myself. I apologized for sleeping with you, wished you both well, even though I knew it was bugging him. And I wasn't really sorry about sleeping with you but he didn't need to know that."
"Okay, nothing too bad so far," William admitted. "And yes, I know you weren't sorry about the act itself at first. But you did try to smooth things over."
"But…" Markus bit his lip. "I did want you two to break up. He asked me about the serum, I told him it shouldn't have made you need to sleep with anyone, and that it would make you like me, part Viltrumite. I could see that troubled him but didn't follow up, he just left."
William sighed. "That's it? You didn't try to make it sound like we were, I don't know, fated to be together, or that he was wrong for me?"
Markus shook his head. "No, I promise. I just said I wanted your happiness. I knew it was bothering him but that's it. I did hope he would break up with you, but that's it."
"Well if that's all—"
"I mean, if we're being honest, I did go to some of your favorite places in the hopes of seeing you to make sure you were okay but I never approached you. I didn't want to seem like a creeper."
William huffed out a laugh, sitting up now. "Okay, well you kind of were one if you were stalking me, but I appreciate you not talking to me at first. No, I shouldn't give you that out— it's not okay to stalk people. I don't care what you were feeling, what trauma you went through, you should have respected my privacy."
"I'm sorry. I do regret my actions if it means anything," Markus muttered, bowing his head.
"Well, I'm frankly too tired to care anymore. I do know how hard you've worked to change and I appreciate that. I also thank you for being totally honest with me, but I think I'm going to need some space for tonight. Don't look like a kicked puppy," he said, frowning at his boyfriend's sad face. "I'm just frustrated that it took you this long to tell me, and that's not okay you stalked me at all. It's just for tonight, and I'll sleep at my place. We aren't breaking up, I'm not getting an abortion, I just want my space. Got it?"
Markus nodded solemnly. "I'm sorry."
William held up a hand. "Not tonight, okay? Just help me up off this couch and we'll talk tomorrow."