Ryeowook didn’t like this. He was alone and scared. The pain was already unbearable – and yet it seemed to be getting worse with every passing moment. Kibum and their manager were still at the press conference. Yesung and the others were looking for the doctor or even one of the nurses. 

Kangin was somewhere waiting for Sungmin to wake up. That had been scary to watch. It had been frightening to see someone so brave and so strong suddenly looking so fragile. 

Ryeowook prayed that Sungmin and the babies were okay. The staff had not told them anything since Sungmin had been rushed into a room for emergency surgery. 

The pain that Ryeowook was in now had hit him just as suddenly as Sungmin’s. He had asked Yesung to go get help immediately though. Instinctively he had known that their baby was trying to come early too. But it was so early that he was afraid that help might come too late-

“Wook!” Kangin said, bounding into the room to take his hand. “We found the doctor. Do you need a wheelchair?”

“Hyung? I thought you were with Sungmin-shi?”

“He and the baby are resting. Now we have to take care of you.”

Ryeowook never got a chance to answer, but he knew that Kangin was aware of his gratitude.

“Let’s get you right in there, okay?” Two nurses helped him into a wheelchair and whipped down the hall into an operating room. The thick, chemical smell of the sterile room tickled his nose, making him sneeze. He was helped onto an examination table and the doctor smiled as he placed a mask over Ryeowook’s face. “Try to relax, okay?”

He nodded, but the next thing he knew, Ryeowook awoke in a large hospital bed with a headache and dull pain in his stomach.

“Hey!” Yesung said, grasping his hand. The elder was mindful not to press down on the IV inserted into that hand. “You’re awake!” 

Ryeowook nodded. “Is everything okay though?”

“You bet!” Yesung nodded and stood up, revealing that he held a tiny bundle in his arms. “See, look! I’m a tortoise and you are a rabbit so together we had a green bunny!”

“A what??” Yesung was puzzled by the sudden silence that followed until he noticed that his boyfriend had fainted. 

But he shrugged, continuing to babble affectionately at the infant in the blanket. When Ryeowook woke up again he’d have plenty of time to see their perfect little angel. 

For now Yesung was happy to be able to have both of them safe. The tiny baby’s downy soft fluff was nearly black on his face and head around his eyes and down his neck. It was only on his back that a turtle shell pattern became apparent, with more rich black fur breaking up the patches of incredibly soft green and grey fur. No one knew what color the baby’s eyes were yet because he was still too young to open them.

One of the nurses knocked politely at the door. She had the newborn’s wheeled basinet with her and Yesung pouted. He wasn’t quite ready to let go of their little one just yet.

“Aww,” The elderly nurse cooed, “It is wonderful to see a young father get so excited about holding their newborn. But, it is time for his feeding, a weigh in and a nap before he sees the doctor again.”

Yesung nodded and carefully laid the little bundle in the basinet. The tiny creature didn’t wake up, just nuzzling into a tighter ball against the blankets. Their baby wasn’t human, but it didn’t matter. It was theirs.

Meanwhile, Sungmin was still confined to his bed and couldn’t find anything to watch on the TV so he was really bored when the nurse brought him their newborn daughter. At first he wasn’t sure that he wanted to hold her- Kangin had gone back to their hotel room to get Sungmin his Nintendo DS to play with.

The nurse placed a tiny bundle of blankets in his arms and then smiled. “She is very beautiful, so congratulations! All of the staff is just captivated by her. We’ll be back for her in an hour when it will be time to give her another feeding.”

Sungmin nodded. He let the bundle sit on his chest for a while before he decided to look at it. He was curious but a little bit fearful too.

Peeling back the blankets he almost dropped her in surprise. She was a rabbit- and most of her body was pink! She was sleeping and she looked so helpless and fragile that he couldn’t help but fall in love with her. Her fur was an unmistakable shade of bubble gum pink with black and grey stripes. He touched her gently, pleased to find that she was even softer than she looked, but he withdrew his hand almost immediately. 

Her whole body was so tiny that he was afraid of hurting her. Her super long black ears were beautiful and very soft as well. She rolled onto her back, and stretched but didn’t wake up. This exposed the soft, lighter pink fur of her belly and all four of her tiny legs. 

“Yo!” Kangin smiled as he came into the room. “I see you have found our daughter. She’s beautiful, isn’t she?” 

Sungmin nodded and smiled watching Kangin fold the blanket into a more comfortable nest. “The doctor wants to talk to all of us again so Ryeowook and the others are going to be brought in here. I mean, if you don’t mind…”

“That’s fine.” 

Kangin smiled and kissed him lightly. “Great, I’ll tell everyone that we’re ready.”

Sungmin nodded and busied himself making their daughter comfortable. 

Ryeowook looked nervous as his bed was wheeled into the room from the hallway. Sungmin smiled as he noticed that the younger man was holding a fuzzy blue blanket that looked very much like the pink one their daughter was curled up in.

Heechul and the others arrived next, and they were all happily relieved to see that they and their babies were ok.

“Pink?” Donghae leaned over him to see inside the blanket and was incredulous immediately. “Are you kidding me?”

Eunhyuk shushed him and playfully shoved him aside. “She looks beautiful, Min. Ignore this idiot.”

Min only smiled and nodded. “Thanks.” 

By the time Dr. Brooks arrived, Yesung was perched on the foot of Ryeowook’s bed. Kangin was standing beside Sungmin. Siwon was sitting in the chair next to Sungmin’s bed and Heechul was in his lap. Henry and Zhoumi were here too. Their manager and Kibum were sitting beside Kyu in a large sofa along the back wall. Leetuek had settled on the far side of Wook’s bed.


“Alright, are we all here?” Doctor Brooks asked, looking around. “As you can see, the babies are safe but early because they aren’t entirely human. That is why I have asked a veterinarian to come and have a look at them, as well as to examine you.” 

“Are you sure that is a good idea?” Leeteuk asked worriedly.

Dr. Brooks only smiled. “I’ve decided to call Tanya- my younger sister. She lives in Kentucky and usually works with thoroughbred horses but she is the best veterinarian I’ve ever known.”

Kibum frowned. “You mean none of the babies will be human?”

“I’m afraid that it is a distinct possibility.” The doctor answered.

This time it was Leeteuk who fainted, tipping over onto Ryeowook’s lap. Eunhyuk jumped over to help him keep Leeteuk from falling on the floor. 

The polite knock at the door startled them all. The woman who entered was pretty, young and she looked very much like Dr. Brooks. She smiled at them and introduced herself as Dr. Tanya Regan, now that she was married. “So, which one of you is Sungmin?”

The others all pointed at him so Sungmin nodded. “I am- but if our babies aren’t human… what are they?” 

Tanya smiled reassuringly. “Well, that is what I’m going to try to find out. Don’t worry, sweetie. Jeff, can I use your sonogram to examine them?” 

Doctor Brooks nodded. “Of course, and my staff will assist you however you need. You should keep Kibum with you too. He speaks excellent English and has a calming effect on the others.”

Almost as soon as Tanya started her exam with the sonogram she smiled, “No wonder he called me. Your babies are going to be beautiful Sungmin. See?” she said tracing the faint outline on the screen of a baby with short limbs and very long droopy ears. “Like more rabbits.”

“So they really aren’t human?” Sungmin frowned.

The vet shook her head. “Well, I believe that they must be at least part human or your body would have rejected them long ago. The fact that they are growing and I’d say thriving inside you tells me that while their appearance isn’t strictly human; their genetic structure must be more complicated than their animal appearance. Oh look! That one just moved! It has a long tail like a cat- oh but look! It still has the same long ears as the first one.”

Sungmin frowned unsure what to think. He didn’t think this news was all that good. The babies inside of him were barely visible on the screen and he had never been able to feel them moving before. But as one of the babies rolled onto its back, revealing another long tail and four legs, Sungmin felt its movement and gasped.

“Amazing isn’t it?” Tanya smiled, gently squeezing his hand. “I’ve never seen anything like this before but I think it is a miracle. Oh! Look, I think that one just yawned! He has wide triangular ears though… reminds me of a cat.”

“So- Dr. Regan, how could this have happened?” Kibum asked.

“Just call me Tanya. Jeff faxed me the article that he remembered reading about the procedure and I read it on the flight over here. I think he’s right. But there is a major difference here, from the theory proposed in the article. You see, the person who got your friends’ pregnant substituted animal genes for those found in a normal human female’s egg. In other words I think that Allison Davis took the nucleus out of a mature human female’s egg and put in something else- something animal. I don’t think she wanted the resulting babies to reflect any characteristics of the woman who donated the egg to her project.”

“So they really are part animal, part human?” Sungmin sighed.

Tanya nodded. “Yes. I believe so. But at the same time, they are still a part of you. When they are born they too will look like animals but as they grow they will likely exhibit problem solving intelligence. They might also be able to talk. I think this is the most amazing and exciting thing I’ve ever seen.”

“Do you really think so?” Heechul scowled. “I doubt you would say that if you were in our place.”

Tanya smiled. “I’ve dedicated my life to the care and well being of all animals- if I gave birth to one five minutes from now I would still say that what you are going through is a miracle. So, would you like to go next?”

Heechul blushed and shook his head.

“So… what now?” Sungmin asked quietly.

Tanya squeezed his hand gently. “For now everything looks good I just can’t get a better look at all three babies because of how they are situated. But so far everything looks very good, Sungmin. Their bodies seem feline and kittens have a gestation period of about 60 days. So your due date isn’t too far away. But with the rabbit characteristics mixed in, I’m worried about you going into labor too early. I guess we will just have to take things one day at a time.”

The woman’s kind blue eyes and the sincerity of her smile helped Sungmin to trust her, just as he had with Dr. Brooks. He nodded.

“Hey. Will you check me next?” Ryeowook waved his arm.

Yesung shook his head. “Yeah right, we’ve already got our baby.”

Ryeowook stubbornly shook his head. “Don’t you remember? Dr. Brooks said that we could have another baby unexpectedly and we did just have again yesterday night so I just want to be sure.”

Tanya nodded. “Of course. And forgive me, but what is your name again?”

“I’m Ryeowook.”

She smiled and her eyes widened as something appeared on the sonogram. “I think you must have good instincts, Ryeowook. He or she is tiny, but there is a baby in there.”

Ryeowook sighed. “I don’t know why but I just knew that this isn’t over.”

Heechul looked scared and he glared at Siwon. “Damn it- we had when you got here too! Does this mean we’re pregnant with 2 instead of one now too?”

Tanya smiled. “Well, there is only one way to find out. But I need to have you in a bed and comfortable as I examine you.” She turned to the nurse. “Would it be alright if we go next door?”

Siwon only smiled and gave Heechul a gentle squeeze. “Just think how beautiful they will be, hyung.”

“Why do I put up with you again?” Heechul growled as he stood up.

“Because you love me,” Siwon said confidently as they walked into the hallway together. “And I love you too.”

Kangin nudged Sungmin playfully and winked. “Now are you glad we waited?”

Sungmin snorted. “I’m already having four… I don’t see how one more could be so terrible.” 

Kangin rolled his eyes and kissed his forehead. “I didn’t say it would be terrible. It’s just good that it will be over sooner this way.”

“Thirty-three more days,” Ryeowook sighed. “I can’t have for over another month? I’m going to go crazy by then!”

There was a knock at the door, and Dr. Brooks came back in. “I’ve got some news about that actually. The supply of altered eggs is starting to die out. This means you won’t be fertile anymore within the next few days.”

Sungmin looked at him worriedly. “Will the babies be alright though?”

The doctor nodded. “So far the chemical wombs have all remained stable. But I think it will be wise to keep watching and testing them as well.”

“How soon can we go home?” Ryeowook asked.

Dr. Brooks looked worried until Sungmin rolled his eyes. “He means back to the hotel where we’ve been staying.”

“Well, I’ve been thinking about that myself,” He paused. “I think that since you are both still pregnant that I should keep you here for another day or two. It would be good for you to get up and walk around some when you are feeling stronger, but you shouldn’t bend at the waist or lift more than 15 pounds until your babies are-”

“Doctor!” One of the nurses rushed into the room. “Please excuse me, but your sister needs your help. Leeteuk is in labor!”