RP:A Total Re-Branding

From HollowWiki

Summary: Brand's brain breaks a little! And then it fixes itself! Sort of!

The Tranquility, Cenril Wharf

Brand || Once upon a time, there was a man named Brand. He was an awful man who did awful things, and led an awful group of roguish types called the Crystal Daggers. When thieving and killing wasn’t enough, they recruited illusionists and shapeshifters whose magic brought them even more power and coerced even more people to do their bidding. The man never would have changed had a witch not cursed him with an illusory “conscience” with her dying breath...

Wait, that’s not how the story should begin.

Once upon a time, there was a woman named Viera. She was a young priestess who lived a quiet life of worship and study, until the day the Daggers took her. Their illusionists warped everything she knew about herself and her life, remaking her into a pliable courtesan who would accept any man’s advances. When the inevitable happened and she found herself with child, the spell broke and she remembered herself. Distraught, she tried to escape, but the man who thought he owned her would sooner kill her than see her go free. With her dying breath, she begged him to see the wickedness of his ways…

No, no, no. We’ve gone too far back. And you’ve put the focus on me again. Relax, Brand. You’re not on trial. Forget I’m even here. We’re just trying to figure out what’s keeping you from being able to shapeshift… if I can shift you, that proves the blockage -has- to be in your mind somewhere...

Brand || Sighing, Viera produced a handkerchief from somewhere and wiped a bead of sweat from her brow. Viera’s magic still pulsed around Brand’s temples as the latter laid supine and in his male form on one of Lennier’s examination tables. Brand’s eyes were closed, flitting about as if in a dream. Viera wouldn’t get much reprieve before the man cried out and she had to focus again. “It’s okay. I know it’s hard. But I promise your answers are in there somewhere, okay? Now, try again...”


Khitti was there, of course. There's no way she was leaving Brand and Viera alone in the same room for however long it took to get through this. Though she loved Brand's new face, she should've been overjoyed to see the old one again after it had been so long. But... Brand's return to his old self was marred by a certain problem--a problem named Viera.

Khitti'd been hesitant to touch Brand, thanks to Viera's magic. An extremely specific paranoia had taken hold of her: if she touched Brand, would Viera find out that Khitti had feelings for her? Well, Khitti had been standing there doing nothing but looking concerned and occasionally eyeing Viera for "mischief-making". That was until Brand cried out, anyway. She took up his hand with a frown, listening as Viera actually tried comforting him. Khitti's attention shifted to the other woman briefly, concern replaced with confusion, before Khitti shook her head and returned her thoughts to the one that needed it. She gave Brand's hand those three squeezes, hoping he could sense it amongst all the bad memories Viera was digging up. "I love you. I know you can do this. If anyone can, it's you," she whispered into his ear, leaning down close so hopefully Viera wouldn't hear her.


Brand || Once upon a time, there was a woman named Khitti. She deserved so much better than Brand could offer her, perpetual frak-up that he was. Maybe she -should- go be with Viera. And Brand was so much happier when he couldn't remember any of his ignoble past, when guilt and regret didn't fill his every thought as it did now. Once upon a time, Viera had imagined a different life for Brand, and he longed to find that feeling of peace again, even if he didn't deserve it...

Brand || "Frak. No, no, no, no, no. -Frakking- hells." The ship was shaking, and it was all Viera could do to stand her ground. Her read on Brand's mind was slipping; he was pushing her out. She stopped her spell and tried to slap him out of his trance, but it was already too late. The ship groaned and shuddered as the concentration of Brand's aether grew and grew. Bottles fell from the counters and shattered on the floor. Just before it all turned to white, Viera wrenched Khitti out from beneath a falling shelf and into the relative safety of each other's arms...

Brand || Once upon a time, there was a man named Viera. He captained a lovely ship called the Tranquility, and loved two even lovelier women. They had shared his bed this past night as they had every night before, each of them wrapped in one of his arms, the bed a tangle of sheets and limbs and discarded clothing. Brand was the first to awake, and she left a kiss on each of the others' cheeks before departing for the bathroom to start her morning routine. It would be a wonderful day. Of course it would. Since the three of them had found one another, their days were -always- wonderful. Peaceful. Full of guilt-free indulgences.


Khitti tried calling out to Brand, trying to get him to listen to her, since he clearly would not hear Viera. “Brand. Brand!” She even tried shaking him and it brought back the memory of when Brand had briefly died. Khitti’d had tried to shake him then too and it hadn’t worked then either. It felt like the world was crashing down around her again--and it was, though it was much more literal now. She should’ve trusted that bad feeling she’d had in the pit of her stomach again when she woke up. She should’ve, but she hadn’t because this -needed- to happen. Brand -had- to work with Viera to get this fixed. Except, this wasn’t the way it was supposed to go and Khitti was panicking. So much so that she hadn’t even noticed the shelf that threatened to knock her out as it fell and the things that it held crashed to the floor beside her. All she could think of was Brand dying and maybe that was going to happen now and she needed to help him and tried to struggle and get away from Viera as the blonde pulled her to safety. It all seemed to happen in an instant and for an eternity all at once. And then it was gone…

And Khitti woke up. She’d been having such a good dream too, damn it. She couldn’t remember it now though and made a face at it. Sigh. Oh well. Khitti peeked her eyes open and looked around. There was no Brand, but there -was- a Viera and she promptly snuggled up against him for a bit before taking Brand’s lead and getting out of bed to get dressed.


Brand || Viera awoke with the sense that something was terribly wrong, but the only clue he had as to what might be amiss was his throbbing headache and… another part that throbbed down below, begging for attention. Dammit, this was always how he awoke when he'd had too much to drink the night before. Why did he do this to himself? Groaning, he dragged himself out of bed and slipped on yesterday's clothes. He was halfway out the door when Brand reeled him back in.

"What, you're gonna leave without even saying anything?"

"I've got meetings, sunshine."

Brand gave him an exaggerated pout. "You're the captain. Reschedule them."

"That's not how it w--"

But Brand had already weaseled her way between him and the door and was pushing him back towards the bed. Viera made a perfunctory show of resistance before allowing her to have her way. This was the same song and dance as every morning previous; in truth, his crew had learned long ago not to expect their captain's input any earlier than noon.


Khitti || "Oi. Be nice," Khitti said to Brand with a smirk as she pulled one of her dresses over her head. "You should be glad she even lets you go to work, you know. I haven't been to the bakery in -3 days-. I think she's bored with me now though." She eyed the two after shutting the closet door, as Brand tried to steer Viera to the bed. Before Brand could get any further though, Khitti cut in, grabbed Brand by the wrists and backed her into the door. "Am I'm not good enough anymore? Can't keep you entertained while he's working?" Khitti was only vaguely jealous and definitely teasing and decided to make a grand show of it by pinning Brand's hands against the door, as well as the rest of her body with Khitti's own.

Khitti || She kissed at Brand's neck, nibbled it here and there, occasionally giving Viera a look to make sure he was watching. Yes, she was definitely frakking with both of them now. And then, all of a sudden, it was over. Khitti released Brand and shrugged as she stepped away. "Guess -I'll- head to work then finally if you want him all to yourself." She let out a fake yawn and then stretched a bit, turning the aloofness up to eleven as she turned to go take her own turn in the bathroom.


Brand || "Ohhhhh no you don't." Viera's voice rumbled low as Khitti tried to turn away. With a bit of magic, the door became a wall long enough for the man to lure her back to the bed. This was all part of the game they played. Khitti's show of aloofness never won.

Brand || It was nearly lunch by the time their passions were exhausted. Viera finally left for his captainly duties. Brand lay splayed across the bed as Khitti occupied the bathroom, the door between them left wide open. Brand made no effort to hide that she was watching Khitti bathe. The only thing stopping her from joining in was the size of the tub. Although... as soon as she had the thought, she realized it was plenty big enough for the two of them. Strange. She could have sworn it had only ever been big enough to hold one... but no matter. The obvious thing to do was to join Khitti, so join she did.


Khitti || "Hi." Khitti batted her eyes at Brand as she joined her, none the wiser that the tub had indeed been much smaller only moments ago. She scooted over to sit next to her, one arm entangling with the closest of Brand's as she cuddled her close, her free hand used to summon up a bit of magic to warm up the water.

Khitti || "What do you want to do today, hm?" Clearly, Khitti had no intention of going to work today either. She trailed kisses along Brand's shoulder, up her neck, and ended with a kiss on the lips. "You know I love you, right?" For some strange reason, Khitti got the overwhelming urge to make sure Brand knew and made sure to kiss her again after she'd done so. No sooner had one urge vacated Khitti's brain than another took its place. This one was a lot less innocent, however. But Khitti resisted pulling Brand into her lap and starting naughty things anew. Instead, she just continued to cling to her and occasionally gave her small kisses here and there.


Brand returned Khitti's affections. A lingering undercurrent of self-loathing appeared and was smothered just as quickly. Why had she even felt down on herself in the first place? She couldn't remember, and it didn't matter. Wayward hormones were as likely a culprit as anything else.

Brand || "I dunno. We haven't taken the kids anywhere in a while." Kids, plural. In the time it took her to blink, her mind had already filled in the missing details. The triad had produced nine children in their twenty years of marriage. Dominic, the eldest, was nearly a man grown. And they'd have one more on the way soon, if Brand's fortune in yesterday's tea leaves could be trusted -- two, if she was reading the signs of Khitti's body correctly. Time would tell.

Brand || "Dominic got that apprenticeship last week, and we still haven't celebrated. Plus, the twins have been begging to go back to that seafood restaurant. I think Merida's crush picked up a job there not too long ago. Probably has something to do with it." Brand smirked as she said this. Teens would ever be teens, and not nearly as subtle about their infatuations as they thought they were. She had been the same, once.


Khitti fake pouted all cute-like. “Aww… the kids? Do we have to?” After a moment, she smirked and shrugged, the pouting disappearing instantly. “Yeah okay. I suppose it’s better for us to go than Merida trying to go on her own. Knowing her, she’d try to take all of our money that she could find and try giving it to her crush as a tip or something.” Why did teenagers have a total of two brain cells when they thought they were “in love”? Never mind the fact that Khitti was prone to buying gifts for the kids and Brand and Viera. Can’t imagine where Merida got it from. Nope. No idea. “Probably should leave the younger ones behind for today though, lest we embarrass our poor, love-stricken child. But first... you’ve gotta come here,” she said, finally pulling Brand into her lap. Yeah, Khitti failed at resisting. There was a lot of making out and a lot of -other things- before the two finally washed and got out of the tub.

Khitti || Eventually, she put on a new dress (seeing as how the other one was, uh, dirty now) and leggings and all that, and sat on the bed to brush and braid her hair.


Brand || After they finished their bath, Brand dressed again and sat in front of the mirror, doing her hair and then putting on a fresh face of makeup. It was a routine she'd done a thousand times before, and her mind tended to wander off while her hands worked automatically. Today, she daydreamed of building flower arrangements for her shrine to Selene. Each variety of flower had its place, and lent some meaning to the overall bouquet. It was much like life itself, she thought. A person could be at their best or they could be overlooked and unappreciated, and much of it depended on who they surrounded themselves with. The parallel brought her comfort.

Brand || Her mind wandered. She was hardly even looking at the mirror anymore; the final touches of her makeup could almost be done by muscle memory alone. It wasn’t until she was completely finished that she looked again -- and for a fraction of a second, a man looked back at her. He was gone before she could be sure she’d even seen anything, but the lingering feeling was no less disconcerting for it. Something like this had happened before. Something like this would happen again. She rose from her chair and turned her back on her reflection, eager to leave it behind. “Khitti, I was thinking. We should wait until the evening to take the kids out. Then Viera could come, too. But I’d like a walk, and some fresh air that isn’t saturated by sea salt. Maybe just the two of us?”


Khitti too had gotten distracted as she messed with her hair and applied her own makeup in a pocket mirror--though it was very much darker than anything Brand was wearing. She’d been wondering to herself as to whether or not she should bake a cake for Dominic, or some other sweet, to celebrate his apprenticeship. She had just decided on just asking him what he wanted, instead of trying to figure it out on her own, when a rather sharp pain shot through her abdomen. Khitti went paler than usual, sucked in a bit of air through her teeth as she tried to breathe through it and, just like that, the pain was gone. A feeling of dread overwhelmed her, gripping at her mind so much so that Brand’s words barely registered. It was so intense that she even felt briefly ill. When was the last time she had a bad feeling like that?

Khitti || “Y-yeah,” she said, when it finally did hit her that she was being spoken to. “A walk s-sounds nice.” Khitti stood up and looked around the room, crimson brows furrowed, as if she expected some sort of an attack or surprise or -something-, anything, that would explain that feeling. Doing as Khitti was wont to do, she buried it away for later and composed herself as she put on her boots, grabbed her knit duster, and waited for Brand so they could head out.


Brand should have sensed something amiss with Khitti. She should have, but she didn't. Because what could possibly go wrong in their perfect lives? Nothing, that's what. No ghosts in the mirror and no phantom pains had the power to haunt them, not here. In fact, Brand had already forgotten all about the man she'd imagined seeing, the man who could have been her brother. She hummed as she put on her favorite cardigan and a few pieces of dangly jewelry. She sang softly as she and Khitti departed from the ship, arm in arm. It was no particular tune, just whatever nonsense caught her fancy. Something about silver white winters that melted to springs. A goose landed on the pier, appearing to listen, and honked as they passed close. Brand smiled at it and composed her next verse about a wild goose that carried the moon Vaalane on its back.


Khitti side-eyed Brand every now and then as she sang, a vaguely amused smirk planted on her lips. “What’s got you into such a good mood today?” Her “interrogation” of Brand’s happiness didn’t go on for long though thanks to that goose, that of which caused Khitti to stop and stare at it, her features contorted into a look of fear. And yet… the goose did nothing more than honk. And Brand started singing about it? “Must be a -really- good mood,” she muttered, her eyes practically bugging out of her head as she looked over her shoulder to make sure it wasn’t following them. When she was certain that it wasn’t, she sighed, shook her head, and continued on.


Cenril Market District

Khitti || They soon left the beach area and reached the market district and Khitti stopped briefly again to look around. She hoped her goose phobia hadn’t ruined Brand’s day much--it was really hard for Khitti to not just shut down completely in the presence of cobra chickens--and to try to preserve it, Khitti led her to a botanist’s stall. With Spring on its way, it was that time of year to start pushing floral arrangements of all sorts and after eyeing everything for a moment, Khitti ultimately chose a crown of firelilies--not unlike the one she’d worn at their wedding--and placed it carefully on Brand’s head, making sure not to mess up Brand’s hair in the process. She paid for it, and turned to eye her again, this time with a hand coming to rest on Brand’s cheek and a faint smile as she took in how the flowers brought out the shades of reds in Brand’s blonde hair. “You are so beautiful.” For now, she’d forgotten all about that pain and the worry and bad feelings it brought. Brand made her want to be as happy and as carefree as she was, even if it was difficult for Khitti to be that way.


Brand rolled her eyes, but she was smirking as she did so. "I'm in a good mood because I have a wife who compliments me like that." She laughed and circled around Khitti, her hands not-so-subtly cradling the other's breasts before moving down to wrap her in a normal hug. "A wife with a secret that I already knowwww," she added, in a teasing singsong. "I noticed in the bath. When are you gonna tell Viera? You know how frakkin' oblivious he is. Gods help the man who can bring his wife the mint and gualonberry ice cream she's been craving all week and still not figure out what it means." A beat. "Dammit, that actually sounds really good right now. Frak."


Khitti tried really hard not to look shocked at Brand’s “news”. Somewhere inside Khitti’s head she knew. How can you not know? It’s like a switch flipped on in your head at some point--you just -sense- it. But, she’d tried to not acknowledge it. And now she was forced to and for a moment--just for a second--she looked terrified. She immediately covered it up with a strained smile and a laugh, “Ha, yeah. He’s a bit dense sometimes.”

Khitti || On the inside, Khitti was panicking. This version of Khitti had not been as lucky as Brand in the child-making department. She’d had Dominic, and the twins, and then… that was it. It had been miscarriage after miscarriage ever since. Brand flourished as a mother and seemingly had no problems health-wise whatsoever that kept her from getting pregnant. Brand was always overjoyed when either of them got conceived and never really seemed bothered by it when Khitti lost her own. There were always more chances--especially with how long the three of them spent in bed with each other every day, and Brand and Viera’’s children were Khitti’s children regardless of whether or not she actually gave birth to them. One day, Khitti would surely be blessed again and all would be right as rain.

Khitti || Except it wasn’t. It never was. And this Khitti was doomed to repeat the unfortunate memories Viera had originally given to Brand, when she first gave Brand her current body, thanks to Brand’s turn at the mindfrakkery.

Khitti || It didn’t take long for it to finally hit Khitti: the last time she felt a bad feeling that strongly was the last time she’d gotten pregnant. Tears threatened to well up in her eyes, while her voice and bottom lip tormented her with the prospect of quaking and quivering, respectively. But, Khitti did her best to swallow her worries again and smiled a little more genuinely (or it looked more genuine anyway) as she planted a kiss on Brand’s forehead. “I’m sure he’ll find out eventually.” He would. They both would. It was coming and there was no way she could stop it. It was only a matter of when at this point.


Brand || It was at that moment that Brand spun Khitti to face her and, with utmost sincerity, said something very strange. “It’ll be okay, peach. This isn’t that kind of story.” And just like that, Khitti’s worries vanished from her mind, as if they had never been. Brand had placed a hand to her cheek, wiping away a tear that had spilled over just a second too quickly. In the instant after, neither of them would remember it had existed.

Brand furrowed her brows and searched Khitti’s face, trying to remember what they’d been talking about a moment ago. It was -right there- on the edge of thought, just beyond her reach. Try as she might, it was gone now. Brand shrugged it off with a smile. “You’re too gorgeous. I look at you and forget how to think. You’d think I’d have built up some tolerance to it after twenty years, but no. Ha.”


Khitti's face got as red as that firelily crown Brand was wearing. "S-stop it. I am not." Clearly, she'd not built up an immunity to Brand's compliments either. The more she thought about it, the hotter she felt her face get, and she ultimately took up both of Brand's hands and buried her face in them. "I'm gonna be a strawberry, instead of a peach, if you keep doing that," she said, obviously joking. After a moment of trying to compose herself, she turned her head to the side--first to the left, then the right--and kissed Brand's fingers.

Khitti || "I have something to tell you... And eventually Viera. But, I don't want to announce it to the kids tonight and pull the attention from Dominic," she said. "It's his night and he deserves all the attention we can give him." She finally pulled Brand's hands away from her face, but the blushing began anew, her line of sight shifting to the ground in vague embarrassment. "I think I'm pregnant." Why did she feel this way? Well, it was probably mostly because she's tsundere as hell.

Khitti || It was as if time had rewound itself just enough before Brand had mentioned Khitti's pregnancy and fate had been altered. She held no worries about it and there would certainly be no sad outcomes from it all. "I'm not looking forward to the morning sickness though. It's always so bad. It's a wonder it hasn't started yet." There was a slight moment of doubt, but it stemmed from the knowledge of how exhausted she was going to be in the coming weeks. "You'll take care of me, right?"


Brand squealed and bounced a bit before wrapping Khitti in another hug. "Me too, me too! I had a feeling, but I figured you'd tell me when you were ready. Poor Viera, though. He's gonna have to deal with both of us at the same time." Brand didn't suffer from morning sickness to the same degree Khitti did. Instead, she had wild cravings that ranged from the unusual to the outright unheard of -- and of course, never anything the Tranquility already had in stock.

Brand || "I'll take care of you. We'll take care of each other, obviously." Brand was still bouncing with glee. "Oh, I can't wait. We're gonna be pregnant together. That's going to be so much fun."

Brand || 'Fun' wasn't a word most women would use to describe their pregnancies, but Brand wasn't most women. There was a reason she had carried six of their nine children, and it had nothing to do with a difference in fertility. She simply loved everything about it, even the difficult or inconvenient parts. She loved bringing another child into this beautiful world and showing them how wonderful it was to be alive. She loved watching them grow older, develop a personality, and find joys and passions and loves of their own. And one day, when they found the right person or people to be with, she would love whatever children -they- brought into the world, as much as she did her own.


Khitti || Fun -wasn’t- the word Khitti used for pregnancy. Both of hers had been plagued with various mishaps. Some of which… she couldn’t even remember right now, but she was pretty sure she’d had them. Oh well. It -had- been ages ago. She did remember that her pregnancy with Dominic had seemed like it was far shorter than the one with the twins. It totally felt like it was only four months long! Maybe that’ll happen again. “Fun for you maybe,” she said with a smirk. “I don’t recall you waking up at all hours of the night throwing up for the first three months.” Every pregnancy was different, of course, but that hadn’t meant that Khitti hadn’t been the tiniest bit jealous. But, she couldn’t deny that she had been eternally happy when both Dominic and the twins were born.

Khitti || “Should we go tell Viera together? Maybe surprise him with something? I dunno what though. Poor guy might have a heart attack after we give him the news.” Khitti let out a ‘hm’ and thought things over for a second. “OH! I know!” She grabbed Brand’s hand and dragged her off towards a nearby shop. Once they got in the building, it was rather obvious what sort of shop it was, considering everything was… uh… -sexy-. There were a lot of strange objects, but that’s not what Khitti was focused on, and she eventually found what she was looking for: clothing that was just as equally provocative as the rest of the things in the store. Most of them were either made of lace or leather and a lot of them were nearly see-through. “Maybe this will soften the blow a bit?” Khitti batted her eyes ever so innocently at Brand.


Brand browsed the aisles before picking out a few outfits and proceeding to the changing booth to make sure they fit. The booth was little more than a closet, really -- a closet with a sliding curtain for a door, a tiny bench that jutted out of the wall, and a full length mirror on the opposite side. Brand put her things down on the bench, turned to face the mirror… and nearly jumped out of her skin. The reflection that stared back at her was the man from the ship, the one she’d seen while finishing her makeup. Only, he didn’t stand behind her, now. He -was- her. He looked every bit as shocked as she was. He raised a hand to his face just as she did. And when she stormed out of the stall and demanded to know what kind of prank the store thought they were pulling with their trick mirrors, he too stormed away, only to return a moment later as Brand peeked out from behind the befuddled manager and pointed at them both in their reflection. “There. See? Who is that? Why does it do that?”

Brand || The manager shrugged. He was clearly of the opinion that she was crazy, even if he was too polite to say it outright. “I only see me n’ you, ma’am. If you’d rather not use the stall, we -do- have a sizing chart on the tag of every item, and a return policy on unused items for fifteen days.”


Khitti was looking over some of the leather outfits when her frakkery senses started tingling. It was then that Brand started yelling at the manager and Khitti rushed through the aisles to get to her. “Brand?” She came to a halt near the fitting room, eyeing both her wife and the poor guy as he tried to give Brand options. “What’s wrong?” She had heard what Brand had said to him, but… she looked towards the mirror and didn’t see anything either. Before either of them could say anything more, Khitti just shook her head at the man. “Yes, great, thank you. If we need anything else, I’ll let you know.” Anything to get rid of him. “Brand. Love. There’s nothing in the mirror,” she said once he was gone, her attention returning to the blonde, with concern clearly written all over her face. “But… that doesn’t mean I don’t believe that you saw something.” Brand did not really spook all that easily, or rather, it was easier for her to take things in stride when it was typically Khitti that got weird stuff orbiting around her. It was always easier for Brand to comfort her and help her through things. So for Khitti to see her like this? She immediately went into overprotective mode. “Do you want to leave? Or… I could…” Khitti moved into the room and with a wave of her hand, shadows collected onto the mirror, as thick as fog, hopefully blocking out whatever it was that Brand saw. Khitti was still struggling though, despite her attempts at trying to comfort her. Mostly, she was worried that Brand getting too distressed would upset her pregnancy.


Brand shook her head. She couldn’t see the man in the mirror anymore, and her mind was already erasing the memory of what had upset her. “No, no. I’m fine now. Thank you.” She still eyed the mirror distrustfully as she entered the booth once again, but the rest of her time there passed without incident and she was soon purchasing a handful of garments and carrying on some small talk with the cashier, just as happy as could be.


Khitti opened her mouth to say something more, but shut it when it was clear that Brand was “fine”. Was she though? Khitti sighed, tried not to worry, went back to looking through the area she’d been in, and eventually, the incident was wiped from her own mind as well. She grabbed herself a few outfits that seemed like they would fit well enough, paid for them, and joined Brand. For some strange reason, she just felt like avoiding the changing room entirely. “Hmm. Home then? Or do we want to stay out a bit longer? Up to you.” Khitti didn’t care one way or the other; she was just happy to spend time with Brand.


Brand tapped a finger to her chin, considering their options. “We should go to the apartment and make something to eat.” Even in this reality, they still had the little apartment above Khitti’s bakery. It was mostly a place for the Herzegler adults to escape and spend some time away from the kids, though, since their family had long ago outgrown that little home. “We probably should have eaten something before we left the ship, honestly, but I didn’t even think about it, and now I’m starving.”


The Apartment Above The Bakery, Cenril

Khitti || “Sounds fine to me,” Khitti said, smooching Brand’s cheek. It wouldn’t take long for them to get to the apartment and Khitti get settled in on making their lunch. The smell of steak and eggs and toast would soon fill the apartment and their plates set at the table. Khitti really had to think long and hard about whether or not she wanted whiskey to go with it. She had even stood there for a long time processing it, with her hand on the opened cupboard door and her line of sight firmly fixed on the bottle. Ultimately, she decided against it and poured them some orange juice to go with their meal and eventually sat down with a heavy sigh. That juice would be Khitti’s downfall, however. It’d been so long since her last pregnancy, she’d completely forgotten the one thing that always triggered her morning sickness: that damned orange juice. She’d not had her face close enough to it when she poured it to really get a good whiff of it, but she did when she went to drink it. Near-instantly, the acid in her stomach tossed and turned like the ocean in a bad storm. Knowing immediately what it meant, Khitti’s eyes got really big and a hand moved to her mouth as she felt her stomach doing flip flops, “Oh no.” And then she ran to their room and on into the bathroom and slammed the door shut. Please continue eating, Brand. Your wife will be okay eventually.


Brand watched Khitti go, knowing exactly what it meant but unable to do anything to help. Khitti would be fine, she just had to puke her guts out for a bit. Meanwhile, Brand would shovel down her food like a starving animal, not only finishing her plate but helping herself to seconds, too. When she'd done that and Khitti still had not returned, she finally walked to the bathroom and knocked on the door. "You okay in there? Can I get you anything?"


Khitti'd long since stopped puking, but the tile on the bathroom floor was so nice and cold that she couldn't help but lay there. Until Brand knocked, anyway. "Death," Khitti said, opening up the door after a moment, with a sigh. "And a reminder to tell Viera not to let you convince me to get pregnant again." The last part was given a smirk to accompany it, so Brand knew she wasn't upset. Besides that smirk though, Khitti looked like hell. Watery eyes had messed up her makeup, causing it to run a bit; her hair was sort of messed up from laying on the floor; and it seemed it was indeed possible for her to get paler than usual, thanks to feeling sick. "Can you... remove the evil juice from the table and do away with it so I can eat? If I don't soon, it might just be you and Viera that goes with the kids tonight..."


Brand || “Oh yeah. The evil juice.” Brand vanished again, and reappeared a moment later. “The evil juice is gone. I drank it. I hope that’s okay.” She covered her mouth with one hand, just in case the remnants on her breath would be enough to trigger Khitti’s sickness again. “I also took the initiative to get some water in the kettle for you. Tea will probably sit better in your stomach than anything citrusy.”


Khitti went to go kiss Brand for saving her from the orange juice, but thankfully Brand was quick to cover her mouth. Right. Yes. She literally said she just drank it. So, Brand got a kiss on the forehead instead. “It’s fine. And thank you.” And then Khitti went to shovel food in her face in a manner very similar to Brand’s, because she already had nothing in her stomach before, and now she even less. It was probably not the best idea after throwing up as much as she had, but nothing makes sense when you’re pregnant so might as well continue the nonsense.

Khitti || The tea was soon dealt with as well, the first cup downed as quickly as one can with extremely hot liquids. She’d be nice and pour Brand some too. “We’ll have to go shopping again eventually--for -actual- clothes this time,” she said as she sat back down at the table with her second cup of tea. “I didn’t keep any of the clothes I had for Dominic and the twins and I’ll only be able to wear my clothes or Viera’s shirts for so long before I turn into some sort of massive sea beast.” Khitti paused to take a sip of tea. “And the nursery could use a re-painting. And the cribs pulled out of storage. And a room cleared out on the ship for the tens of thousands of diapers we're going to have to buy and store in it, so we’re not doing laundry twenty times a day.” There was a lot to do to prepare and thinking about it all sort of made Khitti’s eyes bug out of her head a bit as she looked to Brand. “Why are we doing this again?”


Brand just laughed. "Thankfully, we get almost a year to take care of it all. It doesn't have to be done all at once." She smooched the top of Khitti's head. "It -is- just like you to try to worry about all of it immediately, though. I guess I can't be surprised. You generally worry enough for all three of us even when you're -not- pregnant." She was smiling gently as she said this. It was an observation, not a critique.


Khitti blushed. -A lot.- Even if it was an observation--and Khitti even knew it was--she still looked kind of embarrassed and a bit guilty. "I just..." She sighed and decided not to continue speaking on the matter. There was no point and she knew it. A moment later she stood up, stacked all the dishes together and took them to the sink.

Her worries typically fell into two categories: making sure her family was safe and making sure that they were happy. These pregnancies sort of fell into both and Khitti couldn't not worry about it all. She started scrubbing away at the plates and silverware, soon to move on to the things she used to cook their food. There was no telling if they were coming back or not tonight and it needed to be dealt with before they left.


Brand || While Khitti dealt with the dishes, Brand decided to head into the bathroom and touch up her makeup. She immediately regretted doing so, however, because the strange man was waiting for her in the mirror’s reflection. Only this time, he didn’t stay there. He stepped through as if the mirror were merely a doorway between one room and another. And there he stood, in the flesh, Brand’s doppelganger of another sex.

Brand meant to scream, but his hand on her shoulder silenced her. It was strong, firm, but undeniably gentle. The look in his eyes was one of concern, not malice. Some nameless feeling crossed between their gazes, and in that moment she understood his intent. She allowed the man to guide her back into the kitchen, and there he sought Khitti’s attention with a clearing of his throat.

“We need to talk,” the man said.


Khitti fumbled a wooden spoon she’d been washing when the man cleared his throat, sending a bit of water here and there. She almost didn’t catch it and promptly slam dunked it into the rinse water to make sure it stayed there. She even pointed at it too, as if she were commanding a dog to stay put. She finally turned around to find her wife and some dude standing there. Khitti’s brain immediately decided to think [Oh no, he’s hot!] and a vague sense of distress took over momentarily, because her dear wife was standing right there. And then came the recognition and the realization that she did indeed know this guy. And then [Wait aren’t I married to him?] [No, the only man you’re married to is Viera.] [No, I’m pretty sure I am.] [No, you’re really not.] [Are you sure?] [ ... No.] “Hi,” she said finally, in an attempt to keep her brain from short-circuiting. “Talk… about what?” Sometimes when someone said ‘we need to talk’, the conversation was not always a good one, and she was unsure of whether or not she should be concerned. She -was- concerned about how hot he was though. Priorities.


Brand || The world splintered. Fragmented. The man was in two places, talking to both Brand and Khitti at once and separately. But their understanding would not be hampered by this; each dialogue would be clear to both of them, though they happened simultaneously.

Brand || To Brand, the man introduced himself as Brand's masculine self. The one who existed before. The one who still existed now, only Brand -- the feminine version, the one who had only existed somewhere under the surface until recently -- had thrown the both of them out of balance. She didn't need to go away, and in fact the masculine Brand didn't want that, but she -did- need to find a way to coexist in harmony with her other self.

Brand || To Khitti, the man apologized. It couldn't be easy to hear, but she wasn't real. She was an approximation of the real Khitti, who existed somewhere outside of the reality that had been created in Brand's mind. She could help, though. She'd been created with all the love both versions of Brand had for her, all the memories. She could help Brand -- both versions -- find the path forward, and this in turn would help the Khitti who existed out there in the beyond, somewhere.

The world converged on itself again. They were in the kitchen, the three of them, in the midst of a sudden silence. The feminine Brand turned to the other. "I... I don't even know where to start..."


Khitti || Somehow, Khitti didn't take it too badly. She actually let out a sigh of relief because she wasn't pregnant for real. Which meant her real self could happily indulge in the whiskey she might need after all of this was over with. She was a little jealous.

Khitti || One Brand finished speaking, only for the other to start and Khitti smirked at her. "I do. We've done this song and dance before. With Dominic. The first one." She reached over and poked her in the forehead. "He melded back in here perfectly fine. Or at least, you made it seem like it was perfectly fine." For a moment, she eyed the masculine Brand skeptically. Sorry, Brand, you made her too similar to the real Khitti. "So... what's the difference now?" Her attention returned to the other Brand.

Khitti || "You do know that the only person that matters will love you regardless of what form you take, right?" She paused for dramatic effect, leaned forward a bit, and whispered, "It's me. I'm the only one that matters. In case that wasn't clear." Cue another smirk. "We've done -this- too. I fell in love with Dominic first, and he was still you. Took a while to get this one though," she said, jerking a thumb in masculine Brand's direction. "But that's because he was a bit of a jerk. Not so much now though."

Khitti || "And you..." Khitti reached out and touched her cheek. "You are a welcome addition to this Brand collection I've apparently started." That smirk of hers returned yet again, of course.


Brand || The two Brands looked at one another. Some things were difficult to put into words, but they’d have to try if they were ever going to share it with the real Khitti, outside this world somewhere.

Brand || After a long silence, the feminine Brand stepped forward. “I need air. I’ve been smothered for so long.” She pointed at her masculine self. “This one has been able to express himself for years. When is it my turn? Viera didn’t create a new version of you -- I’ve always been here. The only thing she did was make me impossible to keep ignoring. And I think you know that.”

Brand || The masculine Brand turned aside at the accusation. He was frowning, deep in thought. “Maybe… but that doesn’t mean forcing -me- to the side is the right thing to do. If we’ve both been here the whole time, I figure that means we both have an equal right to exist.”

Brand || “So you want us to, what, share custody of this body like a child split between two divorced houses? Why do we have to be separate at all?” She was getting heated with him now, advancing on him and jabbing a finger into his chest even as he held up his hands in a plea for peace. “Because you’re afraid of me. Admit it. You’re afraid of wanting the things I want. You think they make you lesser, somehow.”

The masculine Brand’s retort was sharp and viper-quick. “What kind of man wants to wear dresses and carry children? What kind of a freak does that make me?”

Brand || The feminine Brand rolled her eyes. “Not a self-assured freak, obviously. But also -- and don’t tell me you haven’t noticed this -- I don’t think we’re a man, sweetheart. Or a woman. We’re just… you. Me. Us. Whatever. Something else, something different that exists beyond the limits of language. Maybe you should consider that that’s not a -bad- thing. After all, Onyx was something similar, weren’t they? And you cared for them just as if they were your own child. It was never an issue then. Why is it an issue now?”

The masculine Brand closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose as if staving off a headache. “Because this time, it’s me.”


Khitti just looked between the two, with brows furrowed and concern written on her face. What would her real self say to all of this? What sort of wisdom would she spout? This Khitti was only a part of Brand’s mind. She didn’t know -what- the other Khitti had been thinking this whole time since the two of them regained their memories. If they’d still had that bloodlink maybe, but…

Khitti || As the two argued, she rooted around in Brand’s head a bit, trying to be as discreet as possible (-if- that was even possible since she too was just a figment of it). She waved her hand and a strange-looking grid appeared in front of her, off to the side away from the two, with memories playing on repeat in each square. She waved her hand again and again, cycling backward through the years that Brand had been in Lithrydel.

Khitti || “You -have- been here and you -did- express yourself. Often, and sometimes at the risk of pushing me away entirely,” Khitti said eventually, to the feminine Brand, after studying the grid, though Khitti’s attention remained on the grid itself. “You just weren’t in this form.” Playing in each one of the squares were all the times Dominic had talked about having a normal life away from the fighting. To finally settle into a nice house somewhere with Khitti to create the family he’d never had. All the times he wished he’d never had magic and just wanted to be ordinary and, more or less, live happily ever after. That day that Dominic blew up at Khitti close to the ruined city in Frostmaw, because he didn’t understand what she’d been feeling. “But… after awhile, I wasn’t content with this. I didn’t want to be a vampire and live like that, because I knew eventually it’d come to an end, for you, but not for me. And you hated it. You hated that I wanted that life Brand and I had had in that vision. Because it meant things would change. And that I was changing. And that your happily ever after was in jeopardy because I wanted to go on some crazy quest to live again.”

Khitti turned finally and looked between the two again, her line of sight eventually settling on feminine Brand. “You were here and you gave up because I wanted to adjust the future a little and you abandoned me to my quest.” Her attention shifted to the other Brand, her tone stern, “And don’t even think about getting all smug about things either because you weren’t much better back then and it’s a wonder I stayed.”

Khitti || “What is wrong with just doing both? What is wrong with -having- both?” Khitti waved her hand again and various memories of Khitti from the past couple months started to play. “-She’s- doing it. Or trying to, at least.” she pointed at all the squares with Khitti’s male form. “-He- might not show it because he’s just as bad as you are in the emotions department--” She gestured at the masculine Brand. “--but she has tried telling you that she’s struggling with this too. It might not be her magic, but it’s new and scary and she’s probably just as unsure about everything as you are. And she has been lowkey experimenting, trying to figure out what -you- like, to help her decide on who she wants to be, but neither of you have really noticed it.”

Khitti || “You’re the one that decided ‘together or not at all’, Brand. So why can’t that also apply to this too?” She motioned at the two Brands. “And, besides, if you’re going to be going about making babies again, that should probably be something -all four of you- decide on and not just you alone.”


Brand || The feminine Brand crossed her arms. “Dominic wasn’t the same thing as me. He -was- from Viera’s magic, some kind of projection of who this guy would be if he’d never joined the Daggers.” She jerked her head at the other Brand as if to point at him, and he half-shrugged in agreement (or at least, not in protest). “But that just proves Khitti’s point further, then. If the first Dominic was part of you, then we’re not so different as you like to think. Stop treating me as something entirely separate from you, and maybe we can learn to be one whole person instead of two splintered parts.”

The earth shook. No, that couldn’t possibly be the earth, not when they were inside Brand’s mind. But -something- was shaking. The walls were crumbling. The images, fading. The dream world, gone.


The Tranquility, Cenril

Brand opened his eyes. Khitti and Lennier and Viera (her usual self, of course) looked back. The ship surrounded them with its constant creaks, footsteps, distant shouts. Brand pulled himself, slowly and stiffly, into a sitting position.

Brand || “I might have figured it out,” he said. The words felt strange in his mouth, like someone else was saying them. Or, he realized, like -she- was saying them alongside him. “Yeah, I think I have. Doesn’t mean everything’s perfect now, but it should be better than it was.”