After the jam-packed weekend that had seen Neville attacked by a crazed werewolf, meet his long-lost brother, and move in with Demeter, things had begun to settle into a routine for the engaged pair. With Neville working later in the day, Demi had arranged with her current clients later sessions, which seemed to work out well for all involved, and gave her plenty of time in the mornings to spend with her mate before they went their separate ways. Evenings were quiet affairs, shared once or twice with Dorian and Seren, both brothers seemingly intent upon getting to know one another.
This evening, however, belonged entirely to them. Wednesdays were easier on Neville, with only a matinee performance to handle, which meant he was usually home before Demi. Today, he'd had other errands to run, and so, she was home before him, dancing barefoot around their tiny kitchen in her pajamas as she whipped up a very quick dinner of tortellini and sauce for them to share when he got home.
It wasn't every day you met a twin you never knew or were attacked by a werewolf because of it, but Neville had somehow managed to put it past him, as much as he could, and move on. Or at least, so it seemed on the surface. He had too much to be happy for, but that didn't mean he was going to ignore his brother's warning or his own past. He needed to know more, if only for his own peace of mind - hence, his errands following the matinee. Whatever his findings, he made sure to make it home before dinner, smiling to find Demi in her pajamas and the smell of dinner cooking on the stove.
She was already smiling at the door when it opened, attuned to his scent and the sound of his footsteps. "Hey there, gorgeous, how's it hanging?" she greeted him fondly, bouncing over to throw her arms around his neck and kiss him soundly by way of hello.
"You're a sight for sore eyes," he told her, his arms going around her waist - a strange thing to say for someone who'd only been away from her for a few hours. He'd left his coat and shoes near the door and was dressed casually in jeans and a shirt, but he was still overdressed compared to her. He returned her kiss, happy for her greeting and even happier to be home. It had been a long day.
"What, even scandalously underdressed?" she teased cheerfully, combing her fingers through his short hair. "I promise, I pulled the curtains before I stripped. I know you're not happy about Mr. Clark getting an eyeful of me."
Neville snorted. "Mr. Clark can order a lingerie catalog if he wants an eyeful. That's all he's gonna get. Do I need to report him to the Watch?" he asked, reaching around behind her to pop a crouton into his mouth, one arm never leaving her waist.
"Like the Watch is going to do anything about a ninety year old man who sometimes can't look away from the naked woman across the street," Demi pointed out with a wicked grin. "But ....I did make arrangements for us to visit a couple of places on Sunday. Places of the penthouse variety."
"Oh, a penthouse," he said, sounding impressed, until he realized something with a frown. "Sounds expensive." Though he figured if she was considering a penthouse, they must be able to afford it. At least, they had two incomes to put toward it, not just one.
"Hey." She tapped the end of his nose. "Our home, our money, remember" What's the point of me having a stupid amount in an account that I never touch, when we can use it to set ourselves up for life?"
"Yes, but ..." Neville trailed off, frowning, unsure if he should say what was on his mind, though he'd never been one to keep things from her before. He moved over to pour himself a cup of coffee, more out of habit than anything else. "What if we decide to have children someday?"
Demi smiled, watching him ease his way around her as much as the topic on his mind. "You know, I had that thought myself," she told him softly, moving to strain the pasta and split it between their dishes. "So I looked at a few houses, too. I know we didn't talk about getting a house, but ....well, if we have kids, we should at least have space and a garden, right?"
Neither of them were old, by any means, but they weren't getting any younger either. If they were going to think about moving, maybe they should be thinking long-term, but it wasn't that simple. "I saw the doctor today," he told her, his back turned as he fixed his coffee, stirring far longer than necessary.
She paused, glancing over at him. It wasn't like Neville to avoid looking at her, but there was only one thing that he would react like this to. "Waiting on test results?" she asked gently, her own eyes on her task as she split the rich sauce between the two dishes in front of her.
"Yeah," he replied, unsure what else to say to that. After all, he'd already asked her to turn him if he happened to share his brother's illness, but it was something they hadn't really discussed much since then. There was a lot they hadn't discussed. He took a swallow of his coffee before turning back around to face her, taking a lean against the counter while she spooned out the pasta. "I haven't changed my mind, you know."
Demeter considered this for a moment. "And I'm not going to argue with you," she assured him finally, turning back to set their meal on the table. "But right now, it's all theoretical. There's no guarantee that you will develop the disease, or that you even have the genetic markers that suggest you might. Neville, I'm not saying no. I'd never say no to you. But it's a big change, and you need to be sure."
"If I get sick," he clarified. He wasn't asking her to change him, unless it was completely necessary. "I wouldn't ask you to do it otherwise," he said, as he pushed off the counter to follow her to the table. "What do you think about having kids?" he asked, as he pulled out a chair for her.
Smiling at his gentlemanly manners, she slipped down into the seat he held out for her. "Thank you. And ....Neville, you don't need to have reason to want the change beyond wanting it," she tried to explain. "But it's a frightening process, and I do understand that it's a lot to absorb. Whether you do or you don't, I'm not going anywhere." Which led to his question. Demi smiled a little shyly. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't want kids someday."
Once she was settled, he claimed a seat for himself, taking another sip of his coffee before setting the cup on the table. "Can we have them?" he asked. "Is it possible?" He wasn't really sure, all things considered, and for some reason, they hadn't even discussed it until now.
She nodded, her shy smile still there and touched with hope. "It's very possible," she assured him quietly. "Most weres, at some point in the generational cycle, will breed with humans. Our children ....they wouldn't be human. They'd be werecats, but they wouldn't exhibit any ability to change their shape until they reached puberty. And they'd be born as multiples, as a litter. No less than two at a time."
That made sense, he supposed, since as a werecat, she was a little of both - human and feline. "But what if I'm turned" What then?" Would they still be able to have children if he were to become a cat, too' What about his brother and Seren, or even Marissa and Emrys" Now, there was a question, as the latter couple was two different breeds of lycan. What would a coupling like that produce?
"Then it's the same thing," Demi shrugged. "If you're turned, our children would be werecats. It might even be easier to conceive, but like I said, it's not impossible for us to conceive right now." She looked at him over her loaded fork. "You know, you never actually said if you want children."
This evening, however, belonged entirely to them. Wednesdays were easier on Neville, with only a matinee performance to handle, which meant he was usually home before Demi. Today, he'd had other errands to run, and so, she was home before him, dancing barefoot around their tiny kitchen in her pajamas as she whipped up a very quick dinner of tortellini and sauce for them to share when he got home.
It wasn't every day you met a twin you never knew or were attacked by a werewolf because of it, but Neville had somehow managed to put it past him, as much as he could, and move on. Or at least, so it seemed on the surface. He had too much to be happy for, but that didn't mean he was going to ignore his brother's warning or his own past. He needed to know more, if only for his own peace of mind - hence, his errands following the matinee. Whatever his findings, he made sure to make it home before dinner, smiling to find Demi in her pajamas and the smell of dinner cooking on the stove.
She was already smiling at the door when it opened, attuned to his scent and the sound of his footsteps. "Hey there, gorgeous, how's it hanging?" she greeted him fondly, bouncing over to throw her arms around his neck and kiss him soundly by way of hello.
"You're a sight for sore eyes," he told her, his arms going around her waist - a strange thing to say for someone who'd only been away from her for a few hours. He'd left his coat and shoes near the door and was dressed casually in jeans and a shirt, but he was still overdressed compared to her. He returned her kiss, happy for her greeting and even happier to be home. It had been a long day.
"What, even scandalously underdressed?" she teased cheerfully, combing her fingers through his short hair. "I promise, I pulled the curtains before I stripped. I know you're not happy about Mr. Clark getting an eyeful of me."
Neville snorted. "Mr. Clark can order a lingerie catalog if he wants an eyeful. That's all he's gonna get. Do I need to report him to the Watch?" he asked, reaching around behind her to pop a crouton into his mouth, one arm never leaving her waist.
"Like the Watch is going to do anything about a ninety year old man who sometimes can't look away from the naked woman across the street," Demi pointed out with a wicked grin. "But ....I did make arrangements for us to visit a couple of places on Sunday. Places of the penthouse variety."
"Oh, a penthouse," he said, sounding impressed, until he realized something with a frown. "Sounds expensive." Though he figured if she was considering a penthouse, they must be able to afford it. At least, they had two incomes to put toward it, not just one.
"Hey." She tapped the end of his nose. "Our home, our money, remember" What's the point of me having a stupid amount in an account that I never touch, when we can use it to set ourselves up for life?"
"Yes, but ..." Neville trailed off, frowning, unsure if he should say what was on his mind, though he'd never been one to keep things from her before. He moved over to pour himself a cup of coffee, more out of habit than anything else. "What if we decide to have children someday?"
Demi smiled, watching him ease his way around her as much as the topic on his mind. "You know, I had that thought myself," she told him softly, moving to strain the pasta and split it between their dishes. "So I looked at a few houses, too. I know we didn't talk about getting a house, but ....well, if we have kids, we should at least have space and a garden, right?"
Neither of them were old, by any means, but they weren't getting any younger either. If they were going to think about moving, maybe they should be thinking long-term, but it wasn't that simple. "I saw the doctor today," he told her, his back turned as he fixed his coffee, stirring far longer than necessary.
She paused, glancing over at him. It wasn't like Neville to avoid looking at her, but there was only one thing that he would react like this to. "Waiting on test results?" she asked gently, her own eyes on her task as she split the rich sauce between the two dishes in front of her.
"Yeah," he replied, unsure what else to say to that. After all, he'd already asked her to turn him if he happened to share his brother's illness, but it was something they hadn't really discussed much since then. There was a lot they hadn't discussed. He took a swallow of his coffee before turning back around to face her, taking a lean against the counter while she spooned out the pasta. "I haven't changed my mind, you know."
Demeter considered this for a moment. "And I'm not going to argue with you," she assured him finally, turning back to set their meal on the table. "But right now, it's all theoretical. There's no guarantee that you will develop the disease, or that you even have the genetic markers that suggest you might. Neville, I'm not saying no. I'd never say no to you. But it's a big change, and you need to be sure."
"If I get sick," he clarified. He wasn't asking her to change him, unless it was completely necessary. "I wouldn't ask you to do it otherwise," he said, as he pushed off the counter to follow her to the table. "What do you think about having kids?" he asked, as he pulled out a chair for her.
Smiling at his gentlemanly manners, she slipped down into the seat he held out for her. "Thank you. And ....Neville, you don't need to have reason to want the change beyond wanting it," she tried to explain. "But it's a frightening process, and I do understand that it's a lot to absorb. Whether you do or you don't, I'm not going anywhere." Which led to his question. Demi smiled a little shyly. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't want kids someday."
Once she was settled, he claimed a seat for himself, taking another sip of his coffee before setting the cup on the table. "Can we have them?" he asked. "Is it possible?" He wasn't really sure, all things considered, and for some reason, they hadn't even discussed it until now.
She nodded, her shy smile still there and touched with hope. "It's very possible," she assured him quietly. "Most weres, at some point in the generational cycle, will breed with humans. Our children ....they wouldn't be human. They'd be werecats, but they wouldn't exhibit any ability to change their shape until they reached puberty. And they'd be born as multiples, as a litter. No less than two at a time."
That made sense, he supposed, since as a werecat, she was a little of both - human and feline. "But what if I'm turned" What then?" Would they still be able to have children if he were to become a cat, too' What about his brother and Seren, or even Marissa and Emrys" Now, there was a question, as the latter couple was two different breeds of lycan. What would a coupling like that produce?
"Then it's the same thing," Demi shrugged. "If you're turned, our children would be werecats. It might even be easier to conceive, but like I said, it's not impossible for us to conceive right now." She looked at him over her loaded fork. "You know, you never actually said if you want children."