When Michiru awoke the next morning, she watched Haruka sleeping quietly beside her. The blonde looked peaceful with her lips slightly parted. It was a scene that had been repeated many times over the past several hundred years. This particular morning, Michiru couldn't stop her thoughts from going over the intimate details of the night before. Tucked in her heart were the sweet love words Haruka had whispered to her in low, heated tones as they had consummated their marriage. Lovemaking with Haruka was always a joy but last night had been so beautiful. With a tiny start, Michiru noticed that tender teal eyes were now gazing lovingly at her face. "Good morning,"she whispered. Her new wife stretched, not caring that the sheet fell away uncovering her magnificent nudity. "What would you like to do today?"she asked softly as the blonde settled back against the pillow. Haruka rolled on her side. "Let's just stay in bed,"she whispered huskily as her finger lightly trailed over the curve of Michiru's breast. Several moments later things had grown quite heated. Michiru's closed eyes flew open and focused on her mate who was now above her. "I know you said you were going to "nap"all day . . . every day when you retired,"Michiru gasped out, "but I didn't think you were serious." Haruka grinned and bit her earlobe. "Very serious,"she purred, but it was muffled as she began to kiss down between Michiru's breasts. Six months of wedded bliss passed before Michiru had even fully realized it. Time slipped by for the violinist with idyllic days full or concerts, painting, and shopping. Meanwhile, Haruka was keeping herself busy with tai chi and other projects. While home one evening, they were viewing a televised running event that Haruka had been following in the paper. They watched a much-talked about sprinter take first place. "She's good,"said Michiru, taking a small sip of tea. "Her trainer should correct that form,"the blonde said matter-of-factly. "It will only slow her down in a longer distance run." "Haruka, have you ever thought about coaching?" Michiru turned to face her surprised mate. "Professionally?" "Maybe on the college level." Haruka shrugged. "I don't know . . . " In all honesty she had become aware of a call inside herself that she wouldn't be able to ignore much longer. They were called back to the television by a Crown-sponsored commercial for the coming Children's Festival. If there was one thing that Crystal Tokyo valued, it was their children. The announcement included pictures of little ones of all ages and featured a small blonde toddler as he raced around excitedly with a tiny wooden toy he had been given at one of the booths. The two adults were silent for a moment, watching. One of them began to carefully choose her words, while the other became aware of dim urges of her own. There was a sigh. This was as good a time as any to bring up the issue that had weighed on her mind. The violinist muted their flat-screened monitor. "Haruka,"Michiru whispered softly. "Hai."The answer was equally soft. "I want us to try to have a baby." Michiru's eyes were watching the other's face closely. The blonde wasn't surprised but for a moment she was at a loss as to how to respond. Haruka cleared her throat. "You want to adopt again? Or . . . " "I saw an advertisement for a fertility clinic. They can do that procedure now." Michiru's hand was on Haruka's thigh, drawing reassurance from her wife's warmth. Knowing exactly which procedure she meant, the teal-eyed woman nodded slowly. Parthenogenesis had taken centuries to perfect. At one time scientists had thought that it would never work in humans, then had come a breakthrough. They could now combine two eggs and create a viable embryo for implantation. The baby, a girl, would be genetically theirs in every way. This was the advantage of waiting a few millennia to start a new family. The silence was getting to Michiru. "If you don't want to, I'll understand." It was true. They had Hotaru. Haruka looked over at her anxious mate and smiled. The violinist's heart skipped a beat. Her wife had such a beautiful smile. She still found herself reacting like a schoolgirl with a crush when the blonde turned on the charm. "You think I wouldn't want to have a baby with you?"Haruka asked curiously. "It's a lot to ask."Blue eyes were serious. "It won't be easy." Haruka put her hands behind her head and looked up at the ceiling. "We're in a great financial position,"she said thoughtfully. She turned to Michiru. "All right. Let's have a baby." "Are you sure?"The aqua haired woman wanted to make sure that they were both on the same page with this. "I'm sure."Teal eyes softened. "A little girl with your smile . . . " ". . . and your eyes,"Michiru finished. Nervous and elated at the same time the artist curled against her wife and Haruka's arm went around her and pulled her close. A flash of movement brought their attention back to the television. Another team of girls ran out onto the field. "They can't be more than fifteen,"Michiru observed. "So young. It's hard to believe we were ever that young." Haruka was smiling as she latched onto the memory of a particular fifteen-year-old girl. "'I want to ride along the coast in your car.'"She paraphrased, taking her wife's hand. "I was such a silly thing then,"Michiru said with a shake of her head. "Why on earth did you put up with me?" "You weren't silly."Haruka disagreed, her mind traveled back over the events of the distant past. "I was so stubborn . . . " A twinkle came into her wife's blue eyes. "You still are stubborn." Haruka laughed and looked down. "Gomen." Michiru cupped her cheek and brought the blonde's head around. "I'm glad it was you,"she whispered. The blonde understood exactly what she meant. They kissed lightly at first then again, putting their hearts and deep feelings into the action. When they broke apart, they still held on to each other, their foreheads touching. Two days later, Haruka called the palace physician to find out about the various clinics in the area. If she was going to entrust Michiru's life to someone, she wanted them to be the best in their field. When Mizuno Ami realized exactly to whom she was talking, her usually businesslike voice warmed by several degrees. Haruka ended the call with several referrals and the promise that the three of them would have lunch together in the near future. The obstetrician was thrilled to meet with them. She had auburn hair and a ready smile. Michiru immediately felt comfortable with her. The two expressed their concerns and in turn were given answers and a lot of brochures and pamphlets. They had to fill out endless forms and make appointments for full check ups. After they left the office, Michiru wanted to go to the local bookstore so Haruka obliged. The blonde ordered tea for them both from the store café while Michiru gathered several volumes on in vitro fertilization and same-sex parenting. When Haruka caught up with her wife, her eyes widened at the small mountain of books Michiru had amassed. The taller woman set Michiru's tea in front of her. She lightly squeezed the artist's shoulder and left to find something to read herself since it looked like they were going to be there for a while. Browsing the bargain section, Haruka found a full color glossy photo book on currently popular motocross bikes and tucked it under her arm. She found two magazines on racing and went to join Michiru in the café. Just as she turned, a little girl about four years old cut directly across her path. She stopped short, placing a hand on the little head to keep the child from falling. An apologetic mother raced forward and picked up the child. Haruka's gaze followed them as the woman walked off toward the children's section. On a whim she followed them and began to inspect some of the books that were currently popular. She passed over several book versions of popular cartoons. There was no way her child was going to be reading any of those. Her gaze alighted on a vibrant red book, "Japanese Children's Favorite Stories." She pulled out the volume and was treated to several stories she remembered vaguely from her long ago childhood. After the great freeze, Serenity had re-awakened the world, but only those souls who had housed strong pure hearts had survived the period of limbo. The world as they had known it had passed away, but the cultures remained within those who had been a part of it. Crystal Tokyo was a curious blend of old world traditions. She wanted their child to be aware of her heritage as a child of Nihon. She took the large, red book with her to share with Michiru. The violinist's nose was still buried in a book when Haruka returned so the blonde straddled the chair across from her and opened a magazine. They sat for an hour and a half, lost in reading. Eventually, the long lean form unfolded and stretched. The racer's stomach rumbled lightly. It was almost dinner time. Haruka folded her arms in front of her and rested her head on them. She watched her wife taking down precise notes in a small notebook she kept in her purse. The blonde had finished looking through her own books, but Michiru hadn't even made a dent in her stack. "Aren't you over thinking this a bit?"Haruka sighed. "I just want to be prepared,"Michiru murmured not looking up. The blonde reached out and put her hand over Michiru's, effectively stilling the busy pen. "You make it sound like this is the first time we've had a child to look after." Blue eyes glanced upwards. "This just feels different,"she confessed, a little of her apprehension showing through. "I know, but people have babies every day."Her teal eyes were warm and serious. "Everything will be fine because we're doing it together, ne?" Michiru's eyes lit at that. "Hai."She nodded, feeling encouraged by Haruka's faith. The conversation turned to more mundane things. "Are we having leftovers tonight?" Michiru wanted to know. "I don't care. I'm starving."Haruka stood up and put her jacket back on. "Take out then?" "Sure."The blonde shrugged and tapped the two books in front of her. "Just let me pay for these." "What's this?"The slender fingers pulled the bright red volume out from under the motorcycle book. Haruka flushed "I just wanted to get it for . . . her."It was a bit embarrassing to be caught buying a book for a child that hadn't even been conceived yet. The violinist giggled as she glanced though the pages. "Momotaro. I had forgotten this story."Her voice was thoughtful. "Haruka, that's so sweet."The artist smiled. "The first addition to our nursery." Michiru decided to buy one book on pregnancy for luck and they left the bookstore with their purchases. Once the process started, every day at exactly 11:30am, Haruka and Michiru had to give each other the hormone injections that would cause their ovaries to produce eggs. The hormone surge was taxing on both of them. Haruka tried to keep how much it was affecting her from Michiru. While her ordeal would end in a few more weeks, Michiru still had to go through the implantation and, hopefully, a successful pregnancy. When she couldn't control her sweet tooth and her pants went up a size, Haruka tried to remain practical. When she could no longer hold back the tears that her riotous emotions caused, she shed them in the shower where the thrumming water would mask the choked sounds. Michiru too tried to hide how deeply she was being affected. The constant bloating frustrated her and she found herself increasingly fatigued. Life was a seemingly endless cycle of ultrasounds and blood tests. Both women were monitored very closely to make sure their eggs were harvested at the peak of maturity. Michiru's ova were ready ahead of schedule. She went in on a Sunday to have them collected. The blonde gave her a kiss for luck as they pushed Michiru through the double doors for the procedure. Less than a week later, Haruka had her own appointment and gave a sigh of relief as she was wheeled back into a room to await her anesthesiologist. Haruka's eyes slitted open. She was still groggy from the anesthesia. Although Michiru had gone through the transvaginal egg retrieval process wide-awake with intravenous pain management, Haruka had opted to be unconscious for her own procedure. Had it worked? "Glad to see you awake,"called a cheery voice. The blonde swallowed. Her mouth was uncomfortably dry. "We harvested several viable ova,"the doctor reported. Michiru was suddenly at her side smiling down at her wife tenderly. "How do you feel?" Haruka grunted. "Like I want to go home and sleep for a week." Her wife giggled. "That can be arranged." Early Monday, Michiru drove to the doctor to have her uterus mapped so that they could determine the proper place to implant the prepared embryo. Each day their embryologist called and gave them a report on the embryos and their quality. They put him on speakerphone so they could ask him questions about the health of each one. A week later they went in to meet with him. "We have seven healthy embryos."He clicked on a penlight and began to lay out his plans. "I want to implant four of them . . . " "Shi?"Haruka asked surprised. "Not four."Michiru shook her head. She wasn't overly superstitious, but she didn't want to be haunted by such symbolism. The embryologist looked confused. "Three or five,"Haruka politely, but firmly, clarified for him. The doctor was quiet for a moment weighing the possibilities. If he implanted five, there was the remote possibility that it could lead to a set of quintuplets. The woman before him was very small boned and, although in good shape, he still didn't want to overtax her body that way. ‘Why not four?' He wondered. "Three then." The couple nodded in agreement and the loquacious doctor continued with his explanations. With the appointment set for the next day, Michiru was nervous. She had to force herself to eat. She tried to find things to occupy herself, but she didn't feel like painting or even playing her violin. At ten o'clock, Haruka came downstairs to find her wife reorganizing the recipe box in the kitchen. "Michiru,"she said softly, tucking her hands into the pockets of her short robe. "Come to bed." Michiru rubbed her tired looking eyes. "I'm not sleepy." Haruka moved behind her and began to gently massage her wife's shoulders. The violinist made a pleased sound in the back of her throat and her hand went up to touch her wife's. "Just come lay down with me,"her husky voice cajoled. Michiru stood up and followed her mate to their bedroom where soft candlelight flickered from the nightstands. The aqua haired woman turned to face Haruka who was watching her with an intense gaze. "Don't you want to rest?"Her hands were already reaching for the lapels of Haruka's robe. The blonde's smile was mischievous. "I never said anything about sleeping." An hour later they lay spooned together, Haruka's hand resting low on Michiru's belly. Thinking about their pleasurable lovemaking that had ended only moments before, the violinist whispered softly in the darkness. "Don't you wish it were this easy . . . for us to make a baby?" "Much more fun for me,"came the satisfied sigh causing Michiru to giggle. "But if we could just . . . create them from our love." "Eh, but it was love that created them,"was the matter-of-fact reply. Touched by the gentle reminder, Michiru made a slight sound. "You're so sentimental." "I know."Haruka was smiling as she nuzzled Michiru's neck. The blonde was with her wife during the implantation. They let her hold Michiru's hand while the doctor injected the three healthy embryos into the violinist's womb. Haruka watched the monitor where they were monitoring the procedure via ultrasound. The fuzzy images meant little to her, but the doctor's grey eyes watched with intense concentration. Time stretched out. Haruka noticed that her palm was sweaty, but Michiru didn't seem to care as she held on, eyes closed. The blonde knew she'd retreated into herself right now. Most likely she was saying silent prayers. "All right. We're done here."The doctor rose and said a few words to a nurse. The clinic staff bustled around getting Michiru settled. A soft sigh from her partner brought the blonde's head up. Michiru blinked and a tear slipped from her eye. "Maybe it worked,"she whispered her voice uncharacteristically low and thick. Haruka pressed her lips to Michiru's knuckles. She too felt emotionally rung out from the entire process. They were moved into a recovery room and left alone. The violinist lay still, relaxing against the clinic bed. She looked so fragile and beautiful. Haruka clung to her hand. She hoped that at least one of the embryos would implant. There was also a chance that all three would be viable. Haruka was a little frightened at the prospect of triplets, but there was also the possibility that none of the babies would thrive. Three would be better than none at all. On the way home they stopped and Michiru bought two white roses and three pink ones. That night she put them in a vase on her nightstand. She was under strict orders for three days of bed rest and to only get up to shower and to go to the bathroom. Now all they could do was wait. Haruka brought her meals to her in bed and told her about the news in Crystal Tokyo. On the second day Michiru set her book down and leaned back to rest her eyes. Haruka came into the room and plugged in an extension cord before disappearing again. Michiru sat up and waited for her wife to return. She wasn't disappointed. The blonde hooked up their laptop and set it in Michiru's lap. "Why don't you do a little shopping?"she said indulgently, planting a kiss on the violinist's forehead. "I think that's the first time I've ever heard you say that,"Michiru said wryly. "I just don't want you to be bored." "Then keep me company. I'm never bored with you." Haruka stretched out beside her wife, laying her head against Michiru's hip. "I have to go into town this afternoon. I have Judo." Michiru poked her mate's shoulder. "Off to see other pretty girls?" "Well . . . " Michiru made a disapproving sound. Haruka chuckled. "I need to get back into shape,"she said ruefully, poking her belly. The blonde still hadn't shaken off all of the ill effects of the hormone treatments. "You have a nice shape,"Michiru murmured tracing a finger down the bridge of Haruka's nose and lightly taping her chin. The blonde grabbed her arm and nipped her playfully. "I have to get up or I'm going to fall asleep here." "And that would be so bad?" "We'll do that tomorrow." "Promises, promises."Michiru sighed. "Do you want me to bring anything home for dinner?" "Something Italian?" "You're asking me?"A blonde eyebrow rose. "You're having salad again, ne?" "Isn't it rude to answer questions with questions?" Haruka wondered aloud. Michiru lay back with a giggle. "I do want something Italian, if it's not too much trouble." "I wouldn't have offered if it were,"Haruka said breezily. "Ah, but I know you better than that."The violinist's smile was bright. "Hai."Her wife admitted as a soft blush colored her cheeks. "You do."
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