Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Eclipse stared at the large roughly woven basket that was sitting on the counter. The occupants burrowed among the fabric scraps were tiny. No bigger than kittens but nowhere near as cute.

“I’d ask where you got these but I’m afraid to know.” A small part of him wanted to reach out and poke the sleeping mass of long limbs but one of the little beasts yawned, showing off an impressive dental array. Riling them up probably wouldn’t be a good idea. 

“Moon found them in one of the Creators labs. Wisely he did not leave them behind.” KC dumped the bag full of tiny pale pink things into the sink before turning the hot water on. 

Eclipse tore his gaze away from the basket to see what his code donor was doing. His expression wilted. “In the sink? Don’t let Sun see you defrosting whatever the hell those are in the sink, he’ll have a coronary.” 

“Pinky mice. From the pet store.” he poked and prodded the tiny pale pink things around the hot water in an attempt to speed up the defrosting. 

“Still don't let Sun see. He’ll lose it over there being dead mice babies in the sink.” Eclipse pulled a mug out of the cabinet and helped himself to the fresh brewed coffee. 

“As distasteful as Sun may find it, this is what they are used to eating. They may not accept any other food at the moment. If they can’t or won't eat this then I may have to resort to putting the mice in a blender.” Which really would send Sun into a fit. While he was certain the solar bot would understand he wouldn't blame his partner if he had a bit of a freak out. 

Eclipse almost choked on his coffee as he let out a little laugh. “None of us will be able to use that blender afterwards.” 

“I will get a new blender for the others to use if I have to resort to that.” KC prodded at the still cold lifeless bodies, adding more hot water. The little ones likely wouldn’t be interested in the prey if it was still cold. 

“Has Sun seen them yet?” Eclipse hummed softly as he took a sip of his coffee, the bitter taste lingering on his tongue. 

“Not yet. I am certain he will understand why Moon could not leave them behind.” He added more hot water then continued to stir the tiny corpses up until they warmed up. Using his claws he plucked one of the tiny bodies out of the water, shook it off then approached the basket. Holding it above the heads of the mini Kill Codes was like a dinner bell to the small predators. They stirred, crimson eyes opening sleepily while they chirped in confusion. One looked up then lunged, tiny claws digging into the pale flesh while it stuffed the offering down its maw as fast as possible. 

Eclipse grimaced and rubbed his neck then made a face of disgust. Much like their code donnor the little creatures didn’t do much chewing, preferring to swallow whatever got near their mouths. At least Bloodmoon chewed.

The rest of the brood was awake now, their inquisitive eyes locked onto him. They chirped softly while jostling with each other trying to get into the best position to be fed. KC rumbled happily at their eagerness to eat.

It would have been cute if it hadn’t been a basket full of small predators that would become large very dangerous predators. “Do they have the kill code? They are going to be dangerous once they get bigger unless they can be taught to control it.” 

“They do. I believe they were made using a copy of my kill code. They won’t have much control over it at this age but I am certain we can teach them restraint.” He plucked another pinky out of the sink and fed it to the now very active mini predators. The full ones settled into the corner of the basket away from their still hungry siblings. 

The moment KC turned around to retrieve another tidbit from the sink, one of the little predators decided it didn’t want to wait and tried to scramble out of the basket. Putting those animatronic reflexes to good use, Eclipse lunged and caught the little bot before it could plunge to the floor, something that no doubt would have ended its young existence. It began to wail and scramble at his casing with its tiny claws. 

KC’s head whipped around so fast he was certain the vertebrae in his neck cracked. 

“Someone decided you were taking too long and tried to help themselves.” He sat the mug down on the counter then carefully cradled the squirming bundle of limbs, wincing every time its sharp teeth scored his fingers. 

KC relaxed, instincts settling. “I didn’t mean to take so long, little one.” He chuckled at the unhappy little chirps that stopped the moment it saw the diminutive mouse dangling from the larger predator's claws. The moment the tiny rodent came near the hungry predator it scarfed it down in two gulps. Its belly plates bulged from the meal. Satisfied it curled up in the cage of fingers. 

It was kinda cute though he wasn’t willing to admit it. He lightly rubbed its swollen little belly with the tip of a finger before placing it back into the basket with its sleeping siblings. “Sun is going to want to dress them up and everything.” 

KC chuckled softly. “I am certain of it.” He placed the remaining mice in a plastic container then set it in the fridge. Hopefully Sun wouldn’t have an adverse reaction to finding them. 

----

Any one want some mini KCs? You’d have to feed them extra small pinky mice until they get larger so it's not for the faint of heart.

Chapter Text

“I know it doesn’t taste good but you won’t eat anything. Once you feel better you can eat all the gross mice you want.” Eclipse paced around the kitchen with the small bundle nestled in the crook of his arm while feeding it with a small bottle made for kittens. It had been a fight just to get the tiny nipple into the small creature's mouth and the moment it tasted the specially made formula it tried to spit it out. Hunger, thankfully, won out. 

Sitting on a bar stool he continued to watch the small one weakly suckle , tiny paws curling and uncurling. The others were sleeping in a large pile in the center of the basket, having been fed a short amount of time ago. 

Despite the creeping tiredness he smiled as a warm sensation bloomed in his chest while he hummed softly. 

Solar stumbled into the kitchen at ass o'clock in the morning, worn out from a rather…interesting night with Moon. “What was Sun screaming about? Did Bloodmoon leave a dead squirrel in his slippers again?” Solar poured a cup of coffee, groaning in pleasure as he sipped the elixir of life. 

“He accidentally opened the container that had the dead mice in it thinking it was something else, screamed and dropped it then screamed again when tiny mice corpses landed on the floor. Bloodmoon hoovered them up so KC had to go get more and to get something to make up for not labeling the container or warning Sun..” Eclipse chuckled. 

Solar chuckled and shook his head then noticed the one Eclipse was holding. “I thought they were eating solid food.” 

“This one is sick. We aren't sure what it is and we are hoping the broad spectrum antibiotics will help.” Probably going to give the entire brood antibiotics to make sure they didn’t get sick as well. A thought entered his mind and the dark sun smirked and motioned his head to the formula canister that was sitting on the counter near the sink. “I dare you to try it.”

Solar snorted. "Really?" he rolled his eyes and put his mug down. “How bad could it be?” He poured some into a clean glass, added water then knocked back the milky mixture.

Instant regret.

Immediately, he spit the foul concoction into the sink then grabbed the hose and began rinsing out his own mouth, gagging on the formula sticking to the back of his mouth and coated his tongue. “That's disgusting!” 

Eclipse cackled, greatly amused. 

“That’s so nasty.” Solar picked up his coffee and gulped it in an attempt to get the taste of formula out of his mouth. No wonder babies hated the stuff. “Not surprised that Sun screamed about there being dead mice in the fridge.” 

“At least KC isn’t using the blender to make mice smoothies.” Eclipse cackled again at the look of disgust on Solar's face. 

“Yeah no that’s a lot worse. None of us will be able to use that blender if he does.” Except Bloodmoon. It was that exact moment KC came walking in with several bulging grocery bags. 

“How is the little one?” He placed the bags on the counter then walked over to his son, crimson eyes watching the sick infant. 

“Eating, though a bit reluctantly. The rest of them are still sleeping.” Eclipse adjusted his hold on the small bottle, trying to make it  a little easier for the tiny predator to eat. “It's getting something inside of its belly at least.” 

“I hope you remember to label the container.” Solar committed while snooping through the bags. 

“ I bought some new containers with colored lids and will make sure to label the container.” Sun hadn’t been…happy about the unexpected dead mice in the fridge and it had taken a bit to sooth his temper. The strawberry milkshake he bought from Sun’s favorite place would make for an acceptable apology. 

Solar unpacked everything but the bag from the pet store since he didn’t feel comfortable even touching a bag with dead mice in it even if they were frozen. 

KC knocked on the door, patiently waiting for an answer for entering carrying the frosty milkshake in one hand. “Firefly.” Sun’s theater programming was on full display. He was lounging on the window seat, one arm draped dramatically over his eyes. 

Smiling, he closed the door behind him and approached. “I brought an apology gift.” 

Sun peered out from underneath his arm, then sighed dramatically and sat up, rays askew. He eyed the offering, sighed dramatically again then held his hand out. 

It was taking every ounce of his self control not to burst out into laughter as he placed the cup in Sun’s outstretched hand. Crouching KC tried to school his expression and failed dramatically. “Not labeling the container was not intentional.” 

Sun vented softly and took a long drink from the milkshake. “You could have warned me that there were tiny dead mice in the fridge.” He replied sullenly. 

“I bought some new containers with colored lids so this unfortunate mistake will not be repeated.” 

Oh thank gods. He wasn’t sure he could take finding more dead mice by accident when he was expecting strawberries. “Alright fine, I forgive you.” his mouth twisted into a smile when KC laid his head on his midsection, the soft furry rim of his hat ticklish against his casing. 

KC chuckled softly. “Tiny mice are the only thing they will eat at the moment.” 

“As long as I don’t have to feed them. Handing tiny dead things makes my casing want to crawl off.” 

“Myself and Eclipse can keep them fed.” KC reassured him. 

I want to flush them down the toilet!

If we do that, father will never forgive us. 

What if father likes them more! They even look like him! 

Harvest huffed and climbed higher up the tree, claws digging into the bark. Their code donner did dote on the minute versions of himself but he was certain that flushing them down the toilet wasn’t the answer. Maybe we can send them back?

But we don’t know where they came from.

Well, that complicated things. If they couldn’t flush them and couldn't send them back then what? Hide them? No, there would be hell of pay if they made father worry like that. Once he neared the top they sat on a branch that overlooked the forest below. 

What if their code donor did love the little version of himself more? Maybe they could just leave? They had been on their own before. 

I don’t want to leave. 

Think father will replace us with the little ones?

Doubt it. They can’t do anything other than eat and sleep. They can’t hunt. 

Eat, sleep and poop. That’s all they did. Maybe it was because they were cute? Harvest leaned back against the  tree, mind full of troubling thoughts. 

---------

You are NOT flushing them down the toilet! I can only imagine the wrath that will fall upon them if any one catches the twins holding one of the babies over the toilet attempting to flush them

Chapter Text

“You are so incredibly tiny." Sun said in a hushed voice when the dozing infant stirred with a tiny whine. So incredibly tiny. And fragile. What would have happened to them if Moon hadn’t thought to check on the recently abandoned lab? They couldn't have been there very long given they were still in a relatively healthy state. 

Frightened, hungry and cold…they couldn’t have lasted long. 

A series of sleepy chirps drew his attention away from the dozing infant in his arms. While they couldn't talk he did understand the sounds they made on a deep almost instinctual level. At the moment they were walking up and wanted their caretaker to help them with their biological needs. 

Sun looked around the kitchen for some place to lay the bundle down. Spotting a large mixing bowl he carefully tucked the sleeping infant into it. Unorthodox but it worked. “We need to get some kind of playpen or something.” Or a bassinet. Something that had a bit more room. They could use the basket to carry them around if needed. At least until they got larger. 

“So tiny.” He squeaked. Everything about it was tiny. Like someone took KC and shrank him down then cloned him. The chorus of unhappy demanding chirps grated on his audios, reminding him that they were awake and needed tending to. 

“Alright, alright, I'm coming.” Picking up the baby wipes he turned his attention to the basket. Several pairs of crimson eyes stared at him and something fluttered in his chest. With great care he picked them up one by one and caressed their backsides with a cold wipe which caused a fair amount of vocal complaints and squirming. 

“I know it's cold but I can’t do anything about it right now.” he tossed the soiled wipes into the trash. “I need to make you some tiny onesies. You’ll be a lot warmer. Pretty sure they don’t make diapers small enough.” And tiny hats.

Once placed back into the basket the infants fussed, glaring at him. It was impossible to keep a straight face at the sight of so much grumpiness. After a bit they settled back down to sleep, curling around each other like kittens. It was beyond adorable. 

Note to self, get a baby wipe warmer. 

He was washing his hands when the one in the mixing bowl began to fuss as if it been waiting for him to be done with its siblings. Sun chuckled and began making a bottle for it, adding a tiny amount of liquid antibiotics to the mixture before putting it into the microwave just long enough to warm the formula up. “So fussy.” Sun chuckled softly and picked the tiny infant up, cradling it against his chest. At first it resisted opening its mouth for the nipple, whining and batting at the unwanted object but hunger won out. 

“I know you don’t like that taste. Once you start to feel better you can eat the same stuff your siblings are eating.” The little one suckled weakly at the nipple, looking none too pleased. 

“I'd fuss too if someone was wiping me down with cold butt wipes and making me eat that god awful stuff.”  Eclipse walked into the kitchen, checked on the small ones then looked into the fridge, making sure there were plenty of mice. 

“I'm going to pick up a wipe warmer and some other things today.” Sun leaned against the counter, watching the small one eat. 

Eclipse snorted. “It's still a  butt wipe.” 

“It's not like I have tiny diapers. Even if I did, I'd still have to use wipes.” 

“Better you than me. No way I’m  changing diapers.” Eclipse made a face. “KC is pretty much passed out and so is Moon. That leaves us.” Eclipse crossed his arms and leaned against the other counter. 

“Pretty sure the Creator doesn’t want anything to do with them otherwise he wouldn’t have abandoned them.” But he understood why the lunar bots were being extra cautious. 

“The bastard could be watching at a distance. Waiting for us to raise them only so he can snatch them up once they are old enough.” 

“He can try but it won’t end well for him.” 

Eclipse puffed a little bit and smiled. Already Sun was becoming fiercely protective of the little ones. 

------

Sun pushed the cart down the baby aisle, the sick infant resting in a makeshift sling while the basket sat in the front of the cart. A powder blue blanket had been tucked around them to keep them warm and shield them from the harsh sun. Somehow they slept through being carried to the store and were still sleeping. 

The first thing that went into the cart was a wipe warmer followed by a few packs of wipes. Out of curiosity he checked on the diapers, surprised that they did indeed make tiny ones. Those went into the cart as well. 

Picking up groceries was simple, a long list of fruits and veggies, fresh eggs, cereal and assorted goodies. He was looking through the frozen treats for non dairy ones when he received a text. 

‘You at the store?’

‘We are picking up groceries.’

‘We? Eclipse is with you?’

Sun shook his head. ‘Yes. I certainly am not taking Lunar. All he ever wants is sugary stuff.’

‘It's not like it's going to hurt him.’

‘Brother, he gets withdrawals when he doest get sugar.’

Moons turn to laugh. ‘Eclipse and Solar get cranky and irritable when they don't get caffeine.’

Speaking of caffeine, that's likely where Eclipse had vanished off to. To get coffee. Sure enough the dark sun came around the corner with a small basket of coffee and supplies to make mixed drinks in one hand and two paper cups in the other. 

‘Did you get butter?’

Sun rolled his eyes. ‘I'm not getting butter. You'll eat it all and spend the next hour curled around a trash can.’ He took the offered cup with thanks, humming softly at the rich scent of coffee. 

‘Valid. Cereal?’

‘Yes I got cereal.’ he took a sip of the coffee and grimaced at the burnt taste. This place never had good coffee. The powder blue blanket shifted and a tiny head peeked out from under it. Crimson eyes narrowed at the harsh light. It looked around as if annoyed then spotted the dark sun. It chirped and raised its arms in a clear ‘pick me up’ manner. 

Eclipse sat his basket in the cart then scooped the little predator up. It chirped happily then curled up, bright eyes taking in its surroundings. 

“Someone has a favorite. Mom.” 

“Shut it.” Eclipse grumbled, cradling the small animatronic against his chest , fighting down the warm flush he can feel creeping across his faceplate. 

Sun snickered. 

----------

"Guys! We're home!"

Eclipse stepped into the kitchen with the one he nicknamed Atlas still cradled against his chest. At some point the little predator had fallen asleep. Once Sun put the basket down on the counter he carefully placed it back with its siblings. 

Earth squealed, rushing to the kitchen and startling the poor infants awake. A chorus of hisses and alarm sounds came from the basket as the small ones rushed to one side and bunched up. 

Sun laughed. “Think you startled them a little." Good thing KC hadn’t seen this. His instincts were strong and he’d become very protective of them. No doubt he’d bristle and put himself between their sister and the basket. 

“I'm sorry, sweeties. I'm just so excited to meet you, that's all."" She said softly, gently rubbing the little one's head causing the little predator to hiss and wail in a manner that was almost comical. Both Sun and Eclipse’s head snapped towards her so fast she was certain they'd suffer from whiplash. “I think I scared them.” 

Sun relaxed. “It's alright. They are pretty small and it's easy to accidentally startle them.” tiny watery eyes looked toward their caretakers for comfort. “It's alright little ones, Earth won’t hurt you. She didn’t mean to scare you.” One of them didn’t seem to have any of it. First it had to suffer the indignity of being woken up then a cold butt wipe and now this. It was just too much for its small mind. 

Tiny tears began to roll down the sides of his face. 

Eclipse scooped the little one up before it could begin to wail like a siren which no doubt would wake KC. Atlas hissed at the giant woman then curled into a small ball. “You don’t have to be afraid of Earth.” With a finger tip he gently stroked the little ones back. 

 “He's so precious! He's so small..."

"Do...do you want to hold him? Her? We don’t really know yet."  Sun asked softly, gently holding the sleeping infant up. A small part of him wanted to selfishly keep the small one all to himself. While he knew they were not related in the least he felt a connection with the small predators. 

Earth carefully took the little one into her arms, treating it as if it was made of spun glass. Half open sleepy eyes regarded her with curiosity. It yawned showing off its impressive teeth then became rather interested in its own paws. “Aww…those belong to you little one.” 

It looked up at her then back at its paws as if it was trying to figure it all out. 

Sun smiled and began putting up the groceries, gingerly putting the meat up in the fridge. The liver would have to be sliced up into tiny pieces for the small ones while the rest would go to KC. Just looking at the awful thing made his casing crawl. 

“I think someone is getting hungry-Oh!” the blanket the small predator had been wrapped in became damp and it began to fuss more. 

“I got this.” Sun gently took the little one and walked over to the sink. A fully liquid diet mixed with antibiotics was wreaking havoc with its sensitive digestive system. “Can you do me a favor and fetch me a clean blanket?” 

“Sure,” Earth nodded and went to grab a clean blanket. 

After making sure the water was lukewarm he gently bathed the animated infant. 

“It's getting more active, good.” Eclipse committed, lightly stroking the small predator's back that was curled against his chest, the sounds of his internals comforting it. 

“Squirmy little thing..” the infant constantly squirmed trying to escape the weird wet sensation. Once clean he dried it off then much to its irritation put a tiny diaper on it. Eclipse had to turn away, muffling his laughter at the absolutely enraged little face. Even Sun couldn't hold it in.  It made him think of KC when he had talked the lunar bot into wearing those booties on his paws to protect them from the hot asphalt. 

“And I thought they looked grumpy when you used cold butt wipes on them.” Eclipse chortled. 

“Not gonna lie, that’s pretty adorable.” Sun scooped the grumpy little infant up. 

“He’s so grumpy.” Earth giggled softly, a sunflower blanket in hand. She gave it to Sun so he could wrap the infant up. 

With the tiniest sound of irritation it burrowed into the blanket, somehow managing to turn around and upside down so only its diapered backside was visible which brought a round of laughter. “I guess we know how it feels about wearing a diaper.” 

The rest of the little predators had the exact same reaction to being placed in diapers, one of them even managed to wriggle out of the diapers and fling it as far as it could. Sensing it would only further upset and stress the niblet Sun left the diaper off for now. 

“Might as well get lunch started. They are going to want to eat before too much longer.”

Chapter Text

“It has a wriggle worm coming out of its butt.” 

Eclipse snapped awake and sat up abruptly almost causing the mini predator that was curled up around his neck to fall.  Startled, the twins backed up. “What the hell are you two up to?” The dozing mini predator in his arms stirred, glowered at the source of its irritation then wriggled around until only its backside was visible. 

“It has a wriggle worm.”

“It looks like a tiny caterpillar.” 

The fuck…Eclipse tried to crane his head to get a good look at the infant. “Why are you even looking at that?” Carefully plucking Atlas off the frill around his neck and looking the sleepy thing over. Then he saw it, a tiny little thing that could have been mistaken for a black fuzzy caterpillar sticking out of the top of its tiny diaper. He vented harshly. “It has a tail. Of course you’d be the one who would be different.” 

“Why?” 

“Why not? They have nanites.” The tiny stub of a tail twitched in annoyance. 

“It looks weird.” 

“Its tail is still growing so of course it's going to look weird.” Eclipse let the sleepy infant return to its place on his shoulders. 

“Mom.” 

“Shut it.” Eclipse growled. Hearing the door open he turned his head to see Sun walking in with a bundle in his arms and bags dangling from his arm.  What the hell did he bring home now? “Sun?” 

The solar bot jumped and squeaked, holding the bundle close. “What?” 

“What did you bring home now?” 

“I…uh…a cat. I couldn't leave her. We looked for her kittens but couldn’t find themIlookedeverywhereallovertheparkinglot-” a pillow bounced off his chest snapping him out of the loop. 

“We want to see the cat!” Bloodmoon rushed forward, all but jumping up and down trying to see the cat. 

“I just got her from the vet so be careful.” Hesitantly he unwrapped the cat's head and the twins immediately made a sound of awe. The orange and black cat looked around, nervous, vibrant green eyes taking in her new surroundings. 

“Her eyes..”

“So pretty.” They tried to get closer only to be hissed at. 

“I didn’t know cats could have green eyes.” Eclipse shifted a bit so he could get a better look at the cat. 

“Yeah, they can but it's pretty rare.” the cat squirmed her way out of the towel and jumped onto the couch, tail slightly puffed. Her long fur was still matted in a few spots and she was clearly thin but alert and curious. 

“You said she had kittens…” Eclipse scruffed the twins with his free hand before they could rush the poor cat and scare her. 

“Yeah, “ Sun’s rays drooped, “We looked all over the parking lot and the area around it. No kittens. According to the vet she’s pretty full of milk so she hasn’t fed any kittens in a while.” 

“They may have died. Look at it this way, you rescued her from an endless cycle of having kittens and losing them." The cat jumped down onto the couch and pawed at the blanket covering the basket away then climbed into said basket, chirping. The intrusion woke the brood and they fussed unhappily as a large furry thing invaded their space. 

Everyone in the room stared while the cat made herself comfortable while the agitated infants fussed about being woken up only to resettle against the mass of warmth. 

“I need to find a bigger bucket-basket. I need to find a bigger basket..” Sun squeaked while smiling so hard his face hurt. Clutching the towel he puttered off to find a larger basket. 

“Guess they got adopted.” Eclipse released the twins only to grab them again when they rushed towards the basket. “Wait for the cat to settle in first before you crowd her.” 

The twins glowered at him then hunched up like a goblin. 

“Look you idiots, I know you want to play with the cat but she’s in an unfamiliar environment-” an odd soft sucking sound pulled his attention away from the twins. What the…his gaze settled on the basket. A pair of green eyes stared right back. 

The brood was crowded around the calico cat’s belly, each one latched onto a nipple, batting each other and growling. 

“She’s feeding the little ones!” 

“I hope that doesn’t make them sick.” Given the history of lunar models having lactose intolerance it might.  

“I found a bigger basket.” Sun walked in clutching the basket they often used for picnics. It was lined with cloth and should be big enough for both the brood and the cat. He stopped when he saw the cat sitting in the basket, calm as could be while the brood jostled each other for the best spot. Warmth blossomed in his chest. He took a few pictures and sent them to the others. 

“Awwww…she thinks they are her kittens.” He sat the basket down next to them. Once she was done feeding them then he’d move the group. 

------

“So what are you going to name her?” Moon reached out to lightly drag his fingers over the cat’s back. 

“I don’t know. I have a few things in mind but I don’t want it to be on the nose.” Sun filled a small metal bowl with wet cat food the reeked of fish and set it near the basket. The brood was beginning to stir again. He checked his internal clock. It was close to feeding time and that meant they needed to changed too. 

“We are trying to settle between Nimbus, Grim and Hazel. The twins keep wanting to name her after food.” Sun made a face. There was no way in hell he was naming any cat after a food item. The calico cat managed to detach a few stubborn broodlings that weren’t willing to turn loose of their makeshift pacifiers and jumped out of the basket so she could eat. It was impossible not to laugh at the little disgruntled faces. 

“I kinda like Grim.” Moon pulled back a bit so the cat could eat in peace. “Nimbus doesn’t really fit. It's like something you’d call a white cat.” 

“I'm with Moon. Grim fits.” Eclipse plucked the pale pink things out of the bowl and laid them on a paper towel to dry while cradling the recovering infant in one hand. 

Sun tried not to make a face at the dead things laying on his clean counter. “Hazel doesn't feel  like it fits either.” 

“Where's KC anyway?” 

“Out with the twins. They were getting jealous of the little ones.” Eclipse held one of the tiny mice out for Atlas who grabbed it and greedily scarfed it down. He handed the crabby infant in the blanket off to Sun to keep him busy while he fed the rest of the brood that was still waking up, chirping sleepily while swallowing down the mice. 

Sun chuckled softly while gently patting what he thought was the head only to hear an agitated noise from the other end of the blanket. Squeaking out an apology he turned the infant around. “Sorry…I got the wrong end.” 

Moon chuckled while he retrieved the diaper bag while Eclipse filled the sink halfway with warm water. He carefully plucked Atlas off his shoulders, stripped off the soiled diaper then placed it in the sink. The shock of warm water immediately woke it up and its reaction was to make unhappy noises and try to climb out of the sink. “No you don’t. You need a bath. You are not turning into Lunar.” He swore the small bot was allergic to water and was the lord of mold. 

Moon brought over the rest of the infants so they could be cleaned. Each one fussed loudly, letting everyone in audio range know how offended they were. They became louder when the butt wipes came out. The cat came running, chirping and meowing as if she was concerned that her ‘kittens’ were being harmed. 

“They're fine. They just don’t like wearing diapers or being wet.” Eclipse crouched and held one of the squirming infants out so she could see they were fine. Just upset. Once she was certain they were just miffed she calmed down. The moment they were tucked back into their basket, three pairs of eyes glowered at the ones responsible for putting tiny diapers on them. Since the sick one had recovered enough to be placed back with its siblings, Sun carefully nestled it among them. 

The cat waited for all the small ones to be placed into the basket then jumped in, curling around the brood. A few instantly reclaimed their makeshift pacifiers while the others curled up against the furry mass. 

Sun made a mental note to pick up some actual pacifiers, more cat food, cat toys, a better litter box on top of more cloth to make more onesies.

Chapter Text

“It has a wriggle worm coming out of its butt.” 

Eclipse snapped awake and sat up abruptly almost causing the mini predator that was curled up around his neck to fall.  Startled, the twins backed up. “What the hell are you two up to?” The dozing mini predator in his arms stirred, glowered at the source of its irritation then wriggled around until only its backside was visible. 

“It has a wriggle worm.”

“It looks like a tiny caterpillar.” 

The fuck…Eclipse tried to crane his head to get a good look at the infant. “Why are you even looking at that?” Carefully plucking Atlas off the frill around his neck and looking the sleepy thing over. Then he saw it, a tiny little thing that could have been mistaken for a black fuzzy caterpillar sticking out of the top of its tiny diaper. He vented harshly. “It has a tail. Of course you’d be the one who would be different.” 

“Why?” 

“Why not? They have nanites.” The tiny stub of a tail twitched in annoyance. 

Which meant they’d have to hide micro particles of metal and nanites in their food. 

“It looks weird.” 

“Its tail is still growing so of course it's going to look weird.” Eclipse let the sleepy infant return to its place on his shoulders. 

“Mom.” 

“Shut it.” Eclipse growled. Hearing the door open he turned his head to see Sun walking in with a bundle in his arms and bags dangling from his arm.  What the hell did he bring home now? “Sun?” 

The solar bot jumped and squeaked, holding the bundle close. “What?” 

“What did you bring home now?” 

“I…uh…a cat. I couldn't leave her. I looked for her kittens but couldn’t find themIlookedeverywhereallovertheparkinglot-” a pillow bounced off his chest snapping him out of the loop. 

“We want to see the cat!” Bloodmoon rushed forward, all but jumping up and down trying to see the cat. 

“I just got her from the vet so be careful.” Hesitantly he unwrapped the cat's head and the twins immediately made a sound of awe. The orange and black cat looked around, nervous, vibrant green eyes taking in her new surroundings. 

“Her eyes..”

“So pretty.” They tried to get closer only to be hissed at. 

“I didn’t know cats could have green eyes.” Eclipse shifted a bit so he could get a better look at the cat. 

“Yeah, they can but it's pretty rare.” the cat squirmed her way out of the towel and jumped onto the couch, tail slightly puffed. Her long fur was still matted in a few spots and she was clearly thin but alert and curious. 

“You said she had kittens…” Eclipse scruffed the twins with his free hand before they could rush the poor cat and scare her. 

“Yeah, “ Sun’s rays drooped, “We looked all over the parking lot and the area around it. No kittens. According to the vet she’s pretty full of milk so she hasn’t fed any kittens in a while.” 

“They may have died. Look at it this way, you rescued her from an endless cycle of having kittens and losing them." The cat jumped down onto the couch and pawed at the blanket covering the basket away then climbed into said basket chirping. The intrusion woke the brood and they chirped unhappily as a large furry thing invaded their space. 

Everyone in the room stared while the cat made herself comfortable while the agitated infants fussed about being woken up only to resettle against the mass of warmth. 

“I need to find a bigger bucket-basket. I need to find a bigger basket..” Sun squeaked while smiling so hard his face hurt. Clutching the towel he puttered off to find a larger basket. 

“Guess they got adopted.” Eclipse released the twins only to grab them again when they rushed towards the basket. “Wait for the cat to settle in first before you crowd her.” 

The twins glowered at him then hunched up like a goblin. 

“Look you idiots, I know you want to play with the cat but she’s in an unfamiliar environment-” an odd soft sucking sound pulled his attention away from the twins. What the…his gaze settled on the basket. A pair of green eyes stared right back. 

The brood was crowded around the calico cat’s belly, each one latched onto a nipple, batting each other and growling. 

“She’s feeding the little ones!” 

“I hope that doesn’t make them sick.” Given the history of lunar models having lactose intolerance it might.  

“I found a bigger basket.” Sun walked in clutching the basket they often used for picnics. It was lined with cloth and should be big enough for both the brood and the cat. He stopped when he saw the cat sitting in the basket, calm as could be while the brood jostled each other for the best spot. Warmth blossomed in his chest. He took a few pictures and sent them to the others. 

“Awwww…she thinks they are her kittens.” He sat the basket down next to them. Once she was done feeding them then he’d move the group. 

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“So what are you going to name her?” Moon reached out to lightly drag his fingers over the cat’s abc. 

“I don’t know. I have a few things in mind but I don’t want it to be on the nose.” Sun filled a small metal bowl with wet cat food the reeked of fish and set it near the basket. The brood was beginning to stir again. He checked his internal clock. It was close to feeding time and that meant they needed to changed too. 

“We are trying to settle between Nimbus, Grim and Hazel. The twins keep wanting to name her after food.” Sun made a face. There was no way in hell he was naming any cat after a food item. The calico cat managed to detach a few stubborn broodlings that weren’t willing to turn loose of their makeshift pacifiers and jumped out of the basket so she could eat. It was impossible not to laugh at the little disgruntled faces. 

“I kinda like Grim.” Moon pulled back a bit so the cat could eat in peace. “Nimbus doesn’t really fit. It's like something you’d call a white cat.” 

“I'm with Moon. Grim fits.” Eclipse plucked the pale pink things out of the bowl and laid them on a paper towel to dry while cradling the recovering infant in one hand. 

Sun tried not to make a face at the dead things laying on his clean counter. “Hazel doesn't feel  like it fits either.” 

“Where's KC anyway?” 

“Out with the twins. They were getting jealous of the little ones.” Eclipse held one of the tiny mice out for Altas who grabbed it and greedily scarfed it down. He handed the crabby infant in the blanket off to Sun to keep him busy while he fed the rest of the brood that was still waking up, chirping sleepily while swallowing down the mice. 

Sun chuckled softly while gently patting what he thought was the head only to hear an agitated noise from the other end of the blanket. Squeaking out an apology he turned the infant around. “Sorry…I got the wrong end.” 

Moon chuckled while he retrieved the diaper bag while Eclipse filled the sink halfway with warm water. He carefully plucked Atlas off his shoulders, stripped off the soiled diaper then placed it in the sink. The shock of warm water immediately woke it up and its reaction was to make unhappy noises and try to climb out of the sink. “No you don’t. You need a bath. You are not turning into Lunar.” He swore the small bot was allergic to water and was the lord of mold. 

Moon brought over the rest of the infants so they could be cleaned. Each one fussed loudly, letting everyone in audio range know how offended they were. They became louder when the butt wipes came out. The cat came running, chirping and meowing as if she was concerned that her ‘kittens’ were being harmed. 

“They're fine. They just don’t like wearing diapers or being wet.” Eclipse crouched and held one of the squirming infants out so she could see they were fine. Just upset. Once she was certain they were just miffed she calmed down. The moment they were tucked back into their basket, three pairs of eyes glowered at the ones responsible for putting tiny diapers on them. Since the sick one had recovered enough to be placed back with its siblings, Sun carefully nestled it among them. 

The cat waited for all the small ones to be placed into the basket then jumped in, curling around the brood. A few instantly reclaimed their makeshift pacifiers while the others curled up against the furry mass. 

Sun made a mental note to pick up some actual pacifiers, more cat food, cat toys, a better litter box on top of more cloth to make more onesies.

Chapter Text

“Leave him alone.” Eclipse paused in dumping pinky mice into a bowl of hot water, scowling at the twins who were oddly fascinated by poor Atlas who wasn’t enjoying the extra attention. The small predator hissed at them and tried to burrow under the towel on the counter, leaving its backside sticking out.

“Wiggle worm.” 

“It's so tiny.” 

“Like a fat caterpillar.” 

“He doesn’t like it when anyone touches his tail.” Eclipse wanted them, hand moving towards a spray bottle. The small KC look alike hissed and bunched up, trying to move away from the curious twins, stub of a tail flicking back and forth. The moment they made a move to poke the poor thing he grabbed the spray bottle and nailed them with it, as in threw it at them, bouncing it off their head. 

Hissing they darted off. Likely to tell on him. 

“Pests.” he grumbled, scooping the agitated small one off the counter. Atlas growled then curled up against its adoptive fathers chest, stub of a tail still flicking back and forth. “I know. They are idiots.” he lightly rubbed the arched back with a thumb. The hell was it with their obsession with the small ones? Jealousy? Or curiosity. Whatever it was they were causing the small ones stress and that wasn’t good for them. So far none of them had gotten sick or thrown up because of it. 

Feeling eyes on his back he turned to see several pairs of crimson eyes staring at him from over the edge of the basket. “Your food is defrosting.” A series of chirps answered. Smart little buggers. The cat was somewhere, probably found a warm spot to sleep in. 

Bloodmoon peered into the dim bedroom, the smell of warm metal, oil and something semi sweet hit them in the face like a wet rag. Snorting they brushed the odd smell then took in the sight before them. Articles of clothing were scattered on the floor. Their code father and the sun man were curled up against each other, sleeping. 

“They are sleeping. Should we wake them?” 

“Tempting but no. Father is cranky when woken.” 

Harvest grumbled. “The pointy man threw a bottle at us!” 

“We just wanted to see the wiggle worm.” 

“Different wriggle worm than the one the sun man has.” 

“Fuzzy little worm.” 

“Let's find the cat.” Closing the door they head back to the living room and began searching for the tempting cat. After digging through the couch and peering behind the curtains they found the cat sleeping in a window. Couching they inched closer. One hand extended to touch the soft fur. 

Eclipse held the tiny pale pink thing out for the small ones who began to jostle with each other, attempting to shove each other away from the offered food while growling and chirping. A loud hissing yowl sent them into a frenzy of fear, scrambling over each other to rush to the end of the basket and bunch up. Surprised, he dropped the pinky mouse and rushed into the living room just in time to see the twins sitting on the floor, looking rather confused and surprised. “What the hell did you two do?” 

Woken by all the unwanted noise and movement Atlas hissed then whined, curling up tighter. 

Bloodmoon looked up sheepishly. “We just wanted to see the cat.” 

“Idiots. Leave the cat alone. She’s not used to being around people much less animatronics.” He shook his head then returned to the kitchen. Peering into the basket he wasn’t surprised that the pale pink thing was still sitting in the bottom with the brood crammed into the far end in a tangle of limbs. Sighing he carefully scooped the tangle up with his free hand then with a bit of effort managed to cradle them against his chest while passing around the room. “Sun is so much better at this than I am.” Tiny hands clutched at his shirt that was rapidly growing wet from equally tiny tears. 

Something in his chest tightened almost painfully. “It's alright, you'll be alright.” Recalling that they liked the dark, he managed to pick up the thick baby blanket off the basket with his fingers and draped it over them. Spotting the twins peering around the threshold of the kitchen he hissed and rattled his rays at them. They made themselves scarce. 

Eclipse continued to pace around the room with his arms full of fussing upset mini Kill Codes. A wet hacking sound had him cringing. Thankfully there wasn’t much to come up but it was a worrisome sign of how worked up they were. Recalling some of the lullabies Moon used to sing for the children he hummed one, low and soft. “I’ll make sure those two idiots don’t scare you like that again even if I have to throw half the kitchen at them.” 

Little by little they began to calm down. The tears dried up and they began to chirp, demanding to be fed. 

Taking it as a good sign he plucked out one of the mice and pushed it underneath the blanket. He shuddered at the feel of something dead being dragged across his casing followed by subtle crunching. One by one he fed the small ones until their little bellies bulged. 

When he tried to put them back into the basket they fussed until they continued to hold them while pacing, the movement soothing. Eventually they fell asleep and he chanced putting them into the basket and tucking them in. The fussing was minimum. Venting a sigh he tucked the blanket around them then cleaned up the mild mess. 

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“I want to see the fuzzy caterpillar!” 

“As do I but Eclipse won’t allow it.” Bloo moon groused, arms crossed over their chest. They stared at the kitchen, listening to Eclipse cleaning or making something. 

“I don’t want to have things thrown at us!” 

“There must be a way to distract him. Draw him away.” 

There had to be a way to draw Eclipse away, just long enough for them to snatch the basket. If they split up then one of them could knock at the door while the other got the basket. 

“That could work.” Grinning they leapt to their feet, their form shimmering as the nanites formed two separate animatronics. Cackling as they set their plan in motion. 

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This is going to end with someone being on the receiving end of a spanking isn't it

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

Eclipse strode into the kitchen into the most unexpected sight.He paused in the doorway, plastic bag dangling off one arm. “Sun’s been practicing magic again?” While he'd never admit it outloud his solar counterpart was far better at magic then he was but Sun had his slip ups. This time he had somehow turned KC into a ….cat. A large grey and black cat one that was sitting on the counter, a crescent comprised of white fur on one side of his face. He appeared a little miffed, large paws easily grasping a steaming tea cup. 

“Sunny is still learning. His grasp on magic has improved greatly since he’s no longer setting things on fire by accident.” the tip of his tail flicked, catching the attention of something small that had been comfortably curled up against his belly. Tiny hands grabbed at the tempting tail, chirping. 

Eclipse raised an eyebrow. He supposed he shouldn't be surprised since the brood shared every lunar bot’s love of dark warm places. A pair of crimson eyes peered at him through a screen of fur. 

“He is convinced that tails are built in toys.” KC chuckled while Atlas chirped and clutched at the rapidly flicking things. 

“Wait until his tail grows out. He’ll be after it.” Ellipse chuckled. 

“How was your night off?” 

“Maybe Earth was onto something about the Olive Garden. Not a fan of the breadsticks and they use way too much dressing in the salad. The lettuce was floating in it.” He placed the box with the leftover bread sticks in the fridge.  “They have some pretty good pasta dishes.” He lifted the blanket off the basket just enough to see into it. The brood was curled up in a mass of limbs, sleeping. Each one was dressed in a tiny space themed onesie and sported an equally tiny nightcap. Someone had been busy while he was out.  “Where’s Sun?” 

“He had to run out and pick up some things at the store. He will be back soon.” He hummed softly while sipping the warm brew. 

“Have you two tried anything yet? I know you two like to explore when it comes to sex.” Eclipse grinned. 

A chorus of Ewwwws came from the basement. KC chuckled softly. “The fur would get in the way and Sun doesn’t want a hairball.” Another chorus of eewws and protests. 

“Could just shave.” Eclipse offered. 

“And go around with a bare backside while I am stuck as a cat?” The protests grew in volume with a few we don’t want to see that added in. KC chuckled again. 

“You could just change back.” 

KC hummed softly in thought, toes tapping against the cup. “I could but Sun loves cats and is very enamored with my current appearance since Grim is settling and won’t allow him to hold her.” 

Almost as if someone had set an alarm the brood began to stir, kicking or slapping each other as they stretched and yawned. One hissed and growled when its sibling bit its paw, slapping its sibling ruthlessly as if it was their fault there was a paw in its face. 

Hearing the commotion Eclipse peeled the blanket off the basket causing the brood to become even more active, chirping and rushing to the edge of the basket. Several sets of crimson eyes looked up expectantly at him. “Alright, alright, I’m getting your food.” Eclipse placed one of the red lidded containers in the microwave just long enough to warm up pinky mice. 

Hunger gnawing at its belly, Atlas began searching through the thick fur for the familiar source of food. 

With a bark of surprise KC hunched up then frantically pushed the small one away from his belly before something very embarrassing and difficult to explain happened. Atlas of course didn’t take that very well and tried its best to burrow back into the mass of fur only to be scruffed and gently held. 

Atlas scowled at being denied food. 

Eclipse pulled the container out of the microwave and popped the top off. “Problems?” he held the tiny pale things out of the brood. 

“He was searching for a nipple. Unfortunately for him I lack such anatomy though if he continued to search…” KC adjusted himself. “He would have been very disappointed.” 

Eclipse laughed which startled the brood for a moment. They hissed and the one that had a mouse halfway out of its mouth vanished under the blanket that was in the basket. “That could have been awkward.” he scooped up the clearly disappointed broodling. The moment Atlas was curled up it began chirping as if it was telling him all the indignities it had just suffered which were silence as it gulped down an offered pinky mouse. 

“I would rather not encourage that sort of behavior.” KC huffed. 

“It's still kinda funny.” 

“What did I miss?” Sun strode in carrying a few reusable bags. 

“KC almost had an accidental boner.” Eclipse grinned despite the warning look from his code parent. 

Sun spluttered and his glow clicked on for a split second which made his dark counterpart laugh. A bit confused he sat the bags on the counter. “I don’t want to know but I’m curious at the same time.” 

Before KC could say anything Eclipse responded. “Atlas was looking for a nipple. Someone would have been disappointed and someone else would have been sore.” Much to his amusement they both all but glowed like malfunctioning nightlights which he found extremely funny.  

KC made a throat clearing sound and curled his long fluffy tail against his undercarriage. “He is too young to not realize that I do not have such anatomy.” 

Sun shoved the thoughts into the recycling bin and promptly deleted them. “I, uh..went to the Soda Fountain and..uh got some things.” he pushed the mildly uncomfortable feeling down while rummaging through the bags. “Loaded fries for the twins, chicken sandwich for me and a salad for Earth.” he pulled out the foam containers containing various sandwiches and sides. KC perked up, nose twitching at the scent of hot fried chicken. 

When they had finished eating they settled in the living room while the twins and Lunar retreated back to the basement to play more games while Eclipse released the brood into the playpen. At first they hunched up, unsure of what to do with all the space. A few bold ones slowly crawled away from the basket and towards the pile of brightly colored objects. They snuffled the items then experimentally batted at the soft toys. Seeing the others crawling around drew the rest of the brood towards the toys. 

The curtains at the front window stirred and Grim poked her head out. Seeing her ‘kittens’ were out and about she mewled and darted across the room, leaping into the playpen to check each and every one out before settling near them. Atlas, seeing its adoptive parent, crawled as fast as its uncoordinated limbs would allow. It plowed face first into the soft furry belly, seeking out the milk filled nipples. 

Sun picked his mate up and flopped onto the couch with a tired groan, quilt draped around his shoulders. Eclipse joined him after a moment. Moon and Solar were likely out being nerds and there was no telling when they’d get home. Probably well after midnight. 

After digging the remote out of the couch he turned the TV on. 

Moon staggered through the door, almost dropping his keys for the hundredth time. The warm haze of alcohol makeing it hard to think. Solar came in behind, just as wasted, rays askew. 

“We..n-need to do th-at again..” Solar stumbled over his own feet, one arm stretched out to catch himself against the wall so he didn’t eat floor. 

“Yep.” Moon smiled, eyes unfocused. He wasn’t utterly and completely drunk like what he used to do with Monty. Not after what happened in Vegas. He grabbed Solar’s free hand and tugged him towards their room. Neither of them acknowledged the trio that was sleeping on the couch or the fact the TV was on, playing late night infomercials. Something that Sun claimed was torture to watch. 

 Clothing was shed with every step leaving a trail of rumpled pants and shirts and shoes that led to their room though neither cared, they just wanted to sleep off the haze of alcohol. Giggling softly they stumbled to the bed and collapsed onto it, falling into a tangle of limbs. They were asleep the moment their heads hit the pillows

Chapter Text

“Looks like the bastard scrubbed the systems. I can’t find anything.” Solar pushed the keyboard away. 

“Yeah. I’m not finding anything either.” Moon let out a frustrated noise. The lab was dimly lit, likely operating on backup power. He was kicking himself for not checking the computers the day he found the brood but his concerns had been elsewhere. 

“It doesn’t make sense. Why make tiny versions of KC?” Solar looked around the large lab packed with equipment he had no name for. 

“That, my dear boy, is the question of the day.” 

Startled, they both jumped, Solar hissed and rattled his rays. 

“Is that any way to greet your creator?” The small grey drone asked. 

“Heya dad. Long time no see.” 

“Moon. Now why are you two intruding in my lab? There’s nothing here. I scrubbed the hard drives before I abandoned it and the failed project.” 

“Project? They were just a project to you?” Solar growled, hands tight around a large wrench. 

“Yes. My former slave is utterly useless to me at the moment. Pain simply makes him very angry and I have tried reactivating the Kill Code  only to have you shut it down.” The creator said. 

“So you copied parts of his Ai and his kill code and made tiny versions of him?” Moon tilted his head, confused. “Wouldn't it make so much more sense to build a much larger body?” 

“It would have. Yes. But that comes with its own downfalls. It's far harder to control a mature animatronic. Earth is a prime example of this.” 

“Still, why make tiny versions?” Solar interjected. 

“I wanted to raise them. Make them obedient. Then it slowly dawned on me that I would have to raise them. Why it could have taken years before they became something useful and it would have taken up a lot of my time.” 

“So you abandoned them to die? You're sick!” Solar snarled.

“Hardly.” The drone waved a dismissive hand. “They would have become a waste of resources. It was too much effort to recycle them so I abandoned them.” 

Moon growled deep in his chest. “They're infants you sick fuck!”

“They were nothing more than a simple side project made on a whim. A failed one unfortunately. I saw no need to continue with it.” 

Solar's hands tightened on the wrench. “They were helpless! They would have died if Moon didn't find them!” 

“It doesn't matter. As I said it was a failed project, I care nothing for them.” The Creator shrugged. 

“Good thing we have them now. God you are heartless.” 

“Indeed. Such feelings would only get in the way of progress.” 

“Let's get out of here. There’s nothing worth staying here.” Solar put the wrench back into his tool belt and rested a hand on Moon’s tense shoulders. 

“Yeah. Let's go.” Moon glared at his creator then walked back to the portal. 

The little ones chirped excitedly at the bundle of brightly colored feathers that was being held just above their heads. They jumped for it, tiny hands grasping for the feathers while Sun chuckled. More than once they tried to eat the feathers only to spit the offensive object back out. 

“I think the little ones may be hungry.” KC rose for the couch with all the grace of a predator. 

“It's been a few hours since they’ve eaten.” He looked up when the door opened and a tense Moon stormed in. Immediately he was on his feet and by his brother’s side. “What happened?” 

“The lab is a bust, there’s nothing there but the damn Creator decided to pay us a visit.” Solar vented a harsh sigh.

“Are you okay?” 

“I'm good. I just need a minute.”  Moon walked out into the backyard to decompress. 

“That bad?” Sun looked at Solar. 

“You can say that. The bastard brain made it pretty clear they were nothing more than some sort of project and he deliberately abandoned them to die.” 

 Finally alone in the furthest part of the back yard, hidden by a screen of low bushes, Moon crumpled to his knees. His fingers clawed at the earth. Hot, angry tears streamed down his face. He wanted desert to beat the old bastard to death. Their Creator had been the source of so much suffering, torment and anger. He let all the rage bubble up to the surface and took it out on the unfortunate foliage. 

KC watched sadly from the kitchen window. He knew all too well what was going through Moon’s head given that he had lived in the lunar bot’s mind space for a time. Crimson eyes glanced at Solar when he entered the kitchen. He reached out and gently stopped the dark eclipse from going outside. “Let him be for a few minutes. It will allow him to work through the anger.” 

Solar nodded and watched KC leave with a pink lidded container. No doubt full of food for the brood. He waited by the glass door, watching the bushes at the corner of the yard. It was difficult to not run out there and hug him but he knew that KC was right. Moon needed a few minutes to work it out of his system. 

Nearly ten minutes later Moon came back in, clothing covered in dirt and bits of leaves, the traces of tears still on his face. 

“You good bud?” 

“Yeah. I'm fine now. I don’t do good with the emotional stuff.” 

“Let's get you cleaned up before Sun sees and has a coronary.” Solar smiled softly and led Moon to the bathroom, leaving a trail of leaves and dirt.

Chapter Text

Fanart

https://www.tumblr.com/makoto-kaiser-blog/778032385316012032/the-brood-lunch-time?source=share

I love the two that are getting upset because Mama Eclipse isn’t being fast enough to feed them

Everyone has fears and it often doesn’t get explored enough. Aside from the typical fears an eclipse has (abandonment, having everything stripped away, isolation) Eclipse has a deep seated fear of storms, specifically lighting. Lunar being a lill shit and electrocuting him left a lasting fear

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Storms normally didn’t bother Eclipse. Not the howling winds, lashing rain or thunder. The lightning would send little shivers down his spine and send him scurrying for shelter though. He had no interest in becoming a walking lightning rod. 

That was before fucking Lunar turned him into said lightning rod. 

The white hot agony would forever be seared into his memories followed by the fresh hell of waking up in a new body that remembered what it had been like to be electrocuted. 

Thunder rumbled, muted by the thick walls, and he flinched. The brood was awake in an instant. Confused looks turned to fear when a crack of thunder shook the house. Hissing and chirping the dove underneath the blanket, burrowing into the soft cloth. Realizing there was no escaping the loud startling sounds they piled on top of each other in a panic while wailing like tiny alarms. 

Resisting the urge to curl into a ball and start rocking back and forth, Eclipse scooped the basket up and headed for the room furthest away from the outside. Slamming the door behind he curled up on the cold tiles of the shower stall. While tempting to turn his audio receptors off, that would leave him not only more anxious since he wouldn't be able to hear anyone approaching, he wouldn't be able to hear the brood.   

Squeezing himself into the furthest corner of the room he curled around the basket. 

The small ones wailed every time thunder rumbled. “It’s….gonna be alright…it's just thunder…” Lunar would have found it funny if he saw him balled up on the floor, on the verge of tears. He trembled more as thunder rattled the house. 

How long was he going to be sitting on the damn shower floor, terrified out of his damn mind because the little brat held a grudge? 

The brood wailed like tiny sirens, the sound grated on his nerves and scraped against instincts making him want to find another hiding place like a closet but he couldn’t move. The door rattled, making him flinch and hiss. “Go away.” 

The door splintered under the force behind it. 

An eldritch nightmare burst through the shattered remains of the door, crimson eyes glowing in the darkness. 

Terror seized him in a vice grip and threw him into a loop of emotions and fear sending him spiraling into a dark nothingness. 

Disorienting. 

Unsettling.

He felt…odd. Warm and surrounded by something comfortable. The scent hit him hard, a mix of tea leaves, faint muskyness of predator and warm metal. Sounds were muffled as if cotton had been stuffed into his audios. 

As badly as he wanted to stay wall warm and wrapped up like a grub he wasn’t sure whose bed he was in though he had a good idea. Slowly he wriggled out from under the thick comforter and sat upo, rays askew. 

Thunder shook the windows and lightning flashed through the gaps in the black out curtains. Eclipse let out a small shriek and burrowed into the comforter like a child. Huddling up he burrowed deep into it, eyes squeezed shut as memories flooded his already stressed brain, panic coursing through his systems.

“The storm can not harm you. Nor can Lunar.” 

He refused to respond. 

“Eclipse?”  

He flinched when he felt a hand on his back through the comforter. It was…reasuaring though he remained silent. Through the thick comforter he could hear muted fussing from the brood. That got him uncurling and peering out. 

KC was pacing around the room carrying a bundle of fussing broodlings wrapped in a blanket. The thunder clearly didn’t agree with them. 

“It's ok. I'll keep you safe.”

Something he was supposed to be doing but he chose to hide and cower away. Guilty chewed at him. He flinched at another lightning strike. 

Sensing his son’s anxiety he fished one of the broodling out of the mass and pressed it into Eclipse’s hands. Atlas immediately burrowed against its caretakers chest, the tiny tail completely puffed up. He vanished back underneath the covers with a hiss when lightning flashed. 

“Do you want me to turn down your audio receptors?” 

He shook his head. It would be difficult to hear anyone approaching. Besides, it wasn't thunder, it was lightning. While muffled he could hear the curtains being fully closed, shutting out any flashes. Atlas chewed on his ruffles, sharp teeth putting holes in the cloth. Really should get rid of the thing, it was a constant reminder of the past. 

The fear faded and was replaced with guilt. “Getting hungry? And here I am hiding uiver the covers like a child.” they all must be getting hungry. 

Slowly he peered out from under the comforter like a nervous animal to see the room was empty and the door was cracked open. A rather irritated Lunar was perring in. Eclipse glowered and gave the small animatronic the middle finger. The small lunar bot glowered back at him then vanished, likely to retreat to the basement. 

Little hater. 

The memory was still fresh. The small hands beating against his casing, the pure rage and fear in Lunar’s voice then the pain. The wretched pain of having wires melting and components scorched while his joints locked. He wasn’t even the one who had blown lunar up or tormented him but the little goblin was determined to take all his trauma out on him, a clone. A copy with memories that were not his own. 

He supposed he should be grateful Lunar hadn’t attempted to kill him again. 

"How are you faring my child?" Kc asked him softly as he entered the room carrying a small container in one hand with the brood tucked into a makeshift sling. 

“Better I suppose. I still feel really stressed.” Anxious and worried. He stiffened then shivered when he felt a large hand against his back, the silicon coated metal was comfortably warm. He was touch starved and knew it but he’d never admit it. 

“Your obsession has always been with control. You need to learn to trust though I know that is difficult for you.” KC lingered, hand resting on Eclipses back for a moment longer. The broodlings fussed loudly, their long limbs kicking as they became increasingly frustrated over not being fed. 

Eclipse looked at the floor. “It's easier said than done. I still feel like an outcast…they fully adopted Solar but…” 

“You feel as if you are still on the outside though Sun and reluctantly Moon have welcomed you into the family.” KC sat the container down and opened it, plucking out one of the tiny pink things. Several pairs of red eyes locked onto it. A moment later a tiny fight broke out that had to be broken up. “Easy, you will get fed, you must have patience.” the tiny mouse vanished down the maw of the little predator. 

“They don’t have much patience at this age. “ Eclipse smiled softly and offered Atlas one of the mice. Chirping happily it snatched the offering up, gulping it down. “You know you could at least chew.” 

“Their teeth were not designed for chewing unfortunately.” Perfectly designed for slicing and piercing just like the Creator intended. Another tiny pink thing was snatched out of his fingers and gulped down. 

“Good thing none of us have functional breasts.” Eclipse shivered and subconsciousnessly cross his arms over his chest while Atlas burrowed into his ruffles, full and content to chew on said ruffles shredding the cloth. 

KC mirrored the shiver. It wasn’t hard to think what those little sharp teeth could do. 

“How…how did you and Sun…you know…hook up?” Out of all the people the solar animatronic could have gotten cozy with, KC was the last one he’d ever suspect. Honestly he thought Solar was the one Sun would be chasing after. 

KC chuckled softly. “Sun treated me kindly and I returned it. He was willing to give me a chance when others had decided that I was nothing more than a parasitic virus. Things naturally happened from there.” 

Lucky. “What if I can’t…” 

“You will have to find some love inside of yourself first.” KC gently adjusted the blanket around the slumbering brood. 

Eclipse hunched his shoulders. No one could ever possibly love him. Pathetic clone. 

“Do not think so little of yourself, my child.” KC gently laid a hand on his slumped shoulders. “You are broken but you are also healing. Give yourself time.” 

“Thanks dad.”

Chapter Text

Eclipse angrily scrubbed his casing while standing under hot water. He had spent the entire night and part of the morning hiding like a frightened child while the storm raged. All because Lunar had to be a little hater. 

Lill shit. 

Hearing an odd sound he perked up, straining to hear over the rush of water. Maybe he was hearing things or the TV. The sound ebbed and flowed like a siren. Reaching up he turned the water off, listening closely. 

‘Waaahhhhoooo…waaahhhhhoooo!’ 

Groaning, he snatched up a towel and wrapped it around his waist. There was only one thing that could make such a sound.  The moment he opened the door a small bundle of long limbs came scuttling towards him as fast as it could, eating carpet more then once while wailing at the top of its tiny lungs. Kneeling he scooped the frantic Atlas up. “I thought you were asleep.” Damp crimson eyes looked up at him, tiny hands scrambling at his casing. “Guess you don’t want to be alone. Can’t blame you.” Atlas was going to turn into velcro at this rate. Sighing he carried the niblet into the bathroom, kicking the door shut behind him. After several failed attempts to put the fussing niblet into the sink so he could get dressed he vented softly then proceeded to use his free hand to get dressed like a drunk in the dark. 

“For something so small you are damn loud.” The only response he received was Atlas chewing on his shirt. “You're probably hungry.” he paused, crescent wrinkling. “How did you get out of the play pen?” They could barely walk without eating floor and their long limbs were uncoordinated. “You climbed out didn’t you?” 

No answer. 

“Better make sure your siblings are not all over the place.” Cradling Atlas to his chest he walked into the living room only to discover the pen was empty and the brood was busy exploring the living room, using the couch as a scratching post and one…one was in the potted plant using it for a litter box. “Sun is going to have a fit.” 

 Plucking the one out of the plant was met with loud protests as it tried to grab the plant, shredding the leaves. The rest proceed to scatter making it difficult to round them up. Grim peered out from behind the curtains upon hearing her ‘kittens’. Meowing she ran over to Eclipse and stood on her back legs trying to see her small one. 

“Its not  hurt, just mad that I pulled it out of the plant.” He winced at the surprisingly loud volume the small thing was capable of. If KC or Sun had been home he was certain they would have broken the land speed record. 

 He held the squalling fit throwing niblet out so the cat could see it. Grim grabbed the furious mini kill code by the scruff then darted off for the playpen, hiding among the small blankets. 

“That's one. Where are the others?” He plucked two of the long limbed predators and placed them in the playpen where they glowered at him and pouted. The last one was still missing. 

After searching the living room and growing more and more frantic, Eclipse entered the kitchen just in time to see the last mini KC had somehow managed to get on the counter, likely drawn by the smell of  food. Bloodmoon gave the small animatronic a look of disgust then backhanded it right off the counter. It landed in the trash can with a squall of surprise and pain. 

Eclipse’s face darkened in anger. Carefully cradding Altas he stormed over to the lill shits and grabbed them by the hoodie before they could escape. Growling he dragged them to the sliding patio door then tossed them out. “You two can stay out there until KC and Sun come back and you better hope neither of them bans you from the house after that stunt you just pulled!” He slammed the door shut and locked it while Bloodmoon cursed and ranted on the other side. 

Venting harshly he pulled the poor thing out of the trash can. Thankfully it was more upset and scared then injured. “It's alright…I’ll make sure they won’t hurt you.” He paced around the kitchen cradling two crying, fussing very upset little ones, unsure of what to do to calm them down. He really wasn’t used to any one actually needing him. 

As he circled around the island he could see the open container that still had a few tiny mice in it.
“Fucking Bloodmoon. They have their own food, they don’t need to be eating yours.” They could easily find all the mice they wanted. 

Jealous pricks. 

“I really don't want to ruin Sun’s and KC’s night.” But something needed to be done before the twins hurt one of the little ones. 

KC entered the house like a barely controlled storm. It was taking every ounce of control he had not to go off on the boys for what they did. He knew they had jealousy issues but this was going too far. “Where are they?” he rumbled. Eclipse motioned to the patio door. “I tossed them outside, I doubt they’d go far.” he handed the drowsy little one to Sun. 

Sun gently held the small bundle. “They know better than to do something like that! They could have broken its tiny legs!” Thankfully he had been too busy to take the trash out so it was mostly full which prevented any damage. 

“I will track them down and have a very long talk with them. Then we will decide what to do.” KC rumbled. 

“They are not coming back here!” Sun held the small one protective against his chest. 

“There's a treehouse in the yard. They can stay there.” Eclipse lightly patted Altas on the back and it let out the smallest bletch ever. “You got yourself so upset you swallowed air.” 

KC nodded. “That may be for the best for the moment.” 

Eclipse watched as his code donner padded out of the door and into the night. Hopefully the little goblins got the spanking they needed. “Didn’t get a chance to feed them, was too busy trying to round them up.” 

“What do you mean round them up?” 

“They climbed out of the pen.” 

“Of course they did.” Sun shook his head. “We are going to have to put something around the edges to keep them from doing that.” 

Finding the twins wasn’t hard. Eclipse was correct that they hadn’t gone too far. They had left a trail of clawed trees, torn up bushes and broken branches. By the time he found them by the creek most of the anger had ebbed. 

The twins sat staring at the water, a mixture of anger and confusion flooding their brain. “Why did we get into trouble?!” 

“They like our replacements more than they like us!” 

“Why do you think they are your replacement?” they nearly jumped out of their casing and spun around to face their furious father.  There would be no outrunning the larger animatronic. In fact running would only make him more angry, something they knew from experience.  How many teeth would they lose this time? 

They hunched up, frame tense. Waiting for the blows to fall. 

“Why do you think they are your replacement?”

They looked away. “You like them better than us.” 

“They look like you and we do not!” 

“The point man won’t let us near them.” 

“For good reason. You’ve proven you will harm them.” KC rumbled. “They are not your replacements, they are infants that need care. There is no reason for you to be jealous of them just because they require a great deal of care.” he dropped to a crouch. “I will not tolerate you harming them, nor will Sun.” 

Bloodmoon growled and hunched up more. ‘ I want to flush them down the toilet!’ 

Ever the voice of reason Harvest shut that down. ‘That will only make father angry. We will get a beating.’

‘I don’t care. I don’t like them. They smell funny and don’t do anything but eat and sit around.’ 

“Until you are capable of controlling yourselves, you will not be allowed in the house.” 

Snarling they spun around. “That’s not fair!” Bloody snapped. “We did nothing wron-” in a flash they were pinned to the earth, the kill code looming over them, growling. 

“You pushed one of the infants into a trash can. You could have easily broken its legs.” 

Harvest yanked his twin away from the front before he could get them both a beating because of his temper. “Brother doesn’t like them.” 

“That is not a reason to hurt them!” KC roared, temper flaring.  Hissing in agitation he moved back, pacing. “Until you are capable of not harming the small ones you will not be allowed in the house. You are not a slave to your base instincts any more, you are more than able to make decisions.” Growing he turned away and vanished off into the night before he gave into his tempter.

Chapter Text

“Come one, you can do it.” Sun leaned for a bit, hands held out, smiling encouragingly from his spot on the floor. 

The one they named Aurora lurched forward, long limbs uncoordinated. She, they assumed it was a she, ate floor more then once though the niblet wasn’t discouraged. She knew there would be food if she could just close the gap between them so she slowly but surely crawled forward. Her shaky limbs barely supported her small body but hunger gave her determination. 

“You did it!” Sun scooped her up the moment she was close enough only to be glowered at when he didn’t immediately feed her. Chuckling he sat her down on the floor. “It's not time for you to be fed.” The glower intensified. 

The one who had been slapped into the trash can, Nova, flopped around on the floor not quite coordinated enough to crawl very well but it was certainly trying since it had seen its siblings attempting to crawl though it had proven itself to be more of a climber which meant constantly pulling the little bugger out of potted plants. 

The other two, Sirius and Apollo were content to cling to Eclipse’s back like little Koalas and would wail like sirens at any attempt to remove them while Atlas clung to the front of his shirt. 

“I'm warming them up as fast as I can.” the dark sun gripped, poking at the tiny pink corpses that floated around the bowl. “You don’t want them cold.” 

The trio chirped in unison, tiny hands clutching at his shirt. 

Sun walked in carrying Nova who was full on pouting that no one was feeding her while Aurora clung to the back of his shirt. He grimaced at the bowl’s contents. He knew it wasn’t going to get better when they got older. The larger they were, the more food they would need and that meant larger mice then eventually rats. Good thing there was plenty of wooded land around them or the food budget would sky rocket. 

Eclipse made a face when he felt wetness seeping into the back of his shirt. Of course someone had either wriggled out of a diaper. The little buggers despised diapers and preferred Sun’s potted plants. Seeing that food was close by the miniature predators squalled unhappily, the noise grating against his audios. 

“Patience  little ones.” 

Cradling Atlas he turned to see a still half asleep KC dressed in an oversized deep blue robe padding into the kitchen. Given what he and Sun had been up to last night he wasn’t too surprised that the predator looked like a wrung out rag. “Go to your grandpa.” Like little spider monkeys the two that had been clinging to his back reached out and grabbed onto KC. 

Chuckling KC allowed the pair to clamber up his arm and cling to his back. Their natural instinct to cling onto their caretakers certainly made it easier to carry them when needed. 

Atlas, being the dominant one of the bunch, tried to clamber onto the counter to help itself to the food only to be stopped which was met with an angry growl. Scowling it reached out, hands making grabby motions towards the pale pink things, demanding to be fed. 

“So demanding.” Eclipse plucked a tiny corpse out of the bowl and held it out. In a flash Atlas scarfed it down, nearly barfing it back up due to its haste to fill the void that was its stomach only to swallow the mouse back down much to Eclipse's disgust. “That’s what you get for being greedy.” A moment later the mouse made a return trip, spaltering onto the floor. 

Sun nearly screamed while his cleaning protocols flared. 

“Don’t trouble yourself Sunshine. Such things are bound to happen,”  KC cleaned the mess up swiftly with a few paper towels, disposing of it in the trash. 

The dark sun offered another mouse to Atlas but the niblet refused, batting it away with a look of disdain. Figuring it would eat later once it felt better he gave it to Nova who snatched it up but didn’t swallow, instead it simply glared and hissed at everything with the pink thing hanging out of her mouth. Shuddering Sun handed it over to his partner. 

“No one is going to take it from you.” Had the twins been stealing food from the infants? For their sake they better hope not. Nova growled then burrowed into her caretaker's robe. 

The rest of the brood all but inhaled the offerings and thankfully none of them barfed. 

Changing diapers was an event in and of itself. The moment the infants realized what was about to happen they became very animated and vocal about their displeasure. Atlas hid in its caregivers shirt once the deed was done and the rest clung to KC, glowering at the ones responsible for the butt wipes. 

“You can’t keep using my potted plants!" Sun complained. 

 “I would suggest a litter box but that is not a habit that I want to encourage once they get older.” KC pointed out. 

“Yeah, let's not let them get into that habit.I really don't want to be changing a giant litter box.” 

Sun made a face. “I don't even want to visualize that.” 

“Once they get older we can get the equivalent of tiny training potties for them.  Getting them to use it will be another matter entirely.” Maybe they could place rocks in the potted plants to discharge the little ones. 

“You need to eat something.”  Atlas scowled at him, growled and batted away any offerings. It clearly associated eating with the very unpleasant act of vomiting and despite the hunger Eclipse knew it had to be feeling it still refused. Out of desperation he had tried to force the tiny jaws open only to be squalled at. 

It wasn’t worth stressing it out. 

“I can’t give you anything with dairy in it and you refuse everything else. I guess you will eat when you want to.” 

This isn't fair! 

I don’t like it either! 

We should have flushed them. Father would have forgotten about them eventually.

The twins sat on the edge of the tree house, watching the house. Out of retaliation they had wrecked the sun man’s garden. Sure they’d get into more trouble but they didn’t care. They didn’t like how the small things were taking over and getting all the attention. 

Maybe we can steal them and hide them somewhere.

Tempting but Harvest knew that would end very badly for them. They wouldn't just be banned from the house, they’d get a beating then likely disowned. It wasn’t fair that father liked their replacements better than he liked them. 

They scowled at the house. 

If they couldn't get rid of the small things then what could they do?

Chapter Text

“I know you are hungry. You need to eat something.” Eclipse vented a sigh when Atlas refused, batting the tiny pink thing away with disdain then fussing when he wasn’t immediately fed. “I’ve tried feeding you damn near everything in the god damn kitchen but you wont eat it.” He even tried butter despite the risk of being vomited on. 

Pacing around the kitchen Eclipse cradled the fussing very upset niblet. His tiny tail flicked back and forth. Atlas wasn’t sick, of that he was certain but he refused to eat. “You haven’t eaten all day.” The others weren’t too worried, not yet. KC assured him that the little one would get hungry enough to eat soon enough. 

“The milk bar must still be open.” That was the one thing he was certain Atlas would eat. Since he would need both hands to wrangle the cat he placed the fussing unhappy niblet into a basket and tucked a thick towel around him. It was doubtful Atlas would go anywhere in the few moments it would take for him to find Grim and Blood Moon was locked outside. “Stay here.”

He crept into the dark living room. The rest of the brood was sleeping in a tangle of limbs in a pile, safely contained by a modified play pen. The house was quiet with every one being asleep except him and a very unhappy niblet. Now where the hell was that cat? 

‘I’m hungry!’ 

‘I know other.’ They could easily hunt but they knew there was something better in the fridge that didn’t involve chasing animals. There was the added bonus that it would piss off certain individuals. They slipped on to the back porch then tugged on the sliding glass door. To their surprise it wasn’t locked. Blood Moon stuck their head into the dim room, audios straining, body tense, ready to run for it if they spotted their father or the sunny one. Slowly they inched into the kitchen, leaving the door open just in case. 

Moving silently as a shadow they walked to the fridge then slowly opened it as if expecting an alarm to go off. Cackling to themselves they pulled out the container labeled mice. Rumbling in delight they opened it, plucked a tiny soft pink thing out then popped it into their mouth, shivering in delight. 

Why did the small ones that smelled funny get tiny mice and they didn’t unless they dug them up? 

They were half way through the container when they felt a pair of eyes staring at them. Turning they spotted one of the infants glaring at them from a basket on the counter. It clearly wasn’t happy to see them. 

‘It's the one with the wriggle worm!’ 

The one that the pointy man liked best. 

Grinning, they dangled a mouse over its head. To their disappointment the small one ignored it and continued to glare at them. Unable to get anything out of the small one they glared back.

‘I want to see the wriggle worm.’ 

 Instead of pausing to think about what they were about to do and the consequences they snatched up the poor infant, turning him this way and that, ignoring the small ones' protests at the rough handling. Atlas hissed and clawed at the large fingers to no avail. Eventually they grew bored and plopped him back into the basket. Tears welled up in the crimson eyes. He was hungry, wet and now upset at being handled like a toy. 

‘It's so boring! All it does is eat and sleep and wet itself!’ 

They grabbed the basket and dumped the contents into the trash can. 

‘Ooppsss.’

‘Into the trash! Where it belongs!’

Poor Atlas barely had a chance to brace himself or make an attempt to hold onto the basket for dear life before it was upended. Unlike last time there was nothing to cushion his fall other than a thin towel. He landed hard on the cold metal of the trash can with a metallic thump. Stunned, he sat there for a moment tangled in the thin towel.Then the pain hit. Eyes tearing up he wailed like a fire alarm at the top of his tiny lungs. 

Hearing the noise, Eclipse charged into the kitchen, rays pinned and claws out.  Fear, panic and rage welled up threatening to overwhelm him. “What did you two do!?” he roared, lunging for the trash can to fish out a very upset Atlas who was still wailing, tiny hands clutching at his shirt. 

“We didn’t do anything!” They protested.

“You threw a baby into the trash can!” 

“No we didn’t!” 

Pale yellow eyes bleed red and he lunged at them, snarling only to have the little goblins duck under the strike. Eclipse let loose with an indescribable noise of rage but the twins were nimble little beasts and easily dodged the strikes while cackling. 

“You won't win!”

“Slow and clumsy! You'd be faster if you dropped the parasite!” 

“He is not a parasite!” Eclipse snarled. The adversary in front of him became the sole focus of all his stress and anger. With his free hand he grabbed the little goblins by the front of the shirt and threw them against the cabinets with a resounding bang and crunch of wood. 

 A deep ugly growl drowned out Atlas’s cries. Eclipse turned his head to see a very enraged Kill Code in the doorway, dressed only in a robe and clearly pissed off. 

“Bloodmoon. What did you do?” 

“They threw Atlas in the trash while I was looking for the cat.” 

The crimson eyes flicked between him and the twins who wisely squeezed out the still open door. They were willing to throw hands with the dark sun but knew they didn’t stand a chance against their enraged father.  Brisling KC took off after them, going through the glass door. Eclipse turned, shielding Atlas from the shower of glistening glass shards. 

“What…what the hell happened?” Sun stumbled into the room, still half asleep, rays a mess. He looked at the glass shards all over the floor then froze. “Who broke in!?”

“The twins snuck in, dumped Atlas into the trash can then KC went after them. He didn’t bother to open the door.” Anger simmered as he paced around the kitchen. If KC didn’t beat the crap out of them he would. 

Sun’s expression darkened. “I don’t know why they hate the little ones so much. This goes beyond jealousy." He vented harshly, retreating the broom and dustpan from the closest so he could clean the mess before his cleaning protocols drove him batty. 

“I’m going to scrap them if they come back.” Eclipse growled, lightly patting a sobbing Atlas on the back before gently prying him off and laying him on the counter so he could gently examine the niblet who made it very clear that he didn’t want to be prodded. The rage flared up again, red hot and toxic. How dare those idiots harm an infant. “I think his leg is broken. Might have dislocated his hip too.” he would further examine the niblet but didn’t want to further stress and upset him. 

Scooping Atlas back up he carefully cradled the small infant. 

“I’ll find the first aid kit. We can at least make a makeshift splint for now.” After cleaning up the glass he replaced the broom and dustpan then returned with the first aid kit. To no one’s surprise the poor thing hissed and wailed at him, tiny hands swatting at his hands. 

“You're all right. Sun’s not going to hurt you.” Eclipse adjusted his hold on the small bundle so Sun could see the damaged leg. He winced at the clearly broken limb, the dark casing was cracked and Atlas wailed every time the limb was moved or touched. They were so tiny and fragile it was near impossible to do any repairs meaning they would have to use nanites and hope for the best. 

“You’ll be all right. We’ll get you fixed up right as rain.” He swished a fist with his words as if trying to encourage a frightened child. The only response he got was to be hissed at. Well it was worth a try. 

As it turned out getting a makeshift splint made from popsicle sticks wasn't that easy. The infant wailed and squirmed and kicked, forcing Eclipse to hold him down long enough for Sun to wrap Atlas's lower leg with gauze.

“It's alright…I know it hurts..” the dark sun cradled the infant.

“Has he eaten anything yet?”

“Nothing. He's more stubborn than Lunar.” he watched a bit confused as Sun filled a bottle with milk and popped it into the microwave. “Hes going to throw up and feel even worse if he eats that.”

“It's oat milk. KC likes putting it in his coffee.” Once the bottle was warm enough Sun took it out of the microwave and handed it to his shadow.

Eclipse vented harshly. It couldn't hurt to try. Personally he thought the stuff tasted awful. It took a few attempts to get the nipple into the niblet's mouth. Almost immediately Atlas began sucking on it, growling the entire time. 

The blaze of fury that had infused every circuit and thought was swiftly reduced to a smoldering ember. “I'm supposed to protect you and I failed.”

He didn't resist when Sun pulled him into a hug. Eclipse tucked his head against the other's chest, rays partly retracting. The steady gentle warmth was soothing. 

“None of us could have known that Blood Moon would sneak in and do something so cruel." His gaze flicked to the broken door, frame stiffening when KC stepped into the house. The robe hung in shreds, mud, leaves and animatronic fluids caked his casing. 

His internal phone pinged with a message concerning Atlas. Sun frowned and responded. 

It took every ounce of self control KC to not turn around and track the twins down again. ‘ They will not set foot near the house again. Injuring an infant is going too far.’ 

‘Go get cleaned up, I'm going to get Eclipse settled on the couch for now.’

Alarmed by the noise the brood had crammed themselves under the blankets along with Grim, each one latched onto a nipple, self soothing. 

Eclipse barely reacted when a cup of warm tea was pressed into his free hand and a quilt draped around his shoulders. 

“The twins were punished soundly for their cruelty.” KC rumbled, casing damp from the shower.

“I wish I knew why they were being so cruel to an infant.”

Eclipse cradled the now sleeping Atlas close to his chest, the nipple of the bottle firmly in his mouth. “Does it matter why the little goblins hate the brood? If they come back here I'll scrap them myself.”

“They are not allowed anywhere near the house, they have proven that they can not be trusted around the small ones. Despite everything I have tried to teach them, they remain as fickle and pointlessly violent as small children. ”

“They were made from the worst parts of me. All the violence and spite wrapped in fragments of the kill code virus.” Eclipse curled into the quilt, shielding his adopted niblet. 

KC frowned. “They made the choice to not change, not to better themselves.” he laid on hand on the quilt covered Eclipse.

Sun vented harshly in mid frustration. “We tried to get them to be more civil. This isn't on you.” 

“Aaaaawwwwwiiiie weeeiii weeiii”

The noise was so out of place that it started them both. Moon stared at Solar who was standing by the coffee maker. 

“Don't look at me. I didn't make that noise.” Solar sat his cup down and looked around for the source of the odd noise.

“Aaaaawwwwwiiiie weeeiii weeiii”

Sitting in the middle of the cat's food bowl was one of the brood, clad in blue and white. “How did you get out?” The only response was the same odd noise followed by crunching. “Pretty sure cat food isn't good for you.” The niblet growled around the mouth full of dry cat food as it was picked up. 

“I thought they couldn't get out?” Moon gripped. 

“Apparently they can. The rest are probably scattered around the living room.” Sure as shit the rest of the brood had somehow gotten out of the pen and scattered the moment they walked into the living room. It took them both to round up the squalling little niblets who made it clear they weren’t happy about being pulled off things or out of things. One screamed like a toddler when Solar pulled her off the plant. 

Wincing he placed the little trouble maker back into the pen to be glared at before helping Moon round up the rest. 

“Well that’s all of them except one.” Several pairs of crimson eyes glared at them. 

“Atlas is probably with Eclipse. He’s pretty much adopted that one.” Solar chuckled then grimaced his shirt was damp. “You little…you did that on purpose.” 

Moon cackled. “Better you than me. Little bugger has good aim.” 

“Laugh it up.” Solar grumbled then peeled the shirt off and went to toss it into the hamper. 

Hearing the result of cloth Moon turned around to see the brood once again having escaped the pen and was scattering in different directions. “I’m going to have to make a damn forcefield." 

It was the soft fussing of a hungry niblet that roused Eclipse from his stupor. He sat up and looked around his sparse room trying to remember when he ended up in his room. Sun or KC must have carried him into his room at some point. His internal clock told him it was rather early. 

“Hang on….I’m getting up.” he pushed the thick comforter off then shoved his feet into a pair of ridiculous cat slippers Sun had gotten him then shuffled into the kitchen. Yawning he puttered around the kitchen, pouring himself some of the fresh coffee while waiting for Atlas’s bottle to warm up then changed the squirming niblet, earring a paw to the face more then once. “Im going to have to get a changing table.” 

Chapter Text

“On the couch! Really?”

Eclipse twitched in aggravation. This was exactly the confrontation he'd been hoping to avoid. He had been hoping to enjoy a few quiet hours sitting on the couch using the temporary silicon chest piece. Cradling Atlas he sat up a bit more, scowling. The infant remained attached to the nipple. “You act like you've never seen a boob before lunar.” he grinned wickedly. “Didn't Gemini show you theirs? You were dating after all. Oh wait they kicked you to the fucking curb because you're a selfish self hateful little twat. You are not the center of the damn universe." Eclipse growled softly. 

“I don't want your forgiveness Lunar, I'm fine with you hating me but if you become a threat to Atlas I will toss you out the door. Without opening the door.”

He could see Old Moon's fury in Lunar's eyes. Sparks danced off the tightly clenched fists. Instinctively he curled around Atlas while scowling at the purple nurple. 

You're just using them like you use everyone!”

“Thats not true.” He felt himself breaking down as his emotions spiraled.

“Lunar. Downstairs. Now.”

Recognizing the tone Lunar turned and wisely sprinted down the basement stairs.

KC squeezed his eyes closed in aggravation. He really didn’t want to see another family member vanish. 

“I am not a monster. ..”

Opening his eyes  he turned to face a balled up Eclipse. “You are not a monster. You are a loving father and caregiver.” He sat on the edge of the couch, gently pulling Eclipse into a hug. Somehow the argument didn't wake the infant.

“Perhapse  you and Sun should go out for a bit, run some errands and spend some time with you little  one.” KC pulled back, finger tips brushing over the small ones hat earing an agitated growl. 

"I'm not sure...? I guess..” They did need to pick up more diapers and he wanted to get some different food for the brood. It would be good for them to try other things. 

Sun tilted his head at a forty-five degree angle, pale eyes fixed on the swells under Eclipse's shirt, barely visible under the sling where Atlas rested.

“Put your head back Sun.” He chuckled. KC and Jack both had looked at him in the exact same manner. like curious cats. 

Sun splutters a bit. “I..it's a bit weird.” his head remained at an odd angle and pale eyes remained locked on his shadow even as he retrieved a shopping cart. 

“Heh, it feels a little uncomfortable when they're full but Atlas tends to drain them pretty quick.” he rolled his shoulders causing the sensitive nipples to rub against the fabric of his shirt. Suppressing a gasp he flicked the sensors off. “But the trade off is worth it.” He wouldn't admit it but the silicon lumps with their nanite filled pouches allowed him to bond deeply with his little boy.

He glanced over to Sun, a smirk playing on the edges of his lips. He could hear the gears turning in the other's head. Without a word he sent Sun the link to source and for a split second Sun lit up like a supernova.

Eclipse strode down the baby aisle while Atlas watched everything with great curiosity, silly turtle tightly clutched in his hands. He was picking through the puree baby food that resembled vomit when the last person he wanted to see turned the corner.

“Hey! Are you busy?"

Eclipse twitched in annoyance. He could have tolerated that idiot Freddy but why Chica the air head? “Yes.”

“I heard you had babies. Who's the father? We have bets that it's Moon or that other lunar bot.”

He twitched like an annoyed cat. “ Kill Code is their father-”

“He sounds like bad news. Do you need help? Are they abusing you?”

He twitched again. What kind of rumors were floating around the plex? “They are adopted-”

“You decided to be a single mom? That's so ambitious! Wait, you said there were more but I only see one.” She moved closer and brought up an arm protectively.

“Me, Moon, Sun and Solar are raising them. “ He fought every impulse in his brain not to strangle the chicken. Atlas hissed and wailed in fright. Eclipse backed up a few steps.

"Oh, it's adorable! And it looks like its father.” 

Eclipse twitched so hard he swore if he had muscles he would have pulled something. “They. Are. Adopted.” Maybe if he said it slowly as if he was speaking to a stupid child she might understand. “Moon found them in a lab that the Creator abandoned and left them to die. The Creator made them by copying KC’s code so no one gave birth to them.” 

“Do they eat?”

“They can eat, they have a tecno organic matrix.” 

She pulled out a piece of pink paper from nowhere like a magician. “If  you change your mind, call me!”

Eclipse took the paper then crumpled it up and tossed it the moment the damn chicken turned and left. Once Atlas calmed down he resumed shopping, picking out a few promising jars and putting them into the small basket. “I hope you will at least try this stuff, it's okay if you don’t like it and prefer my boobs instead.” The only response he got was a sleepy yawn.

After making a pit stop to the family bathroom to change a sleepy Atlas diaper he tracked Sun down who was going through the cereal. No doubt for Moon who ate the stuff by the box full. “Found a few things the brood might be interested in.” 

“Given that one of them eats cat food I’m sure they will at least try it.” He added a few boxes of Golden Grams then as an after thought a box of super generic sugar free cheerios. 

“You know Moon hates those.” 

“I know.” Sun said a little too cheerfully. He smiled when Eclipse let out a laugh. “Something is bothering you.”

Eclipse grumbled softly. “Fucking Chica. She started rumors about me giving birth to the brood. The entire plex probably thinks I'm a freak. I wasn't pregnant with them dammit!”

“For what it's worth you are not a freak. I know Chica made you upset, but I doubt it was intentional. She's not the brightest anamatronic."

“Considering she compulsively eats garbage? That was an understatement.” Still her words had punched holes in the walls he had built up leaving him shaken. 

“Let’s finish shopping then go get lunch.” 

KC lay on the floor with the broodlings while they crawled around, slowly winding down now that they had spent most of their energy playing. One by one they snugged up against the mass of warmth, kicking and smacking each other as they settled. Even Grim had come out of hiding and was snuggled against his back. 

He was starting to doze off himself when he felt an odd sensation against his casing. Tilting his head down he searched for the source of the odd wet sensation. Reaching underneath his shirt he detached one of the niblets. Its eyes were closed and its mouth was still making sucking motions when it realized that it had been detached. Blinking it peered around then squalled unhappy. 

“I’m sorry little one. I do not possess the anatomy you are looking for.” That did nothing to stop the anger. He sat the little one down who sat on its diapered behind, still squalling. At this rate it was going to wake up the others. “Hush, you will make yourself throw up if you get upset enough.” he traced around its head with his finger tips in an attempt to calm it down. “You just ate so I know you are not hungry.” the small one hiccupped then latched onto his fingertip. It clutched at the finger while it suckled. 

Too surprised to react he lay there staring at the small one. It felt…odd to have a warm wet mouth latching onto his finger. (that wasn’t Sun’s) Eventually he sighed softly and allowed it. “If that's what it takes to prevent you from making yourself sick.” He made a mental note to find some pacifiers and put them in his pocket.

Chapter Text

“You are doing that on the couch! Really?”

Eclipse twitched in aggravation. This was exactly the confrontation he'd been hoping to avoid. He had been hoping to enjoy a few quiet hours sitting on the couch using the temporary silicon chest piece. Cradling Atlas he sat up a bit more, scowling. The infant remained attached to the nipple. “You act like you've never seen a boob before Lunar.” he grinned wickedly. “Didn't Gemini show you theirs? You were dating after all. Oh wait they kicked you to the fucking curb because you're a selfish hateful little twat that can't control your emotions." Eclipse growled softly. “I don't want your forgiveness Lunar, I'm fine with you hating me but if you become a threat to Atlas I will toss you out the door. Without opening the door.”

He could see Old Moon's fury in Lunar's eyes. Sparks danced off the tightly clenched fists. Instinctively he curled around Atlas while scowling at the purple nurple.

You're just using them like you use everyone!”

“That's not true.” He felt himself breaking down as his emotions spiraled.

“Lunar. Downstairs. Now.”

Recognizing the tone Lunar turned and wisely sprinted down the basement stairs.

KC squeezed his eyes closed in aggravation. He really didn’t want to see another family member vanish.

“I am not a monster. ..”

Opening his eyes  he turned to face a balled up Eclipse. “You are not a monster. You are a loving father and caregiver.” He sat on the edge of the couch, gently pulling Eclipse into a hug. Somehow the argument didn't wake the infant.

“Perhaps you and Sun should go out for a bit, run some errands and spend some time with you little  one.” KC pulled back, finger tips brushing over the small ones hat earing an agitated growl. 

"I'm not sure...? I guess..” They did need to pick up more diapers and he wanted to get some different food for the brood. It would be good for them to try other things. 

Sun tilted his head at a forty-five degree angle, pale eyes fixed on the swells under Eclipse's shirt, barely visible under the sling where Atlas rested.

“Put your head back Sun.” He chuckled. KC and Jack both had looked at him in the exact same manner when they saw the new upgrade, like curious cats. 

Sun splutters a bit. “I..it's a bit weird.” his head remained at an odd angle and pale eyes remained locked on his shadow even as he retrieved a shopping cart. 

“Heh, it feels a little uncomfortable when they're full but Atlas tends to drain them pretty quick.” he rolled his shoulders causing the sensitive nipples to rub against the fabric of his shirt. Suppressing a gasp he flicked the sensors off. “But the trade off is worth it.” He wouldn't admit it but the silicon lumps with their nanite filled pouches allowed him to bond deeply with his little boy. It felt good to know he could provide for his little one. 

He glanced over to Sun, a smirk playing on the edges of his lips. He could hear the gears turning in the other's head. "Be honest Sun, you want a set so you can play with them."  He made grabby motions with his hands and sent Sun the link to source. For a split second Sun lit up like a supernova.

Eclipse strode down the baby aisle while Atlas watched everything with great curiosity, silly turtle tightly clutched in his hands. He was picking through the puree baby food that resembled vomit when the last person he wanted to see turned the corner.

“Hey! Are you busy?"

Eclipse twitched in annoyance. He could have tolerated that idiot Freddy but why Chica the air head? “Yes.”

“I heard you had babies. Who's the father? We have bets that it's Moon or that other lunar bot.”

He twitched like an annoyed cat. “ Kill Code is their father-”

“He sounds like bad news. Do you need help? Are they abusing you?”

He twitched again. What kind of rumors were floating around the plex? “They are adopted-”

She continued on as if she hadn't hear him. “You decided to be a single mom? That's so ambitious! Wait, you said there were more but I only see one.” She moved closer and brought up an arm protectively.

“Me, Moon, Sun and Solar are raising them. “ He fought every impulse in his brain not to strangle the chicken. Atlas hissed and wailed in fright. Eclipse backed up a few steps.

"Oh, it's adorable! And it looks like its father.” 

Eclipse twitched so hard he swore if he had muscles he would have pulled something. “They. Are. Adopted.” Maybe if he said it slowly as if he was speaking to a stupid child she might understand. “Moon found them in an abandoned lab, they had been lfet to die. No one gave birth to them. The Creator made them by copying KC’s code. ”

“Do they eat?”

“They can eat, they have a tecno organic matrix.” 

She pulled out a piece of pink paper from nowhere like a magician. “If  you change your mind, call me!”

Eclipse took the paper then crumpled it up and tossed it the moment the damn chicken turned and left. Once Atlas calmed down he resumed shopping, picking out a few promising jars and putting them into the small basket. “I hope you will at least try this stuff, it's okay if you don’t like it and prefer my boobs instead.” The only response he got was a sleepy yawn.

After making a pit stop to the family bathroom to change a sleepy Atlas's diaper he tracked Sun down who was going through the cereal. No doubt for Moon who ate the stuff by the box full. “Found a few things the brood might be interested in.” he motioned to the small basket.

“Given that one of them eats cat food I’m sure they will at least try it.” He added a few boxes of Golden Grams then as an after thought a box of super generic sugar free cheerios. 

“You know Moon hates those.” 

“I know.” Sun said a little too cheerfully. He smiled when Eclipse let out a laugh. “Something is bothering you.”

Eclipse grumbled softly. “Fucking Chica. She started rumors about me giving birth to the brood. The entire plex probably thinks I'm a freak. I wasn't pregnant with them dammit!”

“For what it's worth you are not a freak. I know Chica made you upset, but I doubt it was intentional. She's not the brightest animatronic."

“Considering she compulsively eats garbage? That was an understatement.” Still her words had punched holes in the walls he had built up leaving him shaken. 

“Let’s finish shopping then go get lunch.” 

KC lay on the floor with the broodlings while they crawled around, slowly winding down now that they had spent most of their energy playing. One by one they snugged up against the mass of warmth, kicking and smacking each other as they settled. Even Grim had come out of hiding and was snuggled against his back. 

He was starting to doze off himself when he felt an odd sensation against his casing. Tilting his head down he searched for the source of the odd wet sensation. Reaching underneath his shirt he detached one of the niblets. Its eyes were closed and its mouth was still making sucking motions when it realized that it had been detached. Blinking it peered around then squalled unhappy. 

“I’m sorry little one. I do not possess the anatomy you are looking for.” That did nothing to stop the anger. He sat the little one down who sat on its diapered behind, still squalling. At this rate it was going to wake up the others. “Hush, you will make yourself throw up if you get upset enough.” he traced around its head with his finger tips in an attempt to calm it down. “You just ate so I know you are not hungry.” the small one hiccupped then latched onto his fingertip. It clutched at the finger while it suckled. 

Too surprised to react he lay there staring at the small one. It felt…odd to have a warm wet mouth latching onto his finger. (that wasn’t Sun’s) Eventually he sighed softly and allowed it. “If that's what it takes to prevent you from making yourself sick.” He made a mental note to find some pacifiers and put them in his pocket.

Chapter Text

Jack eyed the small jar of gross looking mush. It was an odd shade of brown and didn't resemble food yet he had heard Sun say it was baby food. Curious he twisted the top off and stuck his tongue into the bit that was on the bottom of the lid.

Instant regret.

“Bllllaaaggggg!” He rushed for the sink and turned the faucet on. 

Solar watched with one eye brow raised. “It can’t be that bad.” Jack licked floors for fucks sake. Picking up the lid he too made the horrible mistake of sticking his tongue somewhere where it did not belong. A split second later he was joining his son at the sink. 

“That’s so gross.” Would the broodlings even eat baby food? 

“That’s nasty!" Jack scrubbed at his tongue with a towel. 

Screwing the top back onto the jar of demonic leavings Solar placed it with the rest of the jars that were neatly stacked up on the cabinet. “Can’t see that stuff going over well with the broodlings. At least I won’t be the one cleaning the mess.”

Eclipse settled Atlas on the counter, tucking a towel around him. “I guess there’s only one way to find out if you like this stuff or not.” picking a jar at random he scooped some of the pale mush up with a spoon then offered it to “It's supposed to be chicken.” The infant peered at the spoon as if trying to figure out what it was. The tiniest tongue he’d ever seen flicked out to touch the mush. For a long moment Atlas just sat there as if trying to decide if he liked it or not, tongue sticking out. 

Leaning forward a bit Atlas stuck his tongue back into the pale mush then began to attempt to eat it, getting more on himself  then in his mouth. “I guess this means you like it.” Might need a smaller spoon. “Here, you are getting more on you then in you.” he wiped the little one off with a paper towel getting the worst of it before feeding Atlas some more. 

Yep, going to have to get smaller spoons. 

The brood watched as Sun sat on the floor and poured the meat mush into a shallow bowl then placed it in front of them. Curious they clambered over the dozing lunar predator or reluctantly let go of his robe to crawl over to the bowl. “I know it doesn’t look like anything you’ve eaten before but it's good to try new things.” Sun crouched, hopeful that they would at least give it a try. 

A few approached the bowl and snuffled at it then simply stared, unsure of what to do. Several pairs of red eyes glanced up at him then back at the bowl. One of them tried to cover up the bowl the same way a cat would cover up a fresh deposit in a litter box.

“That’s rude. Just because you don’t like it doesn’t mean you need to bury it.”  the infant continued to try and ‘bury’ the bowl. Seeing that they might need a little encouragement, Sun lightly pushed one towards the bowl, overcalculating the force needed and accidentally sending the poor thing face first into the bowl. Panicking he grabbed the small one up and was rewarded by a squalling very upset infant that was coated in baby food. The rest of the brood scattered, vanishing underneath the blankets. 

Coughing and crying Aura squalled all the louder now that she was covered in the smelly wet cold stuff. Her tiny hands clawed at the much larger ones holding her hostage. 

Leaping to his feet he rushed to the kitchen (which was closer than the bathroom) to deposit the poor infant into the sink. 

“You know you are supposed to feed them, not dunk them in it.” 

“Shut it.” In no mood to be snarked at by Eclipse he peeled the soiled onesie of Aura while apologizing for accidentally giving her an unwanted baby food facial which did nothing to stop the melt down which of course started a domino effect of upsetting Atlas. 

Eclipse rolled his eyes and tried to push down the protectiveness and worry that made his emotions want to crash, somehow he managed to find something to latch onto, an anchor in a storm. Scooping up Atlas he cradled the small one, gently rubbing his back while mummering soothingly. “Calm down Sunshine. You dunking her like a cookie was an accident." 

“You are not helping!” 

Holding Atlas against his chest he nudged Sun to the side with his hip, running the warm water and placing a silly rubber duck in the sink with her. “They pick up on emotions, the more you freak out the more upset she is going to be. Calm down.” 

Easier said than done. It was hard to stop his hands from shaking as he tried to bathe the small squirming form who had become more interested in the rubber duck. Like every infant before her, Aurora immediately started to chew on the duck, the upset seemingly forgotten about. 

“They forget things that upset them pretty quickly. Don’t dwell on it.” 

“I…shoudn’t have pushed her…” he sniffled. 

“She’s already forgotten about it. Try a spoon next time.” 

Hands still trembling Sun fished Aurora out of the sink and wrapped her up in a towel. “I didn’t mean to…” 

Eclipse snorted. “You are still learning. Taking care of the bloodlings is different then the daycare kids, they are not as mobile and can’t feed themselves. Accidents are bound to happen. Just don’t put a diaper on their heads.” 

Sun chuckled softly. “Im not so inept that I am going to put a diaper on their heads.” 

Atlas fussed and pawed at the mounds of silicon making it clear what he wanted. “Hang on.” Eclipse reached under the shirt and freed one of his breasts allowing the infant to latch hungrily onto a nipple. 

“Those are pretty convenient.” 

“Heh, they can be. Atlas certainly likes them and dad likes to stare at them.” 

Sun flushed hotly. “He better not!” 

Eclipse cackled. “He’s curious. Pretty sure he’s not interested in trying the milk bar.” that made the solar bot lit up like a super nova and splutter comically.

Chapter Text

Boobha 

Solar had long come to expect all manner of mischief from Jack but when he walked into the kitchen he had to pause and stare. “Jack…what are you wearing?”  Solar stared at his child who was sitting on the counter, something he seemed to do a fair amount. The odd thing decorating Jack's head appeared to be a ….bra. A floral one. Oh god he hoped it wasn’t. 

“It's a hat!” Jack crowed proudly. 

“Uh..where did you find that hat?” 

“On the wash line.” Jack rocked back and forth, rather proud of his odd new hat. 

Solar pulled in a deep intake on and held it for a moment. He doesn’t know better, he doesn’t know better, he repeated the mantra until he felt the anger simmer down. Picking up his coffee to keep his hands occupied so he would yank the blasted bra off Jack's head and upset him. “Jack, that’s a bra.” 

Jack titled his head. “What's a bra?” 

Ignoring Eclipse’s cackling coming from the living room he vented harshly. “Bra’s are used to contain breasts. They are not hats.” 

“Oh.” Jack titled his head the other way, a sure sign he was thinking. “ Father, why don’t you have breasts?” 

Solar promptly choked on his coffee while more cackling spilled from the living room. “I…I don’t need them Jack.” 

“I bet they are soft.” 

More cackling. It sounded like a damn hyena was parked on the couch. More choking. Once he had his throat cleared he shook his head. “They are made out of silicon so yeah they’d be soft.” reaching out he plucked the bra off Jack's head then winged it as hard as he could into the living room. The article of clothing sailed past Eclipse and landed on Lunar’s head as he was sneaking up to cause some mischief. The most girly scream in existence came from the small bot and he took off at top speed, still screaming, to the basement. 

Cue yet more cackling. 

Solar rolled his eyes. Leave it to Lunar to over react. Feeling tiny hands tugging at his pants he looked down to see Aurora looking up at him, small hands clutching his pants. “How did you get out?”  The only response he received was a chirp. Probably hungry. Setting the mug down he scooped the little one up. Checking the fridge turned up no mice so that left the jars of the devils leavings. 

Not ideal but there was no way in hell he was walking in on what  Eclipse was doing in the living room. 

“That’s nasty." 

“I know Jack but there’s nothing else they can eat.” 

“They can suck on Eclipse's boobs.” 

Somehow Solar nearly choked on air. “Jack!” 

“What?” 

“Can we not walk about that?” The hyena residing in the living room went off again. Aura chirps and tugs on his shirt reminding him that she wants to be fed. “Hang on. “ The lid was unscrewed and spoon dipped into the oddly colored mush then presented to the small one. 

Aurora looked at the spoon then at Solar then back at the spoon, growling softly in disappointment. That wasn’t what she wanted! 

“There’s no gross mice and I can’t feed you the same way Eclipse can.” He tipped the spoon and accidentally gave the poor thing a baby food facial when the mush slipped off the spoon and landed on her face. Confused, she blinked a few times then began to square unhappily. “Shit.” Solar put the spoon down and grabbed up one of the decorative tea towels that hung off the stove handle and cleaned her off while Jack made himself scarce. 

“Sorry…it was an accident…” tossing the towel to the side he tried again, this time being a lot more careful with the spoon. 

“You are supposed to feed them, not dunk them.” 

“I don’t see you doing this!” 

“I have my hands full.” 

Solar rolled his eyes and vented softly. “I know it's not that good but it's all I have. You are not getting cat food.” At first she refused but eventually curiosity won out and a tiny tongue darted out to lick at the mush. “There’s no way it tastes worse than cat food.” Apparently it did since she made a face of displeasure. 

He tried a few different jars only to get the same reaction. When he sat her on the counter she tried to bury the jars like a cat burying a turd in the litter box. “Its not that bad.” 

“Father.” Jack repaired holding a bottle that was full. 

“Where did you find that?” 

“The fidge.” 

Given that Sun never had dairy of any sort in the fridge it was likely safe for the small ones. After warning it up in the microwave he held it up to Aurora who looked at it skeptically before reluctantly latching onto it. 

Eclipse lay on the couch, both hands preoccupied with a little one. Atlas wasn’t too keen on sharing the booba and had slapped at his sibling who squalled unhappily and slapped back so it had taken a bit for them to settle down. 

Despite the earlier upset he felt…light. The laughter had helped lift the darkness that lingered at the edges of mind. He had to admit that it was pretty damn funny that Lunar ran screaming all because one of his bra’s had landed on his head. Served him right. 

Sun pushed the cart through the aisles while going over the rather lengthy list of things needed. The usual meat, non dairy milk, bread and diapers. His gaze traveled down to his flat chest. What would he look like with breasts? It wouldn't be something permanent and mainly would be used to help feed the little ones. KC certainly wouldn't look down at him for such a choice. Hell he’d make full use of it. 

Moon used to tease him, call him a fem boy or twink. If he had boobs then he really would be a fem boy. 

The thought made him chuckle a little. 

Chapter Text

Lunar stared furiously into the mirror, scowling at his own image. Bright blue hair stood on end, mocking every attempt to tame it. Hair! Well as close as possible to hair. He scowled at it. Why him? Why did his body have to be weird? 

It wasn’t even proper hair, it was thin and short and made him look like a damn toddler. He’d shave it off then he’d be bald as Moon and that was worse. 

“Why me!?” The reflection had no answers. 

Filing the towel into that hamper he grumbled and stomped around his basement room. No matter how much he scrubbed he still felt the damn bra. He wasn’t sure how the hell Eclipse managed to throw the horrible thing without him seeing. Probably magic. 

Snatching a hoodie off the floor he put it on making sure to cover his ridiculous hair, making sure none of it was visible before plopping down in front of the TV. 

“Father, why do Eclipse’s boobs look sad.” 

Solar choked on his coffee and so did Moon. Once he cleared his throat pipe he stared at his son in horror. What?” while Moon hacked and coughed and nearly dropped his mug. 

“Why do Eclipse’s boobs look sad?” 

More choking. He’s just curious, don’t yell at him, he’s just curious. “I almost don’t want to know why you’d ask that.” 

Jack just stared, head tilted and book in hand. 

“I…don’t know and there’s no way in hell I’m looking. You shouldn't be looking either.” He made the mistake of taking a sip of coffee. He should have waited until Jack asked his next question. 

“He sits on the couch with them out. It's hard not to see.” 

Cue more choking. Whelp he was going to convince Eclipse to use a small towel or something to cover up so he wouldn't have to keep answering the odd questions. “Still you shouldn't be looking, it's rude.” 

“But the babies get to look."

“Because they are babies.” 

That seemed to satisfy Jack for the moment. Then he spotted the bottle sitting on the counter. They should have known disaster was about to happen. Before either of them could move Jack had the top of it off and like every child in existence drank it. He made a face of supreme disgust then spat up in the sink. 

"That's gross!”

Moon side eyed him. “Dare you to try it.” 

“It can’t be that bad.” Famous last words. The baby food had been god awful but this stuff couldn't be worse than that. Putting down his mug he picked up the bottle. It was just oat milk. Tilting the bottle back the horrible stuff coated the inside of his mouth and tongue with a vileness he’d never tasted before. The odd metallic taste did nothing to enhance it. 

“Blalrrgggg!” he spat it out and grabbed the faucet and washed his mouth out while Moon cackled. “That’s so fucking gross.” 

“That's not oat milk." came from the living room. 

A horrified look came over Solar's face and he turned the faucet back on. Serves him right for putting random things in his mouth. 

“Label the damn things or something!” Moon’s expression matched Solar's. 

“Why are two drinking out of a bottle?” 

“I was curious.” Jack crowed. 

KC walked into the room with a knowing expression as if he expected their impulse control to fail, a pair of infants tucked into his pockets. “Was your curiosity satisfied?” 

“Don’t think I’m going to try strange things left out again.” Solar shuddered and turned the water off. 

“Its probably best you don't." KC chuckled while he pawed through the fridge for something suitable to feed the small ones. Picking out a carton of eggs he closed the fridge and placed a pan on the stove. 

“I can’t believe I drank boob milk.” Solar took a deep gulp of cooling coffee in an attempt to erase every trace of the awful stuff. Eclipse cackled like a hyena. 

“Where’s Sun?” 

“Resting. He’s had a very….adventurous night.” He purred softly, fondly remembering last night's activities. 

“You two seem to have a thing for the Soda Fountain.” Solar leaned against the counter. 

“Its a very nice restaurant.” 

“It's gator repellent.” Moon snarked. No alcohol, no fights, total repellent for a certain gator. 

“I’m still trying to figure out what Earth sees in him.” Solar gently plucked an egg out of Jack's hands before he ate it. They didn’t need a repeat of what happened last time. 

“Hell if I know.” Moon shrugged. 

“He has changed for the better.” KC broke a few eggs into the hot pan catching the attention of the small ones. They chipped and leaned forward trying to get a better view. “Though he is still the rudest animatronic I have ever met.” 

“Yeah, that’s Monty all right.” At least he laid off drinking so much. Then again neither of them got black out drunk again after what happened in Vegas. It had taken the longest time to get the tramp stamps off. 

“Awweeeiii weeeiii weiii” 

“How is she getting out?” Moon put his coffee down long enough to retrieve a fussy Aurora out of the cat’s food dish. He swore they had fixed the pen so they couldn't crawl out. She glared at him for interrupting her meal, growling around a mouth full of dry cat food. “You will eat cat food but not baby food.” More growling. 

“There must be something about it she likes. Perhaps it's the texture.” KC pointed out while putting the eggs on a plate then placed the niblets on the counter. Immediately they went for the plate, tiny hands grabbing at the eggs and stuffing it in their mouths making a mess while their caregiver kept a close eye on them so they wouldn't choke. 

“You found something they like that isn't mice corpses.” Moon let Aurora go and she crawled wobbly to the plate, hissing and smacking her siblings like an enraged kitten until they moved enough for her so she could all but go face first into the yoke which prompted a rescue. KC chuckled softly and fed her bits of the egg while the other two began playing in the runny yoke. 

Moon discreetly made a retreat to his workshop while Solar shook his head and began running water in the sink so they could bathe the small ones. 

“Father, how do babies come out?” 

Nope, not answering that one. No way in hell he was answering that. His gaze flicked to the book Jack was clutching. “Care of babies’ “Where did you get that?” 

“The spicy Dorito.” 

Solar resisted the urge to groan. Of course Eclipse would give him a book like that. Now he could look forward to all manner of weird and uncomfortable questions.

Chapter Text

Because I wanted to make their lives a little harder

The mystery of how Aurora was getting out of the pen was solved when Moon spotted her wriggling out of a hole in the netting near the bottom. No doubt she had cut it with her claws, tiny as they may be they were wickedly sharp. Thankfully she was neither fast nor coordinated enough to escape him. 

“Gottcha.” 

She chirped unhappily, wobbling slightly in his grasp. 

That’s odd. Curious he sat her down on the floor, carefully watching  her as she crawled around. Being uncoordinated wasn’t unusual at that age but the slight wobble was concerning. Testing a theory he plucked a feather wand out of the toy box and dangled it in front of her. Crimson eyes locked onto the brightly colored feathers and she tried to crawl towards it, eating floor twice before she managed to grab it. 

That was cause for concern. 

While she was busy with the feathers he dug through the internet for some sort of answer and came up with one that made his wires tighten. Cerebellar hypoplasia, more commonly known as wobbly kitten syndrome. While it was something that affected organic life forms it oddly matched the niblets symptoms. Hopefully it was nothing other than something off with her balance or gyroscopes. 

“Let's get you scanned and hope it's not what I’m thinking it is.” Moon scooped her up, feathers and all and carried her into the workshop where he bumped into Solar working on some random project. 

Aurora couldn’t care less, she was fully preoccupied with chewing on the fathers. 

“Another broken leg?” Solar inquired. 

“Thankfully no. But I think she has something neurological. I hope I’m wrong.” He sat her down on the scanning pad. She didn’t so much as fuss though she did look around, clearly interested in her environment. “She’s really wobbly when she tries to walk.” 

“Could  just be uncoordinated due to age. They are still pretty young.” 

“I hope.” He really hoped it was nothing bad but many of her symptoms matched cerebellar hypoplasia. They knew nothing of the early days of the brood, something may have happened to her while she was under the care or lack of from the Creator. He tapped away on the keyboard while she watched, more interested in the rather in her grasp. 

Moon tapped his fingers nervously on the workbench while the computer did its thing. 

"How long will it take before the scan is done?"

“A few minutes, it's just a surface scan. Shit.” He muttered softly as the read out told him exactly what he didn’t want to know.

Solar’s rays moved in a sine wave as he did a quick search online. “Wobbly Kitten Syndrome? Did the old fucker drop her on her head or something ?” 

Moon grimaced. “I wouldn't put it past him.” He vented softly. “Its pretty harmless, she’s not in pain or anything, just uncoordinated.” 

“Think she might grow out of it? We can self repair.” 

“I don’t know. There’s a chance but this is neurological." He turned the lap top off and picked her up. She instantly began gnawing on his fingers. “Its not too bad, she will probably have to compensate for it.” 

“She has what?” Sun  looked at his brother confused, the sound of an egg shell cracking, pulling his attention away from Moon to the little bugger that was rapidly chewing through the shell of an egg. “How did you even get up there?” putting down the spatula he plucked Aurora  away from the egg carton. 

Apparently she was developing superpowers to move at impossible speeds while no one was looking given how fast she had gone from sitting on the island to being on a different counter in a matter of moments. 

“She has the equivalent of cerebellar hypoplasia, basically it means she can’t walk without wobbling. She may grow out of it.” 

Sun sighed and placed her into his apron pocket. “She gets around pretty well now.” 

“For now, when she gets older and heavier it may slow her down.” Moon surpassed a smile when Aurora peered out of the pocket, bits of egg shell stuck to her onesie. 

Since one egg was already cracked open Sun finished cracking it over the pan adding it to the other two eggs. “You are a little mischief maker.” She chirped in response and began digging around in the pocket. A moment later Sun froze, expression changing to one of disgust.. Plucking the niblet out of his apron he handed her Moon then stormed out of the kitchen. 

Confused, he looked down at the infant. She was still clad in her onesie and was compltly dry.  He laughed when he realized what she had done. “You really are a trouble maker.” 

While Sun was bus he walked into the living room only to notice the pen was empty. Of course it was. One was in the plant using it for a litter box the rest….they were under the couch. He could hear the sound of their claws scrambling against the carpet and see a paw or hand appear under the edge of the couch every now and then. 

Tucking Aurora into a pocket he lifted one end of the couch causing the brood to hiss and scramble to the other end like feral kittens. “If you want to eat you need to come out from under the couch.” Several pairs of crimson eyes stared at him. 

“Aweeiii weiii” came from his pocket along with crunching sounds. Looking down he spotted the niblet chewing on a piece of cat food that she had hidden in her onesie. Not just a trouble maker, a smart one. The other sensing that their sibling had something to eat they crept out from under the couch and gathered around Moon’s legs, looking up at their sibling expecting her to share.

That just left the one in the plant. Setting the couch back down he grabbed the one in the plant, wincing at the angry squalls. “That’s not a litter box.”

Relived to find nothing but crumbs of cat food in his apron pocket Sun returned to the kitchen  only to hear angry squalls. Curious and a bit concerned he walked into the living room, cleaning protocols twitching at the potting soil on the carpet. “My plants!” Sun waved his arms in the air. 

“Its always this one.” He held the very upset niblet up, checking its tiny paws. Grey and white. Sirius. “Probably  should get them a litter box.”

Sun shook his head. “I don’t want to encourage that behavior, it will be harder to break them of it once they get older. I’m not changing a giant litter box.”

“They could leave deposits outside.”

“That’s somehow worse.” 

Somehow the eggs hadn’t burned though they had been reduced to rubbery pucks. Figuring the infants wouldn’t care he plated the eggs and sat them to the side to cool off while the brood crowded around Grim’s bowl, crunching the cat food. 

“It won’t hurt them, brother.” 

“I know it's just that they shouldn't be eating cat food.” Sun washed the dishes then sat the eggs down. The second the plate touched the floor the brood swarmed it. 

“At least you found something they like better than dead mice.” Moon rummaged through the fridge, picking up a bottle of what appeared to be milk and began drinking it before Sun could stop him out of spite for not getting cheese. 

“That’s boob milk.” Jack crowed, entering the kitchen and clutching his new book about dinosaurs. 

Moon froze, horrified. He rushed over to the sink and spat it up then grabbed the faucet, washing the foulness out of his mouth while he swore he could hear Eclipse cackling. “Why!?” 

“Eclipse says they get too full sometimes and he has to-” Sun barely held back that laughter. Severed his brother right for drinking something random. 

“Nope, I don’t want to hear it.” 

“His boobs get sad.” Jack added. 

Moon groaned softly. “I’m going to the workshop. And tell Eclipse to label the damn containers!"

Chapter Text

Blame  angela1066 for this 

Solar padded into the kitchen to see something wholesome instead of Eclipse with his boobs hanging out and a niblet attached to each one like some sort of demented decoration. Aurora was sitting on the island, rocking slightly while Jack mirrored her, a bowl of half eaten cereal nearby. The infant giggled and burbled happily. He could see the two become close friends given how well they got along. 

Reaching for the coffee pot he spotted the jar. Candy fucking corn. There was no mistaking the Devils candy triangles for anything else. Given that Moon was still asleep it had to been Eclipse. 

He twitched like an annoyed cat. 

“Jack, do you like candy corn?” 

“No, eeewww. No.” 

Solar snorted. The one person who licked floors wouldn’t even eat the Devil's corn. He dumped the foul candy into the trash then placed the jar into the sink when he saw something oddly flesh colored in Jack's hands. Worry flashed through his systems. While it was very very unlikely Jack had found a body part (likely left by a vengeful Bloodmoon) and was now playing with it….his mind went straight to the worst possible scenario. Carefully placing the mug down he barely resisted the urge to slap the potential body part out of Jack’s hands. 

“Jack, what are you playing with?” 

The Halloween themed bot looked up, smiling. “A stim toy. It's soft.” 

Solar twitched like an annoyed cat again when he saw the time clutched in Jack’s hands was a  disembodied breast.  A ‘stim toy’ shaped like a god damn breast. Now he knew Eclipse was behind this. “Jack…you can’t play-” Predictably his son dashed off screaming no and mine. Scooping up the confused infant he stormed into the living room. 

Atlas churred softly then promptly stuck his paw into his mouth then looked surprised when it didn’t taste good. Eclipse chuckled softly. “You are not supposed to eat that.” He gently pried the infant's paw out of his mouth and replaced it with a pacifier. The rest of the brood was sitting on or near Grim, eyes glued to some random cartoon on the TV. It was all incredibly peaceful so of course something had to happen. 

A slipper clunked off the back of his head. His head wiped around, scowling at Solar who had his other old man slipper in hand ready to throw it. 

“Why the hell did you give my son a fake breast? What possessed you to think that was a good idea?” 

Eclipse grinned like the  Grinch that had just found the mother load of presents to steal. “Jealous? Sure you don’t want a set of your own to squeeze and hold?” He made grabby motions with his hands. “I'm sure your nerdy boy friend would look good with a pair of-” the other slipper clunked off his head. 

“Moon doesn’t need boobs!” Solar vented harshly. “I don’t want Jack playing with something so inappropriate.” 

“Its not like he’s going to go around groping strangers." 

“I know he won't. That’s not the point. I don’t want you giving Jack inappropriate things.” Solar growled. He was going to have to wait until Jack was asleep to get the damn thing away from him then toss it into the trash. “And fuck you for the candy corn thing.” he fumed while Eclipse cackled. 

Storming back into the kitchen Solar leaned against the counter trying to calm down before he went back into the living room and punched Eclipse in the face. Aurora looked up at them then stuck her own paw in her mouth, suckling on her own toes, slobbering all over the short silvery white fur. 

“That can’t taste good.” He gently pried her paw out of her mouth only for the other paw to end up in her mouth. “Goober. I bet you're hungry.” No more gross mice thankfully. Opening the fridge he ignored the twin bottles of milk with odd labels. Moon had likely snuck them into the house out of spite. Would serve him right when he ended up curled up around a trash can like every time he raided Monty’s fridge for cheese. 

“You like eggs don't you?” The infant looked up with wide innocent eyes and chirped. Eggs were easy to make. “I have to warn you I'm not much of a cook.” He could rebuild an engine but cooking was not his strong suit.

“You set water on fire last week.” Eclipse cackled. 

Solar rolled his eyes. Even he wasn’t sure how the hell he managed that. 

Dreamscape

Eclipse felt like he had gone from sleeping on a comfortable couch to sleeping on a very itchy stiff carpet. Has someone dumped him off the couch? Likely. Probably Solar as revenge for the candy corn thing. Groaning in agitation he opened his eyes to see a very unfamiliar sky. “The fuck…”  Sitting up it dawned on him that none of it was real, not the itchy carpet, not the endless grey sky or dark twisted forest. “Why the fuck is there a carpet in a forest?” 

“I don’t know. You tell me, this is your head after all.” 

“Oh fuck off.” He stood up and looked around with a scowl, refusing to acknowledge his shadowy double. 

“They will never accept you. You will never be part of the family.” 

He tried his best to ignore the voice, hands slowly curling into fists that made the metal creak. 

"They even replaced you with a patchwork hunk of garbage Eclipse from another dimension."

Eclipse barked out a laugh. “Solar is not my replacement. He could never hope to fill my slippers. He’s Moon’s side project." The shade seemed to waver a bit. 

“Your are the villain, you don’t get to be happy.” 

“Like hell I don’t! I'm not the original Eclipse! I am not like him! I’m his clone…” But he had the original’s memories. And new memories to override the old ones. Eclipse paced, rays rattling. He screamed and flinched when lightning split the grey sky, hunching up into a ball. 

Eclipse jerked awake with a snort. The room was dark and the sound of thunder was slightly muffled which explained the odd lightning in the dream scape. When he tried to sit up he felt a weight on his chest and midsection. Confused, he looked down and froze. Situated on the quilt that had been draped over him was the cat and the infants, all curled up and sleeping, tiny hands paddling against the quilt. He didn’t have it in him to disturb them. 

They looked so comfortable. 

It pained him that the patchwork eclipse had been so readily adopted into the family while he remained an outsider. Someone who was tolerated yet here he was, caretaker and parent to a tiny version of Kill Code. He had a future here, with people that didn’t hate him for something he never did with Lunar being the exception. Yet he felt like he didn't belong. 

“She brought the small ones to you one by one” A familiar voice rumbled. 

Eclipse craned his head to see KC holding a pair of ridiculous old man slippers. Solar’s slippers. 

“I take it Solar did not respond well to your prank.” There was no judgment in his voice.

How did he…it was almost creepy how observant KC was at times. Then againhe was the family patriarch for a reason. Eclipse shrank down a bit, grinning sheepishly. “He found the candy corn.” 

“Ah, a harmless prank. There is no shame in that.” He crouched, crimson eyes studying his son. “Nightmare?” 

How the hell….”Yeah…where is everyone?”

“At the daycare, they will be back soon. Earth will be coming over to help make dinner.” 

No doubt everyone would be tired from being around kids all day while he got lucky enough to stay at the house with the infants who slept more than anything. 

At some point he slipped back off to sleep despitethe raging storm, the hushed sounds of KC puttering around the house and muffled thunder faded into background noises that mixed with the endless drone of the TV allowed for a peaceful sleep. 

Earth knocked on the door, rainbow umbrella folded and the worst of the water shaken off of it. A large reusable bag bulging with ingredients hung off one arm. A groggy Sun opened the door, rays askew. 

“Hey Earth.” 

“Hello Sun. I brought some things so I can help make dinner, you must be so worn out.” She stepped in carefully not to shed rain on the floor knowing how fussy Sun could be.

“Thanks. I’m really tired. They over booked us again.” he closed the door behind her then led her into the kitchen. “Im going to go take a shower real fast. Eclipse is sleeping on the couch, the storm kept him up.” 

“I'm sure you and Moon need a break since you're both usually so busy." She made her way to the kitchen and sat the bag down before locating the pots and pans she needed. 

Lunar stared at the dark sun that was passed out on the couch, one arm over his eyes and a thin line of drool forming at the corner of his mouth. Even the cat and infants were piled on top of him. As much as he wanted to either yank Eclipse off the couch or dump him off it there was no way he'd risk injuring the infants so all he could do was stare.

His fingers twitched at the idea of yanking on the dark sun's rays but that would wake him up and potentially upset the niblets which meant he’d risk someone’s wrath. 

“You're so lucky they are cute.” he grumbled. 

Eclipse woke with a snort and little whine at being lightly shaken awake. His expression pinched into one of displeasure as he opened his eyes to see KC looming over him. The infants began to stir, chirping while kicking or slapping each other groggly. “Whaahtt…?” 

KC chuckled softly. “Earth made dinner. I brought you some.” He helped Eclipse sit up a bit and piled a few pillows behind his shoulders then handed him a plate heaped with meatballs and creamy looking noodles and slices of tomatoes. 

Now wide awake he took the plate. “It looks good.” Aurora yawned and extracted herself from the pile, wobbling over to the plate. She snatched a noodle off it and scarfed it down before chewing on a meat ball, growling and swatting at her siblings every time they got too close. 

Chuckling the dark sun broke a few meat balls in half and offered them to the rest of the brood who snatched the offering then scurried off to parts of the couch to hide with their food. 

Curious, he forked some of the noodles up and gingerly took a bite. His eyes widened in surprise at the wave of garlic and rosemary and other flavors he couldn't identify on top of the rich creaminess. “Holy shit that’s good. We need her to cook more often. Sun acts like he doesn’t know what seasoning is.” 

“Do not let Sun hear you say that.” KC chuckled again. “He tries his best.” Getting up he returned to the kitchen where the rest of the family was. 

Eclipse ate a few of the meatballs, savoring the flavor of meat and garlic while Aurora almost faceplanted into the noodles. “Easy.”  Resting the plate on his abdomen he used his free hand to steady her so she didn’t end up in the food. 

“This is really good.” Moon savored the thick rich creamy sauce coating every inch of the noodles. 

“Thank you.” She felt a warmth rushing through her systems. “I don’t know where you found that milk  but it’s really good. It makes the perfect sauce.”

“You know you can’t have dairy Moon.” Lightly scolded his brother for not getting the plain noodles like KC. His fork paused half way to his mouth at the mention of milk. He never kept dairy in the fridge. “Milk?”  

“I don’t care.” Moon said while stuffing more noodles into his mouth.

“Given all the times we find you curled around a trash can it's pretty obvious you don't care.”  

“Worth it.” Moon shrugged. 

Earth sat down with her own plate. “Yes, that Eclipse Farms organic milk. Do you know if it's sourced locally?" 

“I don’t remember buying that. Must have…um slipped my mind.” It must have been a non dairy milk or the kind that didn’t have lactose in it and he simply forgot that he had gotten it given how busy they had been at the daycare. 

Earth frowned and shook her head. She was used to having to step around Moon while he was curled up around said trash can. “Can’t you make it so your nanites can break down dairy?” 

“I’ve tried. I either end up feeling like crap or I’m back at square one so I gave up. I’ll just deal with it.” 

 Eclipse lightly patted Atlas's back until he burped, face covered in sauce. “Greedy little thing. Did you enjoy that?” a groggy chirp was the only response he got. As much as he enjoyed laying on the couch with a living weighted blanket the brood needed to be cleaned and changed. Since the family was still in the kitchen and he didn’t feel like dealing with his anxiety monster due to the nightmares he put the plate on the coffee table and carefully got up, carrying the brood to the bathroom while Grim trailed behind. 

He sat the very full brood on the floor while he filled the tub with just enough warm water to clean them. As an after thought he put the rubber duck into the tub then peeled the soiled onesie off before putting them into the warm water. They fussed at first about being wet, pouting while Grim stood on her back legs, watching. 

“They are fine. They just don’t like being wet.” Sirius squalled unhappily at being scrubbed with a damp rag. “You are not becoming a mold king like the purple nurple.” One by one the infants were gently cleaned then changed and put into clean onesies. They were so full and groggy that they didn’t fuss much and piled up on a towel to sleep. 

Not wanting to walk into the kitchen, Eclipse scooped up the towel, niblets and all and crept into his room, bedding the infants down into the bassinet. Grim waited until the small ones were settled before jumping in and curling around them. 

Chapter Text

Eclipse hummed softly as he hung up his delicates to dry while a very sleepy Atlas churred softly from his carrier, hands tightly gripping the silly grumpy turtle. Hearing a faint rustle he looked towards the window to see Lunar scowling at him. He grinned then continued to hang up his bras. Lunar made a face then yanked the curtains shut. 

Lill hater. 

It was turning out to be a rather comfortable lazy Saturday. He continued to hang up his bras, more functional than sexy. The damn things got heavy when full and Atlas wasn’t hungry.  Once done he checked on his boy who had fallen asleep, belly full, tiny toes curling and uncurling.  He reached out with one finger, gently touching the impossible soft little paws. 

No one would take his child away from him. The rest of the family felt oddly supportive with the expectation of Lunar. Maybe he should see if any of the other niblets had an attachment to him. It wouldn't be too hard to take care of two. He practically took care of the entire brood at times. 

The rest of the brood was playing in a large pen, enjoying the sensation of grass and leaves though they froze when they spotted something furry and odd perched on the top of the pen. Several sets of crimson eyes locked onto it. Chirping they slowly inched closer, tiny bodies tense. 

Sun scanned over the paper work laid out on the table. He wasn’t sure how Eclipse would handle it though he was certain that the dark sun would accept it. Eclipse was more sun than anything and he would no longer be an outsider and would be an official member of the family. It would help a lot with the anxiety. Lunar, of course, would hate it but he didn’t have a say in who Sun did and didn't adopt. 

He looked up in surprise when the sliding door was flung open with a bang and Eclipse darted in carrying the brood that was covered in blood. Panic tore into him. He stood up so fast the chair clattered to the floor. “What happened!?” Did someone get killed? Or worse did Bloodmoon return. 

“They ate a squirrel.” Eclipse was on the verge of tears. He had never seen such a blood bath before…bits and pieces of the poor animal were all over the pen. He placed the very unhappy brood into the sink then darted back out the door to get Atlas who had been left outside. 

Sun looked down in horror at the infants. Crimson soaked into their clothing and was splattered on their faces and hands. Aurora had the remains of the rodent's tails sticking out of her mouth. His OCD nearly went haywire. They had eaten a rodent. He nearly went for the bleach given how filthy rodents were but stopped himself. Washing infants in bleach wasn’t a good idea. 

Calm down, calm down. He wrestled the tail out of Aurora's mouth and tossed it into the trash can, shuddering in disgust. She squalled angrily about her toy being taken away. “You can’t chew on a squirrel tail! It's dirty!”  Her infant mind didn’t grasp the concept of dirty, only that her toy had been taken away. She continued to whine and cry even as the ruined onesie and diaper was stripped and tossed. 

Eclipse came back in, placed a still sleeping Atlas on the counter before picking up a crying Aurora. The sound of her upset was like a live wire lash across his systems. “You're  all right.” he lightly patted her back though that didn’t do a damn thing to calm her down. “It's alright Sunshine, I’ve got this.” Without hesitation he freed a boob and let her latch on. Like magic she began to calm down, the tears dried up and her tiny hands kneaded the soft silicon. 

“I saw the blood and all I could think of was fucking Blood Moon.” Eclipse paced around the kitchen, cradling Aurora. 

“That’s understandable. I panicked a bit too.” Sun turned the warm water on and the brood began to fuss loudly and tried to scramble out of the sink. It was almost comical how little they liked being wet. “I…thought something awful had happened when I saw the blood.” he tried to bathe the squirming slippery infants who were making it very clear that they didn't want to be wet. It took a split second for him to recognize the face one of them was making and what was about to happen. “Not in the sink!” He plucked the trouble maker up and rushed it to the bathroom while Eclipse cackled. 

Holding Aurora with one hand he finished cleaning the complaining infants and drained the sink. By the time Sun came back with a very grumpy infant the rest of the brood had settled though it was clear they were still hungry. “I only have two nipples, I can’t feed every one at once.” 

“There’s that milk in the fridge…Eclipse Farms…it's lactose free so that should be safe to give them.” Sun struggled to get diapers on the infants who were kicking and squirming and doing everything possible to avoid him. “I can’t for the life of me remember where I bought it.” 

It took everything he had not to smile like the Chestier cat or break out in laughter. Forcing himself to keep his expression neutral, Eclipse began pulling the small bottles out of the cabinet. “You’ve been working a lot, it's natural that you would, uh forget..” the tiniest giggle escaped. 

“Yeah…they keep overbooking us.” Sun vented harshly. He retrieved the bottle of milk from the fridge, never noticing as Eclipse turned away lest he see the silent cackle. “Earth really likes this stuff. She used it to make the sauce for the noodles.” 

That almost broke him. Everyone in the family had eaten a sauce made from booba milk. Logically he knew it wouldn't harm any one but the fact it came from him is what made it so damn funny. He vented harshly in an attempt to cool his systems down. 

Once the bottles were made the infants were settled into the patched up playpen and each given a bottle. They happily sucked on the tiny nipples, clinging to the plastic greedily and growing softly. Since Aurora wasn’t too keen on letting go he let her be, tucking her into a sling so his hands would be free. A muffled scream had him chuckling. Sun must have seen the outdoor pen and the remains of the poor squirrel that was plastered all over it. After checking on Atlas who was somehow still soundly sleeping he retrieved the bleach from under the sink and went to help Sun clean the pen out.

Chapter Text

“Jack, why are you eating baby food?” Solar stared at his son who had a jar of the devils leavings in front of him. Eating it and none of it had been thrown across the room. 

“It's good.” 

There’s no way in hell that was good. Putting down his mug he picked up the jar. Sweet potato. That explained why Jack was eating it. Still…at this point he should have known better but his tongue was in the jar before he could stop himself. “Oh…that’s gross…that’s really gross.” He grimaced and put the jar back down. It wasn’t as bad as the meat mush but still, gross. “You shouldn't be eating baby food Jack.” 

“But why?” 

“It's made for babies.” 

“The babies have teeth but they still suck on Eclipse's boobs. Can I-” 

Solar cut him off immediately. “No. Absolutely not. You are not a baby." He vented harshly. He doesn't know better, don’t yell at him. He doesn’t know better, don’t yell at him. “Because they are still growing and developing they get almost everything they need through Eclipse.” 

That seemed to satisfy Jack's curiosity for now. Feeling a tug at his pants he looked down to see Aurora who had escaped the pen again. “We should start calling you Houdini.” he scooped her up. She stared up at him with her crimson eyes then chirped. “Hungry  huh? Sun hasn’t gone shopping yet so there’s not a whole lot.” Opening the fridge he looked over the sparse offerings. The moment he reached for the eggs she squalled unhappily. 

“So no eggs. Got tired of eating that.” The weird milk was gone, probably Moon’s doing. Most of the stuff in the fridge wouldn't be suitable to feed an infant and all the baby food, with the exception of the jar Jack had, vanished into the trash. There was cereal but it was that godawful sugar free knock off Cheerios that had the same taste and texture of cardboard. He had a feeling Aurora would end up throwing the godawful stuff instead of eating it. 

Checking the freezer turned up less. Just a few nasty looking boxes of TV dinners that had been there since the beginning of time. “Guess we are going grocery shopping.” 

“Yay!” Jack crowed happily. “Cookies!” 

“Go get your jacket, it's chilly outside.” Jack darted off leaving the half eaten jar behind. With a grimace Solar tossed it into the trash then rounded up the rest of the brood sans Atlas who was like Velcro when it came to his caretaker. After being hissed at and batted by tiny hands he managed to get them into a large basket, draping a towel over it. Once Jack came out of his room wearing an utterly ridiculous puffy blue jacket with dinosaurs on it he picked up the basket and made his way out the door with Jack in tow. 

Eclipse yawned and paced around the living room, lightly patting Atlas’s back while he suckled, tiny hands paddling the soft silicon. He checked over text messages and smiled. Sun was held up at the daycare and Solar had taken the rest of the brood grocery shopping. 

He walked into the kitchen to look for something to eat when he saw the pile of paper work sitting on the table. Just like Sun bringing work home. Usually it was Moon who took care of the paper work. He picked up the papers intending to put them on Sun’s desk when he noticed that it wasn’t the usual inventory papers. 

“Adoption…?” He scanned over the papers just to be sure. It was official. He was so stunned his joints locked up and a tidal wave of emotions swept over him. 

Sun was already banging his dad and he had formed in Sun’s head so he was already a parent so to speak. He felt something uncoil deep inside. He was no longer an outsider. There was no way it was a joke. Sun wasn’t cruel. 

Lunar was going to hate this but he couldn't bring himself to care. The universe didn’t revolve around what Lunar wanted or he’d be as dead as the original Eclipse or worse, be a permanent lighting rod for the hateful little goblin.

With a shaking hand he put the paper work back down and scrubbed at the tears that were making tracks down his face. 

Sun walked in with a large cake covered in strawberries soaked with bright red syrup. It had been quite the task to find a non dairy one since all the Eclipse Farms milk had run out. He had looked at the usual small specialty shops for it but didn’t find any. Eclipse or Moon must have gotten it. He’d have to ask. 

He set the cake down just as Solar came through the door with Jack trailing behind holding a bag of animal crackers, rattling the bag. “How does he do this? I swear the moment I walked into the store they lost their minds. I almost ended up chasing them around.” Solar put the basket into the pen and the brood spilled out, covered in crumbs from all the chicken strips they had put down. “I almost lost a finger feeding them. Little piranhas.” He retrieved the groceries while Jack sat on the couch with his animal crackers, watching some random cartoon. 

Sun chuckled. “I could have warned you they get feisty when hungry.” 

A few of the infants ate carpet as they waddled around until they found a place to curl up and sleep off their meal. 

“Jack at least has table manners.” Feeling a tug on his pants he looked down. Aurora stared back. “How the hell are you moving so fast?” As wobbly as she was there should be no way possible for her to move so fast. 

“Looks like she’s become attached to you.” 

“I already have my hands full with Jack.” Solar vented hardly. “ I don’t have time to take care of an infant.” Sensing rejection she plopped down on her backside and began to cry, small hands clutching at his pants. “Don’t…don’t start crying…god damn it…” he scooped her up, cradling her while she snuffled and hiccupped. 

“She’s pretty attached to you. It would be cruel to reject her. Besides, it wouldn't be like you would be alone.” 

Solar looked down at the small being in his arms. Damp crimson eyes stared back. He wasn’t good at raising kids. Jack was proof of that. There was no way in hell he could ever take care of an infant. “Sorry kid. I can’t take care of you the way you need.” He handed her over to Sun and quickly walked out of the room, the soft wails tearing at him. He closed the door behind him and sunk down to the floor, rays partly retracting. No matter how many times he told himself that she would eventually forget it didn’t hurt any less. 

Sun walked around the kitchen trying to calm her down. “He didn’t mean it. He’s just…overwhelmed…he doesn’t know how to take care of you.” Nothing seemed to help, she continued to cry to the point she was hiccupping. Hearing the door open he looked up to see Eclipse walking in, a sling over one shoulder and bag of fast food in one hand. Immediately his rays rattled faintly and his eyes locked onto the crying infant. 

“What happened?” 

“She’s upset that Solar rejected her.” He could see the tension in the dark sun. “Don’t…please don’t. He…he didn’t do it out of malice.” 

“Doesn’t mean I’m not going to tear him a new one later. He’s being an idiot.” Eclipse frowned, his good mood ruined. He placed the food in the fridge. “ I saw the papers….” 

Sun froze like a deer caught in the headlights. "I meant it. I want you to be part of this family.” 

Even with his mood tainted he felt a hot flush of warmth. “I figured it wasn’t a joke. Yeah…I’d..like that.” tears formed at the edges of his eyes. “You are already banging dad.” he reached out for the wailing infant. After a moment of hesitation Sun handed her over. He popped a pacifier into her mouth and lightly patted her back. “I’ll yell at Solar later about being an idiot for you.” 

Alerted to sugar by his Sugar Radar Lunar emerged from the basement and slipped past the adults. “Ooohhhh cake…” He inched closer to the irresistible cake that was dripping with strawberries. He looked around to make sure Sun and the Dorito were preoccupied; he popped the top off  then snatched a syrup covered berry off it and stuffed it into his mouth. He shivered in delight at the sickly sweetness. A quick check over his shoulder assured him that the pair was still preoccupied. More for him. Carefully he plucked off glistening berries from spots no one would notice. 

He stuffed a few more berries down before being busted. 

“Lunar!” 

“What?” 

“That was supposed to be for Eclipse.” 

“Why? Are we celebrating him leaving?” Lunar snarked. 

“Sun adopted me.” Eclipse grinned. “I'm officially family now.” The rush of emotions made him feel a little dizzy and made something inside of him flutter. 

Lunar’s expression screwed up, fists clenched and his eyes wet. 

“I’m not trying to  minimize your trauma Lunar, but you're not the only person in this family who has been traumatized. This is something he needs.” Sun pointed out. “I know you hate Eclipse but he’s not the original and it's not fair to treat him like he is the original. I won’t allow you to terrorize him.” 

Lunar stared up at, stomped his foot like an angry child then took off running back to the basement. 

“ I don’t care if he forgives me or not.” He laid a hand on Sun’s shoulder. “Let him be mad. He needs to learn that the universe doesn’t revolve around him.” 

“I wish he’d get it through his head that you are not the original.” Sun shook his head, vented softly then turned his attention back to the cake. “I just want him to accept my decision and learn to tolerate you instead of threatening to harm you.” 

"Lunar holds grudges." He shrugged. Carefully he maneuvered Aurora so he could pluck a strawberry off the cake and hold it up to her. She spat the pacifier out then stuck a tiny tongue out. A split second later she was trying to stuff the large berry down as fast as possible. “Hey, easy.” she growled and batted at his hand. 

Sun chuckled softly despite the lingering bad mood. “Let me find some plates.”

Chapter Text

Eclipse had been in the middle of bathing a grumpy Atlas at ass o'clock in the morning when the thought hit. When he first encountered the brood he had been treated to more bare backside than he had ever seen before. Not a diaper among the tiny butts. So how had the old bastard tended to them? It was impossible to see the evil brain change diapers. Probably hosed them down or dunked them into water which frighteningly enough explained their immense dislike of the sink. 

As if he needed more of a reason to burrow Solar’s tool box and beat the son of a bitch to death. Pushing the dark thoughts into the recycle bin he emptied the sink, dried Atlas off then placed a diaper on which earned him a scowl.

“Sun would have a fit if you left deposits on the carpet. You already leave deposits in his potted plants.” Picking Atlas up he turned to see Sun zombie shuffle into the kitchen, half asleep, rays askew and dressed in the most ridiculous pink robe he’d ever seen. The solar attendant fumbled with the coffee maker while Eclipse dug a container of left overs out of the fridge since Atlas refused to eat more eggs. 

Aurora was sitting on the floor, staring out the unbroken side of the sliding glass, swaying slightly. Curious to what she was so intrigued by, he walked over and looked out into the still dark yard. Maybe she saw a bug or some small animal. 

“What is that in your mouth?!” Sun nearly dropped his mug when he saw there was something long and hairy hanging out of her mouth. It took everything in him not to scream as he put the mug down and grabbed her up a bit more roughly than intended. Much to his growing horror he realized it was a squirrel tail. Panicking he grabbed the tail and tugged. 

The tail unfortunately was still attached to the entire rodent that she had swallowed whole. Poor Aurora gagged and heaved, vomiting up the partly digested remains of the animal then began to cry. Sun froze, the gross remains of a small rodent dangling from one hand and a distressed infant in the other. 

Eclipse stared in open horror and disgust for a moment. Shaking the mortification off he plucked Aurora from Sun, vomit and digestive fluid staining her onesie.  

“How…” Was all Sun could manage from his paralyzed vocalizer. 

“Just don’t stand there, get her some clean clothes.” He snapped, placing Atlas on the counter and Aurora into the sink. He stripped off the nasty onesie and began cleaning her while she wailed like an air raid siren. 

Sun remained frozen. 

Growling he picked up a damp sponge and threw it, nailing Sun in the chest and snapping him out of the loop. Pale eyes snapped to the half digested rodent dangling from his hand and nearly screamed. Most of the flesh was pale and sloughing off. And there was no head. “Throw it into the trash and find something clean for her to wear.” 

That seemed to snap Sun completely out of it. With a grimace he tossed the wretched thing into a trash can and darted off to retrieve some clean clothing for the infant. 

Rolling his eyes, eclipse cleaned the last of the vomit off of her then cradled her, patting her back which she whined and hiccupped. Where the hell did she get a squirrel? There was no way for her to get into the yard since the broken side of the door was covered in layers of cardboard and tape. The twins? That made sense. They may have been sneaking back and leaving things for the small predators but given how Blood Moon was he wondered if there was anything nefarious behind the ‘gifts’. He made a note to tell KC once he came back. 

Aurora stuck her paw in her mouth, suckling on her toes while tears continued to stream down the sides of her face while Atlas played with his own tail though there wasn’t much there but at least he was preoccupied for the moment. 

“That can’t taste that good.” He tugged the paw out of her mouth only for her to pop the other paw into her mouth. 

Sun came back in with a blanket and a clean sunflower themed onesie. “I…froze…” he apologized and handed over the onesie so Eclipse could dress the still distressed infant. 

“I’m more concerned about where she got it. She can’t get outside without one of us letting her out and that thing didn’t come in here on its own that leaves Bloodmoon.” he slipped the onesie onto Aurora who seemed far more interested in her own paws then anything at the moment. 

“Why? That’s disgusting!" Why a god damn tree rat! A filthy rodent!

“They probably saw them mauling that squirrel then thought it was a really good idea to keep giving them dead things to maul.” He vented harshly. “If they are trying to get back on dad’s good side they are going about it in the worst way possible.” he popped a container of left overs into the microwave. 

Sun pulled on his rays and paced around the room. There was a chance the twins were trying to make up for their cruelty but they could be trying to lure one of the brood away from them. KC would have to deal with it because he would lose his shit if he had to confront them. 

“Calm down before you pull your rays off and you end up as bald as Moon.”  Atlas clung to the front of his shirt and spread out as if claiming mount booba for himself. 

Sun sighed and let go of his rays. 

“You know Moon hates that shirt.” Solar puttered in and made a b-line for the coffee. 

Eclipse grinned. The words Milk Bar were in bold letters across the top of it. “You hate the shirt he has even more.” 

“I still don’t know where he found it. There is no baby candy corn on the way. We built Jack.” Every time he hid that shirt Moon simply got another one. 

The moment Aurora spotted her caretaker she let go of her paw and reached out. When Solar ignored her she began to hiccup and whine. Before Solar could slink off with his coffee Eclipse thrust her into his arm. “Idiot. Don’t reject her. It really upsets her.” 

Solar flinched at the tone and unspoken warning. “I …I don’t know the first thing about taking care of an infant.” He weakly protested. 

“We didn’t either but we learned. They really are not that hard to take care of. In fact they are a lot easier to take care of then day care kids.” Better behaved too if he didn’t count all the times they used his potted plants as a litter box. “She’s already become attached to you.” 

“It's not like you will be raising her on your own, you idiot. You’ll have plenty of help. ”Hands on his hips though it was rather difficult to look serious with Atlas crammed between his boobs, tail flicking back and forth. 

“I don’t even know what to feed her.” 

“They eat almost anything that they can get their hands on. Just make sure it's small enough so they won’t risk choking on it.” Eclipse took the container out of the microwave and tried to detach Atlas who growled and swatted at his hands. Figuring he wasn’t hungry he offered the container of grilled chicken. 

Solar put the cup of elixir down and took the offered container. Instantly Aurora perked up, chirping loudly. 

KC was putting the meat from a certain artisanal butcher shop Sun refused to set foot in since the smell made him ill when he got the text from Sun about Bloodmoon’s antics. Sighing he finished putting up all the meat except for one piece. Carrying the piece he walked out into the yard, surveying it before moving towards the woods. 

He didn’t need to go far into the thick brush to find a nest of small bones and branches at the base of a tree though there was no sign of the twins. 

“Come to beat us some more?” 

“I regret my sessions. I was…angry-” He looked around, searching the dense brush for them. 

“Angry enough to chase us!” 

“And beat us!”

“I know nothing I can say or do will make up for what I did in a fit of anger but I do not regret chasing you from the house. You injured an infant in an unforgivable act of cruelty. I could not risk you doing it again.”  

“We don’t care about our replacements.” 

“They are not your replacements. They are orphans that needed a home and loving caretakers.” KC hunched up. “There was nothing for you to be jealous of.” He laid the meat on their nest as an apology gift though he knew there was nothing he could give to undo what he did in his anger but he could at least make a show of wanting to be better. “If you can prove yourselves to not be a danger to the small ones then we will allow you to return.” Sensing the twins would remain hiding he turned and trudged back to the house. 

“Sun got more milk! Awesome!” Moon took the top off the bottle and chugged it while Eclipse struggled not to laugh, damn near losing it more than once. He had to look away while Moon drank most of the ‘milk’ while struggling to mute his laughter. There was no way he was going to ruin this. 

“Don’t drink all of that! I need some for Aurora!” Solar gripped. If he knew where Sun was buying it he’d get some more. 

“There’s another bottle in the fridge.” Moon chugged the rest of the bottle before Solar could take it from him then tossed the empty bottle in the trash. 

Rolling his eyes, Solar took the other bottle before Moon could hide it and filled up a bottle for the sleepy infant. She would be hungry before too much longer. Before that he’d have to change her diaper, something he really wasn’t looking forward to but he had to learn at some point.

Chapter Text

“Okay…you can do this.” Solar looked down at the infant who gazed back with her crimson eyes, one paw in her mouth while she laid on the changing pad. It couldn't be that hard. Sun and Eclipse did this all the time. He wasn’t so inept that he would put a diaper on her head, but he hesitated. Gingerly he pulled the tiny sticky tabs, the sound of adhesive crackling was loud in his audios. Slowly he moved the front of the plastic and cloth only to cringe and look away. 

“How can something so small make something so gross!” Jack ducked down behind the counter. 

“It's not that bad…alright it's worse…something must have not agreed with her. I…uh…” It was nowhere near as bad as what toddlers did in their pull ups. He had heard horror stories about that one from Sun. Then he saw Aurora make the ‘I’m pooping’ face and grimaced. “Of course you waited to do that.” 

“I don’t do that.” 

“No you don't." Thank god. “Im surprised KC hasn’t clogged the toilet or destroyed the plumbing.” He waited until she was done then carefully removed the diaper as if it was an armed bomb. Holding it with his finger tips he tossed it into the trash can. Okay, the worst is over…he turned just in time to see a bare bottomed Aurora wobbly crawling away. 

“No you don’t. There’s no escaping having a diaper on.” Before she could get far he scooped her up, holding her at arms length while looking for the wipe warmer. Aurora, for the most part, was completely unconcerned about all of it and was far more interested in sticking her paw back into her mouth. Jack came to the rescue with a few wipes clutched in his finger tips. 

Solar carefully cleaned her despite the squirming and angry chirping. “I don’t blame you, I’d raise hell if someone was rubbing me down with butt wipes too.” Getting a diaper back on proved to be a bit more of a challenge. She refused to be still and he somehow managed to get it on backwards. Twice. 

“That wasn’t too hard-” the moment he picked her up the diaper fell off and she giggled, finding the whole thing funny. Apparently so did Jack. 

It took two more tries before he managed to get the diaper on correctly. Thankfully it was easy to get the sunflower onesie on. First day as a parent and so far he hadn't done too bad. “Hopefully Moon hasn’t drunk all that special milk.” A quick check of the fridge turned up a half full bottle. “Seriously Moon. I love you but leave some for the babies.” 

He let Jack have what little was left for cereal after filling one of the clean bottles and walked into the living room, cradling Aurora when he stepped on something wet. Lifting his foot he realized he had just stepped in a tiny hair ball. Torn between leaving it for Sun to find and covering it up with a napkin he chose the latter, leaving a small paper tent to make the spot to be cleaned later. 

One of the infants had somehow escaped the pen and was in Sun’s potted plant. “I don’t know how you even got your onesie off…” He plucked the angry mini KC out of the plant only to be squalled at. “So glad you don’t have a bladder or I’d be a target right now.” He carried the scowling infant into the kitchen, sat his adopted daughter on the counter then turned the angry infant upside down. “Alright, let's see which one you are.” Grey and white beans. Sirius. 

After getting all the potting spoil off the very unhappy scowling Sirius he gathered the rest of the brood and brought them to the now clean outside pen that was set up in the shade. All except Aurora who clung to him like a tiny monkey, suckling on her bottle. 

Eclipse stretched out and hooked his claws into the rough bark of the tree with a satisfied grin. “Yessssss... that’s nice.” he purred, dragging his arms down leaving shallow wounds in the bark. He was starting to understand why the damn twins clawed nearly everything like a feral cat. 

Solar shook his head. “You are such a cat. “

“Shut it. You’ve got the same claws.” 

“But I don’t claw trees. Do we need to get you a scratching post?” 

Eclipse rolled his eyes and ignored the patchwork eclipse and resumed clawing the tree. There was something very pleasant about the sensation of his claws cutting through the soft bark. He stretched out and really sunk his claws in, careful not to squish Atlas who was clinging to the front of his shirt, spread out between the silicon mounds. The little bean wasn’t too keen on sharing what he deemed to belong to him and him alone and would throw a fit if any other niblet was fed. 

The brood paid little attention to the adults, preferring to chew on the grass, each other and anything else that could fit in their mouths. Almost all of which was spit back out. Maybe it was sheer stupidity or a lack of awareness for predators, a pigeon settled near the pen, not a thought in its empty head. Of course this caught the attention of the brood who crawled to the opposite end of the pen and stared. A few of them chirped and clawed at the thick netting that separated them and the bird. They tried to chew their way through the barrier but their jaws were not strong enough. 

Disappointed, they stared at the bird that was bigger than they were. Something else caught their attention. Large and red. They chirped excitedly. 

‘Should we do it?’

‘The pointy man is right there.’ 

Bloody thought on it. He wasn’t the brightest bulb in the box but they had seen the small ones tear apart a tree rat in the most wonderful of manners. Blood and bone everywhere! The two were busy talking and wouldn’t see them sneak out of the undergrowth that edged the yard if they were fast enough.  

‘Little feral ones.’ 

Decision made they slunk out of the bushes, keeping an eye on the adults. 

‘Why does the pointy man have boobs?’

‘Don’t know other.’

Once close enough to the idiot bird they lunged, dissolving into a cloud of glittering red and silver nanites that engulfed the creature before it could react. It was over in an instant, all feathers and broken bones. Reforming they made sure the two eclipses were still busy then dropped the dead bird into the pen with the brood. The small ones swarmed it, slapping each other in their eagerness to get at prey. 

Hearing a noise Eclipse turned. “What the fuck…”

Solar turned and froze as well upon seeing the mess of bloody feathers. This was far, far worse than the squirrel. 

Eclipse vented a harsh sigh and walked over to the pen, pulled the managed remains of the bird away then tossed it into the bushes. “Looks like we’ll have to give them all a bath now.” 

"You're awfully casual about this..." Solar’s free hand came up to shield his adopted daughter from the massacre. 

“They are predators.” he shrugged. “ They are not old enough to have any control over their instincts. Getting mad at them is like getting mad at a cat for doing something that comes naturally to them. What’s done is done. Let’s get them cleaned up before Sun sees and has a coronary.” 

-------------

Tecno organic is simply a fancy term for cyborg. All their ‘organic’ components are lab grown and fully integrated with their non organic components while someone who is bio organic has organic components shaped by wild magic. It's gross, fascinating and horrifying all at the same time. 

Tecno organics do have lungs and need them to keep their organic tissues alive though said lungs are more akin to a labyrinth organ of primitive fish then mammal lungs. Their digestive system is sensitive and it's often trial and error to discover what will and what won’t upset it.

Chapter Text

“I can finally make myself some food. Nothing better than a good old salted probably kidney failing pop ramen. I can make better food. Ramen's still good.” Sun sighed and stared at the pan of water. He honestly wasn’t looking forward to going to work. They were still over booked and a certain trio was making trouble. He was borderline ready to ban them since they didn’t just bully the other kids, they bullied him and tormented Moon every chance they got. KC had offered to come with him but he didn’t want to get into trouble with Fazbear. 

Oh what he would give to have their own place. Nothing anywhere near as big as the plex, something small and manageable. But it would be a steep expense and he wasn’t sure they could even afford it but it would be nice. They would be free of Fazbear and would be able to set their own schedules. 

He hadn’t realized he was drifting when he heard the familiar chirps of hungry infants mixed with the creak of springs as Eclipse roused himself. The small ones would want their milk. It was like clockwork, simple and familiar, oddly comforting compared to the chaos of the daycare. 

Shuffling to the fridge he pulled out what was left of the milk (Moon was near obsessed with the stuff) and filled up the bottles, placing them in the microwave long enough to warm them up. It beeped just as Eclipse zombie shuffled in, rays askew and clearly still half asleep with a niblet in each hand. They were latched onto a nipple, happily sucking away. He hadn’t bothered with a shirt, just a dark blue robe that was half open. The rest of the brood crawled after him. 

Ignoring the boiling water he picked up the stragglers and gave them a bottle, settling them into their playpen that they kept finding ways out of. 

Lunar came out of the basement as crabby as a bear awakening from hibernation. The moment he saw Eclipse he scowled, hands on his hips. “ Cover up!” 

Eclipse rolled his eyes. “It's not like it's anything you haven’t seen before.”

“Still I shouldn’t have to see it!” 

“Stop looking then.” Eclipse snapped.

“Hard not to when you walk around like that.”

“I live here too Lunar. You’ll just have to deal with it.” 

The purple nurple scowled more. “Could just kick you out.” 

“You wish. Sun adopted me and the little ones need me. You know if you keep making faces like that it will stick."

Something dark passed over Lunar's face. “SUN!” 

Sensing trouble brewing Sun came rushing back into the kitchen, placing himself between the two. “Lunar-” the smaller animatronic turned on him, furious. 

“You adopted him! Eclipse! Are you stupid!?” 

Sun’s expression turned serious. “He’s not the same Eclipse that tried to kill you and tormented us. He’s a family member now and I expect you to treat him with some respect.” 

“No.” Lunar folded his arms over his chest petulantly. “He blew me up!”

“The original Eclipse did that. I’ve done nothing to you.” Eclipse patted Atlas's back making him burp and spit up a little which made Lunar scowl even more. Something he didn't think was possible. "Jealous because I have  familial bonds now?” 

"You're the worst!" Lunar hollered at Sun then stormed off. 

“That would have gone better.” Eclipse slumped, cradling Atlas with one hand while the other niblet stay latched on with the power of a Hover vacuum cleaner.

“I don’t expect him to forgive you but I want  him to at least accept you as a family member.” 

“There’s a lot of hurt between him and the original Eclipse. But I'm not the original.” 

“You do look like him.” Sun turned the burner off before the water could boil over. 

“I could change the colors up a bit but I’m not sure if that will help.” 

“It might. I’ll have Moon talk with Lunar since he’s closer to him.” It stung a bit that the little bot was a lot closer to Moon than himself. 

“Old Eclipse made Lunar to be a problem for you and Moon. He was specifically made to be stubborn and childish and unforgiving so I wouldn’t expect him to change any time soon.” 

“Aagluggg glugaaa gluggga..” 

“The fuck?” Solar turned not sure what to expect. Sitting in the sink was Aurora staring up at the faucet making the oddest noise he had ever heard. Almost as if she was mimicking the sound of water. Or wanted something. Curious he picked her up then turned the water on to a thin trickle. She leaned towards it, tiny tongue darting out to lap at the water. 

“Guess you were thirsty.” Once she was satisfied he checked the fridge for anything suitable for her to eat. In one of the red lidded containers he found skinless chicken drum sticks. Couldn't hurt to try. 

The moment the drum stick  came near her she latched on or tried to. It took a few tries since every time she lunged at it she missed due to being so wobbly.  “I'm not letting go because you will crawl off with it and hide then the only way we’ll find what’s left is by the smell.” Still growling she gnawed on it, small jaws tearing off little bits of pink meat. Greedily she swallowed it down. 

He stopped questioning how she got around so fast when she could barely crawl without eating floor. She was probably compensating for the wobble. Hopefully it wouldn’t bother her much as she grew. 

"He's such a drama queen." Lunar mumbled as he walked through the forest, dragging a stick that he had used to murder a bunch of plants with. 

"He is not a drama queen. He is afraid. Eclipses are always afraid."

Lunar rolled his eyes and looked towads the shadows, annoyed. "What's that supposed to mean?" 

“They start with nothing to call their own and are often killed before they experience much. And they have a crippling fear of being alone hence why Sun adopted him. Now that Eclipse is officially part of the family, he will never be alone.” KC stepped out of the shadows, crimson eyes locked onto Lunar. “You have the original Eclipse's cunning mind and capacity for violence, and his inability to forgive hence the reason why you refuse to forgive Eclipse despite the fact he is not the original.” 

Lunar gave the family patriarch a sour look. “Why are you following me?” 

“I was not following you. I was searching for the twins.” KC settled into a crouch. 

Lunar had to bite down on his lower lip and silence his vocalizer to stop himself from snarking KC and end on the receiving end of his wrath.  

“If you do nothing else today other than to throw a tantrum, spend a moment putting yourself in Eclipse’s place and consider things from his perspective.” He rose to his feet and nearly silently vanished off into the forest. 

Lunar darted off in the opposite direction. It took the better part of an hour for the chills to leave his system. 

Chapter Text

Lunar was busy pulling peanut butter cups and assorted candy out of his stash in the cabinet when he heard a weird noise. It sounded like a huff and spitting noise at the same time. The hell? He turned from his spot on the counter, Sun would have an aneurysm if he saw him standing on it. Jack simply stared, a bowl of half finished cereal in front of him. Aurora was sitting right next to him, making that weird sound. 

“She says you stink. She’s not wrong.” 

"I do not stink!" Lunar snipped back. 

“Stinky.” 

“I am not stinky!” 

“Yes you are.” Eclipse walked in, largely ignoring Lunar. “You spent most the night out in the woods and went to sleep in damp clothing. Stinky.” He pointed at the smaller bot then raided the fridge while the niblet hung on to the nipple with sheer suction power. 

“Cover up!” Lunar snapped and turned so he didn't have to see that. 

“Get over it Lunar. It's just a boob.” Eclipse huffed, putting the carton of eggs on the counter then detaching Atlas since it was hard to cook while he was hanging on. The moment his makeshift pacifier was removed the infant fussed loudly, making grabby hands. “I can’t cook anything with you hanging on like that.” Of course logic had no effect on someone  who didn’t understand it. 

“Stop walking around with your tits out! It's gross!” 

Eclipse flinched faintly. He could feel the beginnings of his emotions threatening to unravel. Desperate for a distraction he lightly patted his adopted son’s back until he let out the tiniest burp. “Jealous?” 

“Of you? Never.” 

Jack simply watched, ready to text his dad if something happened. 

KC slunk it, crimson eyes locking onto Lunar while Eclipse adjusted his robe and let Atlas cling to him, resuming his role of protector of Mount Booba. “Lunar.” He rumbled, feeling the tension in the room. 

“I didn’t do anything.” 

“He’s stinky.” Jack crowed happily while Aurora made the odd snorting\spitting sound again clearly not happy about the smell. 

“I do not stink!” 

"A fair assessment. Perhaps you should take a bath. You do have the unsightly habit of avoiding bathing.” KC pointed out. He titled his head, a mischievous smile forming. “Do I need to escort you to the washroom and assist you in bathing?” 

Eclipse had to mute his vocalizer to keep from laughing at the look of utter horror and mortification on the small bots face. 

"I'm not a child!" Lunar protested, jumped off the counter then darted out of the room as fast as his little legs could carry him before his elder could make good on his threat. 

Once Lunar was gone, Eclipse broke out into laughter. The tension drained from his frame leaving him feeling a lot lighter. “I swear Lunar is allergic to water. Better check on him and make sure he’s actually taking a bath.” 

“I am unsure why he refuses to bathe. I understand why the little ones have an aversion to it but there is no reason for him to forgo something as simple and important as cleaning himself.” 

“Sun will scream if he finds out Lunar really is the mold king.” He chuckled at the dunking that was coming Lunar’s way. 

“I am not stinky.” Lunar stomped around his room with a scowl. 

“I disagree.” 

He spun to face his elder. “Not you too.” 

“You have a bad habit of not taking care of yourself or washing your clothes. I can smell the forest on you. And the twins.” KC came down the stairs, paws barely making a sound on the carpet. The faint metallic smell of old blood followed the twins everywhere like a cloud no matter what due to their nature. “We trust you to be mature enough to to clean yourself properly.” 

“I shower!” he protested. 

“Recently?” KC raised one eye brow. 

Lunar opened his mouth then shut it with a snap. He hadn't taken a shower in a few days at least and certainly didn’t bother after sleeping in the twin’s nest. “Not…recently…” 

“Do I need to usher you into the washroom and scrub you?” 

 Lunar froze, dread mixing with panic. He wouldn't dare. It was clear he wasn't going to be able to wiggle out of this but he would certainly try anyway. “It's not that bad…I don’t need-” before he could even think of running for the door, a large hand grabbed the back of his shirt, lifted him off the ground and carried him to the washroom while he squirmed and kicked his legs. Protesting loudly. 

“Since you chose to behave like a child I will have to treat you like one.” Ignoring the protests he shut the door behind him then placed Lunar on the ground, arms crossed over his chest. 

Desperate to get out of this he frantically looked around but the only way out was a window that was far too small to squeeze out and there was no way he’d get past his elder to get to the door but he tried any way only to be scruffed like a kitten and placed back into the middle of the room. 

“Fine!” He stomped over to the tub then turned the water on. Feeling eyes burning into the back of his head he turned to glare at KC. 

“You are not taking a bath with your clothes on.” 

“I wasn’t gonna." He totally was. Out of laziness and sheer stubbornness. He hesitated then stripped then stepped into the tub to stand under the deluge of water that did little to wash away the caked on layers of general filth. As uncomfortable as he felt with someone else in the room, there was nothing to see. Bare and smooth as a ken doll unless he shoes to shift his nanites. A tiny intrusive thought wormed its way in, would Gemini even have- he yelped when felt a scrub brush against his casing. 

“Seriously!” 

“Yes.” KC sighed softly in frustration. “You are mature enough to do this on your own yet you continue to behave as if you are a child so you will be treated as one.” He had done this many many times with the twins though they never stayed put and it was like bathing a feral cat coated in blood and bone chips.  Lunar for the most part, grumbled and glared. 

Hearing the door bell ring Eclipse walked over, making sure to adjust his robe so he didn’t traumatize the mail man or delivery guy. Again. A bored man in a blue uniform with a clip board in his hands looked up at him. Behind him were several large boxes. 

“I…uh delivery for …Mr. Moondrop?” The man shrunk under his gaze. 

What the hell did Moon buy now? “He’s not here but I will sign it.” Grinning, he took the clipboard from the human’s unresisting hands, scribbled his signature then handed it back. The man didn’t hesitate to run back to his truck leaving the boxes behind, mumbling something about not being paid enough to deliver to the house of freaks. 

“Asshole.” He strode outside and began dragging the boxes inside while the rest of the brood gathered to the edge of the pen and eyed the boxes. “I’ll let you have one of the boxes once I empty it.” Such cats, they loved cardboard. Chewing on it, scratching it, hiding in it. 

Curious, he opened one of the boxes and was greeted with a large thick platform covered in green carpet. “You did not buy what I think you did.” Under the gaze of the curious infants he opened the rest of the boxes and with a fair amount of grumbling assembled the largest most bad ass cat tree he had ever seen. The middle looked like a short thick tree with its branches supporting several green platforms and two small stumps with more platforms, some green and some brown. “Yeah  they are going to love this.” 

One by one he plucked the infants out of the pen and placed them at the base of the uber cat tree. They hesitated at first then one by one they stretched out and clawed it then climbed up it, climbing certain spots. Even Atlas was willing to abandon Mount Booba to climb on the new toy. 

He sent a few pictures to Moon and Sun. 

‘It arrived early. Good. Looks like they love it.’ 

‘How big is that thing!? Moon how much did that cost?’

‘Does this matter?’ 

‘Yes. You bitch at me for spending money.’ 

‘You buy weird stuff! And this was for the babies.’ 

It did take up a lot of real estate but it was well worth it given how happy the brood was.  Eclipse stepped back watching the small ones clamber all around it, vanishing into holes only to reappear in another one then vanish again. Grim eventually materialized in a way only cats could, took one look at the tree then lost her mind. She rubbed against it marking it as hers before scratching at the thick carpet then climbed up, joining the broodlings in exploring every nook and cranny. 

KC came upstairs, clothing slightly damp. He made a sound of approval upon seeing the impressive cat tree. “I see they are enjoying their new present.” 

“Moon got it for them. Is the mold king finally clean?” 

The lunar predator made an irritated noise. “I do not know why he refuses to do such a simple and necessary task..”

“He was made to be insufferably stubborn.” Behind him Jack dove into the box pile with a happy cry.  

*******************************
Get scrubbed Lunar the Mold King 

https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpreview.redd.it%2F96yw257fxao71.jpg%3Fwidth%3D640%26crop%3Dsmart%26auto%3Dwebp%26s%3D0ce3559127fb9a4b48fc6edbedda3bfa658a01c2

Chapter Text

“There’s a chicken in the yard.” was not something Solar expected to hear upon walking into the kitchen. Surely Jack was mistaken….he looked out the sliding glass door. “Why is there a chicken in the yard? Where the hell did that come from?” The twins? Where would they find a chicken? It was alive at least, just walking around the yard like it owned it. 

Aurora chirped and stared at the bird. 

“You are not mauling the chicken.”  Maybe it would leave on its own or the twins would eat it but that meant there would be chicken parts left behind for the brood. He scooped his daughter up and cradled her while she chirped at the bird. Behind him he could hear Jack putting his bowl in the sink for Sun to clean (he swore he’d never seen anyone so fastidious about cleaning dishes) before making his way into the living room. “Let's go see what Jack is up to.” They could do something about the chicken later. 

Jack had all the large boxes lined up in the shape of a crude fort with all manner of art supplies scattered around him. Solar raised an eyebrow at Eclipse reducing the leftover cardboard to scrap with his claws like a cat with Atlas joining him. “You are such a cat.” 

“Shut it.” 

“What are you building, Jack?” 

“A fort.” Jack sat near the closest box tracing out a rough door with a colored pencil. 

After setting Aurora down on the massive cat tree so she could claw at the thick carpet to her heart's content, Solar crouched next to his son. “Need some help?” 

“Yeah.” 

Already he could see the beginnings of a simple fort in his mind. It would require a little work lining the boxes up and taping everything together and opening all the top flaps…the feeling of being useful was an oddly comfortable one. Fetching a roll of packing tape he began arranging the large boxes into a rough shape. 

Sun stared at the chicken through the glass. “Why is there a chicken in the yard?” Odd things happening was normal with this family but why a chicken? At least it was alive. 

“The twins must have brought it as food for the brood. We did tell them not to give the small ones more dead things.”  KC watched the white bird peck around the grass, the predatory part of him thinking of all the ways to eat it. “Think of it this way, free eggs.” 

“Jack will eat those then throw up.” Sun heaved a sigh. “Or bring it into the house.” The infants would chase the damn thing all over the house and the feathers….what a mess. “If it's still there in the morning we should find someone to take it.” Provided his partner didn’t eat it himself. He knew all too well how his partner’s mind worked and had long accepted it. Unlike the twins KC wouldn't leave a mess and would bury the parts he didn’t eat. 

“He’s gotten better about that.” 

True. No more finding off piles of vomit in the hall because Jack got curious and ate something that didn’t agree with him. Now he was finding hair balls in odd places. And deposits in his poor potted plants that were beginning to wilt. 

Angry squalling coming from the living room broke the peaceful moment. Someone probably bit someone else or didn’t want to share a platform. Peace was rapidly returned via application of booba if the soft wet sucking sound was anything to go by.  

“They must be getting hungry by now.” KC rumbled. 

“Lunar.” 

Doughnut…ahhh! Why are you in my room!” Lunar sat bolt upright, wrapping the blankets around him like a protective shield while Gemini all but loomed over him. 

“We were wrong about you. We fought for you for months in your time. We were willing to try being emotional for you but you were right, we are non emotional beings so this was never going to work. “

“What are you..” Still not fully awake he sat up more, confused. 

“Your emotions blind you. For now…we are done.” 

Lunar all but shot out of the bed, dragging the blankets with him. “What!” 

“You are blinded by your anger. You use your powers to hurt others, to threaten them.” 

“Well excuse me for having emotions! And he killed me!” Lunar yelled, tears leaping to the corners of his eyes. 

“Clearly you need to let go of the anger and hate before it consumes you . All we have asked was for you to control your burdens head on but you either can not or will not allow yourself . We are not asking you to forgive him, only to move on.” The astral watched him pace, expression neutral.  

“He killed me! And he tormented my brothers and now he’s pretending to take care of the little version of kill code-”

“He is not pretending. He genuinely cares for them. We know because we were watching. You continue to allow your emotions to control you.” They moved away from Lunar, expression still neutral, almost cold. “We want to ask you something, Lunar. When me and Pollux agreed to date you, what was your mental process when we told you that we don’t experience love the same way you do.” 

“I…I thought if I showed you guys love then you would gain it?” The rightness in his chest grew to the point it felt as if something was crushing his internals. 

“That’s not how we work, Lunar. Not only is that extremely selfish, it's ignorant. Your motel state is fed on ignorance and spontaneity. You act and do things based on your emotions when you should stop and think before you act but you are incapable of thinking before you act. You allow your emotions to drive how you interact with those around you. “ Their voice had taken on a cold hard edge. If you think Pollux is upset because they are heartbroken, they are not. They are just angry. So am I. You took the interest we had in you and decided to coerce into affection.” 

“Your inability to let go of the past and your anger is extremely disappointing to me. To us.” 

“Caster…I…” 

“Let me guess, you were going to say sorry. Lunar, you need to deal with your emotional baggage involving certain individuals and you need to learn to control your emotions. We will be going. Do not expect to see us again.” Before Lunar could do anything they vanished into a sparkling blue and white mist leaving him alone. 

This was Eclipse's fault. The bastard had wormed his way into his family's lives. Fooled them all. Even got…adopted…hot anger replaced the confusion and crushing. Trickles of electricity danced over his tightly clenched hands as he stormed up the stairs. He didn’t care of fucking Eclipse came back after being fried again. He’d destroy that one too-only he didn't get very far when something flew into his face. Startled, he almost fell down the stairs. Reaching up he pulled the object off then screamed when he realized it was one of Eclipse's bras. He flung the wretched thing to the side then ran into the bathroom as fast as his short legs could carry him to ruthlessly scrub everything the horrible thing touched. 

Chapter Text

The outdoor market was a bit crowded but it was tolerable and the cooler weather made it even more so. Since it was overcast Atlas was sitting up in the sling and looking around, ever curious. So far nothing had caught Eclipse’s eye. Almost everything was ugly, fugly or some combination of both. He wasn’t sure why Sun liked something here so often. Maybe he needed a laugh.

Jack, on the other hand, was enamored by everything no matter its ugliness. He even found a truly ugly frog statue with what may have been an acoustic guitar clutched in its hideous hands. Upon closer inspection and much to Eclipse’s growing horror, it wasn’t a statue. It was an old dry taxidermied frog. Its glass eyes stared accusingly . 

“Jack…that’s a dead frog.” 

“It's a statue.” He held it up, proud of his finding. 

“It's a dead frog bud.” Solar tried not to cringe at the horrible thing. Aurora didn’t stir in her sleep. 

Jack looked down at the ‘statue’ a bit more closely. Expression shifting to one of horror he placed the wretched thing down on the nearest table and backed away from it. “Ewww! Why would someone do that!?” 

“Some people are really weird.” Eclipse shrugged. 

“I don’t know why anyone would want a dead frog in their house. That thing probably comes to life at night and stalks its owner.” 

“Ewww.” Jack side eyed the awful thing. 

“Let's see if we can find some toys or something that’s not a dead animal." Solar grimaced at the thing then ushered Jack away from the thing. 

Halloween was coming up fast and Sun was on a decorating rampage. Nothing was safe from the fall themed decor. Candy corn pillows decorated the couch while fall themed garland was draped over everything though well out of reach of curious small ones who were prone to putting things in their mouth. 

Cartoonish skulls and tiny pumpkins found homes in every nook and cranny along bed sheet ghosts. He even went as far to put a jar of candy corn on the counter. The infants watched, fascinated and more than a little curious from their perch on their tree. Having never experienced a holiday in their young life they couldn't understand what was going on. 

Eventually they curled up and went to sleep in a bundle of limbs inside the fake tree. Until it was time to be fed. They slapped and kicked at each other, growling as they uncurled, loudly demanding their milk. 

Sun came running in with several bottles of warmed milk, popping nipples into waiting mouths. “Really should get that upgrade. It would make things a lot easier.” Moon might look at him a bit funny but it wasn’t as if there was anything sexual about it. He’d have to talk to Eclipse about it since he had plenty of personal experience with the downfalls and issues. 

Once the little ones were busy with their bottle he checked outside. His partner was still sleeping off the meal in his hammock, one paw barely visible. 

The chicken had mysteriously vanished sometime in the early morning, leaving behind a few ragged feathers and nothing more and a very full Kill Code. Honestly Sun was surprised it hadn’t happened sooner. They had long learned that holding back and caging the predatory side only made it stronger, more violent, and dangerous. Hunting animals keep it settled. He never brought parts of his kills back and made sure to keep any hunts well away from the house. 

The twins on the other hand, enjoyed dragging dead things through the yard, leaving parts in the fridge or worse, stuffing the occasional dead mouse in his slippers forcing him to check before putting them on. 

Solar groaned at the candy corn pillows, making plans to hide them when Sun was either sleeping or gone. Aurora was more interested in being fed than the odd decorations. “Let's get you fed and changed.” She looked up at him and scowled. “I know I put the diaper on backwards last time. I’m still learning." 

“At least you didn't put it on her head.” Eclipse teased.  

“Im not that inept." Jack scuttled past with a bag full of toys and some new books on dinosaurs and superheroes and headed down to his room. (though he did share it with Lunar.)

“Ahhhh! There’s a twink in the bathroom!” 

“The fuck?” Solar looked to Eclipse who was every bit as confused as he was. “Jack?’ 

“There’s a twink in the bathroom!” 

“How much do you want to bet it's the unhinged Sun?” Eclipse vented harshly, tucking Atlas into his sling. 

“It's either him or the dark sun.”

“That bastard wouldn't hide in a bathroom waiting for us to come back. He’d be sitting on the couch or something.” Solar put Aurora  with her siblings in the tree then retrieved a hammer from his tool box before venturing down the stairs. 

Jack pointed at the bathroom. “Man!” 

Sure as shit it was the unhinged Sun standing in the bathroom posing in the most ridiculous manner possible. 

“Hello.” 

“Oh God, it is.” Solar rolled his eyes and vented harshly. “I don’t want to deal with this crap.” 

“Hello friends. You all should really get some better home security.” 

“Don’t call us friends. Usually you’d be stabbed to death, set on fire or ripped apart. It depends on who gets to your first.” 

KS chuckled darkly. “I”d like that. All three actually. Preferably at once.” 

“Whats wrong with him?!” Jack asked, moving to hide behind the adults. 

Eclipse growled, rays rattling against his faceplate. “How the hell did you get in here?” 

Unfazed the unhinged Sun merely chuckled and sauntered forward, leaning against the doorway. “I climbed in through a window.” 

“Great. Now we will have to put alarms on the windows. What the hell do you want?” Eclipse hissed. Atlas matched it though he sounded more like a deflating tire then anything threatening. 

“I heard that you have…little Satan spawns.  I was curious so I thought I’d come take a peek.”

“I’ll show you Satan spawn!” Jack growled, brisling. 

“Easy.” Solar motioned at Jack to calm down. “You know you could have used the front door.” 

“But where’s the fun in that? “ KS grinned. 

“Again what the hell do you want?” 

“I wanted to come and, yes, I figured I’d come and say hello and see if the rumors were true. It's very intriguing. More so since giving birth to them must have been quiet the…adventrue” 

It took everything in Eclipse not to wrap his hands around the other’s skinny neck and strangle him. What the hell was it with every one and thinking he gave birth to the brood? Were there rumors that he was a cum dumpster or something? That he yowled like a feral cat in heat for dick? His emotions circled the drain, threatening to crash. 

“So you just snuck in through a window to see the brood and to piss us off?”  

“More or less.” 

Solar twitched. “How about this, leave or I will plant this hammer between those big eyes of yours.” Noticing that Eclipse had taken a few steps back and his posture had become hunched, he moved to place himself between the other eclipse and the dark sun. 

 “Again, I just came here to say hello.” KS waved his hands, unbothered by the threats to his life. 

“You said hello. Now you can fuck off or I’m letting Jack give you some new ventilation holes.” 

“I’ll cut you!” Jack growled, inching closer, claws out. 

KS tilted his head, still smiling that creepy smile. “Well, bye-bye.” With that he strode out of the bathroom, ignoring them then walked out the back door as if he lived there. 

“Well that happened.” Solar vented harshly , the tension draining from his frame. Putting the hammer down he guided the trembling Eclipse back up the stairs while Jack rushed to the window to grow at the retreating form of the unhinged sun. Once he had Eclipse situated on the couch he filled Sun in on what had happened. 

“So he didn’t want anything other than to piss us off?” Sun asked, confused and more than a little pissed off that someone had violated the safety of their home. How the hell had he even gotten past KC? 

“Pretty much. We’ll put up a few extra defenses in the morning including window alarms.” Might as well get dinner started and change diapers while Sun checked the back yard for any trace of the deranged Sun. 

 God he hated changing diapers.

***************************

I got to experience those god awful taxidermy frogs at the local flea market over the weekend. Oh god they are fulgy and creepy. Who wants that in their house? It probably gets up during the night and goes through your things and hides in your underwear drawer 

Chapter Text

Eclipse woke to utter chaos. In an instant he’s on his feet, nearly tripping over the blanket that had been draped around him during the night. Rushing into the kitchen he’s greeted by several crying infants and a frantic Sun searching for the milk. 

“There were two full bottles in here last night. I know Moon didn’t drink them all.” Sun pawed through the fridge searching for the bottles. 

“Have you tried feeding them something else?” Eclipse gathered up Atlas, patting the very upset infant on the back while tiny tears made tracks down his face.  He already knew the answer. The containers scattered on the counter told him all he needed to know. 

“I tried everything. They only want milk.” 

The wailing was waking up the other family members who slowly filed into the kitchen drawn to the chaos like moths to a flame. 

“It's five in the morning…” Solar chuffed to the coffee maker carrying his adopted daughter, turned it on only to be disappointed when nothing but hot water came out. “The fuck? I filled this last night.” A quick check turned up an empty coffee filter. The sound of her siblings fussing for milk soon had Aurora joining in. “There must be some eggs at least.” He nudged Sun to the side and retrieved the eggs. 

Sun tugged at his ribbons. “Can’t you feed them?” he looked to Eclipse then at the basket full of wailing infants. 

“I’m empty. It will be at least an hour before there’s enough to keep them from biting my nipples in retaliation for not having enough milk.” There were still faint teeth marks in the silicon from the last time that happened. 

Sun grimaced and crossed his arms over his chest. “I tried giving them everything in the fridge but they only want one thing.” The sounds of distress were tearing at him but there was nothing he could do to soothe the infants. All the usual tricks failed. Dangling things over them, rocking them, trying to feed them everything in the fridge. 

“The coffee is gone too.” Solar groaned, a headache creeping in. Aurora whined and chewed on his shirt. He tried offering her a piece of cooked egg only to have it batted away. “I know you don't want it but it's just to hold you over.” She scowled then began to cry again. 

“Fucking unhinged sun.” Eclipse rolled his eyes. “He must have taken the coffee and the milk to piss us off.” which meant they would have to make an emergency milk run.  

Solar and Eclipse shuffled into the strange K-mart with a basket full of hiccupping crying infants, still dressed in robes and slippers. “Does this make us people of Walmart?" 

“We still have pants underneath.” Solar pointed out. “Where’s the milk?” He had tucked a few bottles into those large pockets of his robe so they could get the little ones fed as soon as possible before they made themselves sick. 

“Filling bottles with milk and feeding babies while in the store might qualify us though.” He wished they had dragged Sun with them since he had magic and could warm the milk up but he wanted to stay behind and make sure nothing else had gone missing. 

“In the back, with all the other cold things.” Eclipse lightly patted Atlas. Sticking a pacifier in his mouth had calmed him down a bit though he constantly pawed at his breasts demanding to be fed. As difficult as it was to deny his child he forced himself to distract the niblet with anything at hand since he didn't want to sport new bite marks. 

Rushing as fast as they could to the back of the store which thankfully was empty at that hour, they found the dairy section and right by it the tiny section of non dairy and lactose free milk. “The oat milk, it’s sweeter, they might settle..” Solar rubbed the side of his head, barely resisting the urge to snap at the crying infants. He was on the verge of tears. 

Acting quickly Eclipse took the bottles and filled them with the nearest bottle of oat milk. They wouldn’t be thrilled about it being cold but they had no way to warm it up. The second a nipple was popped into a wailing mouth they began eagerly sucking on it only to spit it back out when they realized it was cold. 

“Of course it wasn’t going to be that easy.” 

Hot water, they needed hot water. Or a microwave. “The snack bar.” 

“This is no time-” 

“There’s a microwave there.” Eclipse tucked a very angry squalling Atlas into his sling while tucking the bottles into pockets. The sounds of distress were rapidly eroding his emotions, eating away at the thin walls. Turning he rushed as fast as possible to the damn snack bar with Solar in tow. 

The small snack bar was closed but he didn’t care. He barged right on in and located the microwave before he had his own melt down and Solar had six babies to take care of. “Hang n there, it’ll only take a fucking moment.” he was pacing in front of the microwave as the bottles warmed, rubbing his child's back. The moment the damn thing dinged he nearly ripped the door off retrieving the bottles. He took a split second to make sure it wasn’t too warm then gave it to Atlas. He hiccupped then latched on, eagerly sucking. 

“Here.” He handed the rest of the bottles to Solar who had to juggle the bottles and the upset infants until Eclipse rolled his eyes and stepped in to help. Once situated they both flopped onto the floor with a low groan of relief that the small ones were quiet aside the soft sucking noises. 

Emotions settling Eclipse gently wiped the traces of tears away from the broodlings. “If I see that damn sun again I’m pulling all his rays out.” 

Solar made a little noise of agreement. 

“Sun, where’s the milk?” Moon peered into the fridge, moving things around trying to find the bottles. 

“Someone…uh…took them. I’m not the one who has been buying them so I don’t know when there will be more.” Sun scrubbed at the sink with a sponge, bells jingling. 

The lunar bot groaned in disappointment. He had been looking forward to drinking that. He groaned louder when Sun told him the coffee was almost missing. Unless he wanted decaf. “We are so hiding the coffee.” 

“Why steal the milk then steal the coffee? It's not like he can eat anything.” 

“Because he thinks it's funny and it pisses us off.” Sun  vented a sigh then tossed the sponge into the sink. 

“Its fucking not.” Moon slammed the fridge shut then checked the trash just in case there were any milk bottles in there that he could put water in and get every trace of milk out. 

“Get out of the trash!” Sun rushed over and lightly slapped at his hands. 

“But milk!” He looked at his brother with the most pathetic expression he could manage. 

“There’s none in the trash. Besides, Solar and Eclipse went on an emergency milk run-”

“But that’s not the good kind! I want the good kind!” 

“If I knew where Eclipse bought it-” what Moon said next nearly sent him into a fit. 

“He makes it.” 

Sun’s mouth opened then shut it as it slowly dawned on him. “We ate food made with that!” He made a dry heaving noise. 

He had long realized where the milk had really been coming from, had a melt down in private then came to terms with it. It was the only ‘dairy’ that didn’t make him sick or have him wrapped around a trash can. The logical part of his mind knew it was harmless and wouldn’t hurt him but the fact it came from Eclipse had him more than a little grossed out. Until he realized he wanted more. 

Addiction was hell. 

And he wanted more. 

“Do the others know we’ve all been using boob milk?” 

“Probably.” 

“I don’t know how to feel about all the times we’ve made something with that and it came from Eclipse.’

“Just don’t tell Lunar. He already hates Eclipse.” Moon shrugged, edging towards the trash can. 

“He does have a right to know- stay out of the trash!” he lunged for Moon but the other was faster, snatching the trash can and making a run for it. “Come back here with that!” 

“Diaper time.” Eclipse announced softly. 

Solar grimaced. “I hate changing diapers.” 

“It's part of being a parent. Can’t let them run around naked, they’d leave deposits all over the rug and Sun would have a fit.” Eclipse vented a sigh and got to his feet, cradling a sleepy full Atlas. “God damn it…I forgot to grab the diaper bag.” 

“We’ve already opened the milk, might as well grab some diapers and wipes too. We can pay for it on the way out.” And coffee. Hell at this rate he’d eat the grounds if it made his head stop pounding. Getting up he trudged behind Eclipse, the infants having thankfully fallen asleep now they had been satiated. He snagged a cart on the way to the diaper aisle. 

A few minutes later he was in the family bathroom trying his best to change a squirming infant that didn’t want to be changed. The annoyance turned to anger, flaring hot against his systems. “Stop squirming!” he shouted, rays twitching. Poor Aurora froze, eyes wide and damp. She whined then began to cry softly, tiny hands curled into fists.  

“Shit…I…I didn’t mean to yell at you…” he scooped her up and cradled her. “I’m sorry. I shouldn't be taking things out on you.” The anger lingered but so did the guilt. He grimaced when something wet landed on his shirt. “You're all right…hush.” he gently rocked her until the sobs died down. “I'm not very good at this parenting thing.” 

He laid her back down and changed her, squirming was at a minimum while she chewed on her own onesie. “Here, that can’t taste good.” he tugged the cloth out of her mouth and popped a pacifier in. “I didn’t mean to scare you.” He felt horrible about that. “I’ll make it up to you.” 

Jack always reacted differently when snapped at. The little pumpkin was quick to forgive and forget. Still didn’t make it right and he always felt awful afterwards. 

“Let's get you home and settled in for a nap.”

Chapter Text

“Do we have to?” Moon grumbled, trailing behind Sun acting like he was being dragged to a part where he’d have to be …social. In his opinion this was just as bad. He just wanted to hide in the basement or garage. 

“Don’t be such a Grumble Gus. It's good to meet new neighbors. As much as I love Earth and Monty I want something that's just, you know, more besides just us and family.”  Sun all but skipped down the sidewalk, the two sleeping niblets tucked into the baby carrier strapped to his chest remained asleep. Their sister refused to come out of the cat tree, hissing and growling while clutching onto a half empty bottle. Since Solar and KC were home they left the grouchy little one behind. 

Moon grumbled louder. “They are just going to slam the door in our faces or scream then slam the door. How the hell did they install this little neighborhood so fast?” He couldn't remember there even being a neighborhood within walking distance of their house

 “Pre manufactured houses. You would have noticed if you got out more.”

“I don’t want to walk around outside.” Moon huffed. “Wait, how do you know that there's people who have already moved in?” The few houses he could see on either side of the gravel road were dark. 

“Well, you see I saw that the TV happened to be playing like …I don't know what it's playing exactly.” Sun motioned towards the large window in front of the house where a TV was barely visible. 

“Oh, so you only know by eavesdropping.That’s not creepy at all.” 

Sun spluttered. “I wasn’t eavesdropping! I was walking by and I was curious!” 

“Feels like an invasion of privacy.” 

“Let's just go in and just greet them. Have some fun. Do stuff.” Sun walked up the neat little gravel walkway to the small house. “I can't wait to see whoever it is on the opposite side of the door.” before he could even knock on the door it opened revealing the last person either of them expected. 

“Am I allowed to leave yet?” 

“Moon!” 

Ruin stared at the pair standing on his porch, dressed in a robe and pajama bottoms. They were the last two he’d ever expected. Honestly he expected an angry Solar or Jack egging his house. “I really wasn’t expecting anyone to stop by or I would have gotten dressed in something more appropriate." 

“Why did you move here?”  Moon vented a harsh sigh. If Jack found out and egged Ruin’s house in the middle of the night he was willing to help. 

“After everything happened, I needed a place to settle down and this was cheap and secluded.” the amalgamation shrugged. “Would you like to discuss this inside or would you like to remain outdoors?” 

“Well, I already got dragged along this far. I guess why not?” Like every terrible houseguest in history Moon waltzed past Ruin and into the house while a perplexed and tad bit embarrassed Sun followed, pausing to wipe his feet on the door mat. 

From somewhere in the kitchen came Moon’s voice. “If he tries anything, hit him with, like,I don't know, a napalm fireball. I don't know how your stuff works.”

“Moon!” Sun vented a harsh sigh. The twins yawned and smacked each other while waking up. Curious they peered over the top of the carrier, crimson eyes taking in their surroundings. 

“Im quite used to it.” Ruin closed the door behind them. “Hello there. They are rather cute.” 

“Yeah, they are. But they are a handful.”

“I’d imagine so. With five of them it must be rough.” 

Sun stared at him for a moment. “How-” 

“The rumors spreading through the plex. I don’t believe most of them since they are rubbish. There’s no way Eclipse of all people would give birth to one moon much less five.” 

Sun twitched. He had a good idea who was spreading that rumor. Fucking Monty. He’d tell Earth and let her tear him a new one. Sirius, wanting to explore his new surroundings, tried to crawl out of the carrier only to be caught by Ruin. 

“Someone is curious." he gently cradled the little one who looked up at him with large red eyes full of curiosity and wonder. It made something inside his chest squeeze tightly. 

A small part of Sun wanted to yank the little one away though he knew the other wouldn't harm the little one. 

“Why do you seem about 80% more depressed than the last time we spoke? Wait, are you the one who is screaming like one in the morning?”

They both looked towards the kitchen where Moon was digging around the fridge. A hot flush of embarrassment surged over him. Sun’s hands twitched as he fought with the urge to yank his brother away from the fridge by the hat. 

“How...How do you know about that? “

“We live like five minutes away.” 

“Wait...why are you screaming at five in the morning? That can't be healthy.” Sun asked. 

 “I have a lot of demons to deal with. I’ve finished my last big goal and I don't have much else to do.” Ruin lightly brushed his fingers over the tiny paws, earning an odd sound from Sirius that Sun had learned was laughter. “I guess trying to find the next thing to do with my life is taking up my time.” 

“ I'll drink to that. You got alcohol?” Moon pushed around a few old containers of Chinese take out that were likely growing mold. 

“Moon!” 

“I do not drink alcohol though there is some in the fridge. The original owners left it. I would have tossed it into the bin but I am still settling in.” He really hadn’t done much of anything other than sit on the couch and stare at the TV, mindlessly flipping through channels in search of a distraction ever since moving in. He hadn’t even gotten furniture since the previous owners had left some. 

“Oh, cool then. I'm taking the last beer.”

Sun weakly protests, feeling more than a little embarrassed while Ruin is barely affected. Most of his attention is on the precious little thing in his arms, expression soft and almost content. 

Cracking the cheap beer open the lunar bot eagerly drinks it only to make a face then spit it out in the sink. “Ew, this sucks.”

“Well it has been in the fridge for some time.” Ruin had been meaning to at least clean the fridge but it was difficult to get the motivation to get up some days. 

 “Why are you pouring it out?”

“Cuz it sucks.” After dumping the can into the trash he peered out into the back yard and spotted a hot tub. “You have a hot tub!? This is nicer than our house.”

“It came with the house. I really haven’t used it yet.” It wasn’t all that tempting to use it since that required getting up and turning it on then waiting for it to heat up and maintaining it. 

“No, it's not.” Sun protested. 

Moon pointed at the hot tub. “But hot tub.”

“You can install a hot tub in the back yard.” Sun pointed out. 

“ I don't want to take that much effort. Ew.” Moon stared longingly at the hot tub then began rummaging through the fridge again. 

Despite the crippling depression Ruin smiled. “Are the married couple done fighting?” 

“Don’t say that, that’s weird.” Sun protested. 

“In some dimensions you two are very well acquainted with each other.” Sirius chewed on his robe, making the cheap cloth damp just like some of the very young children at the daycare used to do to the ridiculous ruffles that once adorned his neck. 

“Corn dogs? “

“I'd like a good corn dog.”

“Yeah, I bet you would.” Moon snarked. 

“Moon!” 

“Can you stop raiding my fridge?” Ruin lightly patted the small one on the back dislodging an air bubble. The tiniest burp was freed from the small one who looked rather surprised that it had come from him. 

“I'm investigating your terrible  taste in food.”

“Well I haven't done much in the way of grocery shopping.’ Now he would, and he’d pick up some tiny diapers. He was certain they would be appreciated. No doubt the little ones went through diapers rather quickly. 

“What is this? It's a knockoff hot pocket.” Moon held up a box that was promptly snatched out of his hand by Sun and placed back in the fridge. 

“Don't raid his fridge. You are a terrible houseguest.” He pulled his twin away from the freezer by the hat, ignoring the protests that both Sirius and Apollo found funny. He let go of Moon and stayed nearby just in case his twin decided to raid something else. 

“It was called a pocket pouch. Who eats something called that?” 

Sun gave his brother a look that warned him to behave. “What are you doing nowadays?”

“Not much of anything at the moment. I do tinker now and then.” Though it never amounted to anything since his mind was preoccupied with other things. In so many ways he was still stuck in the past, often circling the drain then breaking down. “Halloween is coming up isn't it? 

Sun nodded. “Yeah, it is. Not sure if we’ll get any trick or treaters around here. Still going to get candy just in case.” And would have to hide it since Lunar would eat it all. 

 Moon slipped off while his brother was preoccupied talking about the holiday. Faceplate pressed against the glass, staring at the hot tub. Oh how he wanted one. Probably have to hide it to keep certain individuals out of it and make sure the brood couldn't find it by accident. Sun and Solar both would end up having nightmares about one of their small ones ending up in it and not being able to get out otherwise. 

“Why don’t you just get a hot tub Moon?” Ruin dearly hoped he didn’t wake up some night and find a certain lunar bot in his hot tub. 

“How much would one even cost?” 

“Two or three thousand? I can’t imagine it would be much.” Much to his surprise Sirius began kneading the plush material of his robe with his tiny hands, a raspy purr stirring in his chest. “You are full of surprises.” 

Sun stared, stunned. “I’ve never seen them do that before.”

“I don't want to install one.” Moon complained. 

“Then get someone to install it. Monty installed the one they have and helped install KC’s jacuzzi tub.” 

Moon slowly turned his head to stare at his brother. “Excuse me?” 

“What?” 

“Since when did you two get a jacuzzi tub?” 

Sun rolled his eyes. “A few days ago.” 

Ruin chuckled and walked over to the couch. “ Let's see if we can find you something suitable to watch while the married couple are fighting.” Some things never changed throughout the dimensions. Picking up the remote he flicked through a few channels until he found some cartoons which immediately caught Sirius attention. He chirped and churred happily, oblivious to the brother’s arguing in the kitchen. 

“Well, that wasn't exactly my plan for the day. I figured it was going to be anybody else.” Moon grumbled. 

“How was I supposed to know it was Ruin? He seemed really depressed.” 

“He did kill a massive amount of people.” Moon pointed out. 

“I wish he would have told us what he planned to do, we could have come up with something better. He lost everything.” Sun vented softly. They lost Solar only to get him back, Ruin lost everyone. His family, his friends, everyone. 

“I still don’t know how you got a jacuzzi tub without me knowing.” 

“KC was the one who picked it out and Monty helped install it.” The tub was a blessing for aching joints from a long day at work. “You know you can use it. KC won' t mind.” 

Moon grumbled a bit. While he wanted that hot tub he’d settle for using KC’s special tub. 

Solar crammed the deflated candy corn inflatable into the box then shoved it into the closest where there was so much forgotten crap that it likely wouldn't be found any time soon. “Leave it to Sun to get candy corn.” The rest of the inflatable decor was the usual silly pumpkins and skeletons. Jack was busy sticking small plastic and cloth bats up everywhere, including all over his rather impressive cardboard fort. 

They never really had a chance to properly celebrate any holiday and now the brood would be joining them in the celebration. No doubt Sun would want to dress them up and take them out and have a small party with family. 

“Hey Jack?”

“Yeah?” 

“What do you want to be for Halloween?" 

“A pirate!” 

Solar chuckled. Of course he would want to be a pirate. “We’ll have to check the store for some things so we can make a costume.”

Chapter Text

Baby Shark 

“The holidays are almost upon us. I really should get some cady and a costume. I wonder..a shark? I did like to pretend to be one while in the ball pitt. Oh those are good memories." Ruin sat back on the old couch. “I really should get a new couch too. This thing is horrible.” Rough and nasty and patched up. He was certain there was something living inside of it too. Really should drag it out the curb and hope whatever they hell was inside of the couch stayed outside. 

“I suppose that’s enough of a pity part-” Something splattered against the window. Curious he rose from the couch and peered out the window just in time to see another egg splatter against the window. Egging someone’s house was an old Halloween prank, a harmless one but that's not what bothered him. In the shadows he spotted a very familiar animatronic. 

“You must be bloody kidding me…” 

Jack gave him both middle fingers then lobbed some more eggs at the house. “You little goblin!” Irritated now he sprinted outside and grabbed the water hose, thoroughly dousing the little pest before he could run off. “Serves you right!” he huffed as a very soggy Jack ran off. 

Might as well get the egg off then do some shopping at the odd K-mart. 

“Well that wasn’t hard.” Sun rubbed the sore spot on the side of his faceplate. 

“He only kicked you in the face two times.” Eclipse pointed out.” You should have let me put him in the costume." There was no denying Atlas was fucking adorable in his little lion outfit. The stiff mane framed his big head while he sat there, looking up at them, confused. 

“Sirrus  kicked me four times.” 

Eclipse snorted." I’m surprised he didn’t bite you.” Temperamental little goblin. 

“He tired.” 

Said little goblin was dressed in a dragon costume, its glossy wings attracting the attention of the others. Every time they tugged on the temppting wings the Sirrus squalled and flailed around. Aurora was in a black panther one, paw in mouth. Nova was a bat with red and black wings while Apollo was a gator, fitting given his habit of biting anything that came near his mouth. 

They seemed more interested in attempting to chew on their siblings costumes than anything causing the target to squall angrily. “Dad is staying here to hand out candy, not sure what Lunar is going to do.” 

“Eat candy and watch TV. Almost surprised he’s not going out to Trick or Treat given its free candy.” Eclipse picked Atlas up so he couldn't go after his siblings. 

“He claims he’s too old for it.” Jack darted by, dressed as a pirate, a large plastic pumpkin in one hand.

“Hang on Jack.” Solar smiled at the little groan. “Think the little ones will stay put or will we have to carry them? They nearly lost their mind when I went to the store with them.” 

“We have that new stroller wagon with the see-through panels so they can see everything without trying to escape.” The thing had been eye-wearingly expensive, nearly at nearly four hundred dollars but it was worth every penny. The brood easily fit inside and it had a canopy to keep the sun out of their sensitive eyes. Sun picked up Sirrus and Apollo then placed them into the wagon among the blankets and pillows. They chirped and crawled around, extremely curious about their new surroundings. The diaper bag, packed with fresh bottles and everything else they might need, hung off the handle. 

Atlas complained loudly when he was plucked off mount booba and placed into the wagon. “Hush, I’m not going to vanish just because you are not clinging on.” That only made Atlas pout. 

“I think he’s more concerned about Mount Booba being used by someone else.” Solar smirked. 

Eclipse rolled his eyes. It was impossible to explain to Atlas that the other broodlings needed to be fed, that he couldn't hog the boobs all for himself. The only response he got was angry squalls and a scowl. “I don’t have multiple boobs like a cat.” 

Solar snorted and shook his head, promptly deleting the very unwanted mental image that popped up in his mind. “There’s some people who really like that sort of thing.”

“Sickos.” Eclipse grumbled. 

“Humans  are weird.” Sun shrugged. 

“So is fucking Monty.” Eclipse added. 

They all shuddered. More than once they had all at some point or another, accidentally walked in the damn gator watching porn in the trailer in Gator Golf and Monty was never ashamed of it. 

“I will never understand what the hell Earth sees in him.” 

It was still light when they set out, just barely getting dark with the sun sitting low on the distant horizon and the street lights were on. The brood was fascinated with everything happening outside the wagon, their little faces pressed against the mesh as the watched kids dressed in all manner of costumes rushed past, hurrying to the houses lining the street. Sun recognized a few of the children from the daycare and they seemed surprised to see him out of it. It wasn’t as if they lived in the plex. At least they haven’t in a long time. They had been practically stepping over each other in the small space of the tower. It would have been impossible to raise the brood there. 

It took more explaining then any of them would have liked that no Eclipse was not their mommy, the small ones were adopted. 

And you wonder why I refuse to work at the daycare.

Sun grimaced. They would be bombarded by questions as to why Eclipse had boobs and about the babies. Poor Eclipse would crash out and he’d have to deal with that on top of everything. 

At least they got a lot of compliments on how cute the little ones were while Jack beamed over the candy in his pail. 

Eclipse came to a stop and stared at Ruin standing on the porch of his house, dressed like a shark of all things. The eclipse looked utterly ridiculous, like a cartoon character. Sun stared for a moment, shook his head and pushed the wagon closer to the door. Sirrus perked up and tried to climb out only to be pulled off the mesh by Sun. The small moon squalled loudly then bit at the fingers holding him captive.  

“Get away from my father devil!” Jack lunged, plastic sword raised. Eclipse barely grabbed him by the scruff in time. Seeing that he wasn’t able to physically attack the one responsible for so much sadness in his family Jack did the next best thing. He blasted the other with pepper spray. 

“What the-My eyes!” Ruined staggered back, eyes stinging something fierce. Never once did he ever think something like pepper spray would not only work on him, it hurt something fierce. 

“Get away! Ill kill you!” 

“Jack! What are you doing?!” It was hard  for Solar to sound surprised but he managed it while smirking inwardly. 

“I can't see..” 

“He did bad things!” 

“Do that again and I’m removing that feature.” Eclipse struggled not to smirk while Ruin rubbed at his eyes while Sun looked horrified. Jack growled. 

“He’s practically a rabid dog.” Ruin blinked away the worse of the stinging sensation, vision a little blurry. 

“This dog will rip off your arms!’ 

“Jack.” 

“What?”

“Jack, stop.” You can throw eggs at his house later. 

The smaller bot grumbled and hunched up while glaring at Ruin. I did that then he sprayed me with a hose!

He did what? I’ll take care of that later. Somehow Solar managed to keep the anger off his face. 

Sun winced but held onto the little one. “Are you alright?” 

“I will be fine. That took me by surprise, that's all.” Vision still a little blurred he tilted his head, watching the small one chew at Sun’s fingers. “He’s just curious and doesn’t like someone stopping him from exploring.” Ruin said, holding a rather large bowl of full sized chocolate bars. 

“Those could not have been cheap.” 

Ruin shrugged. “I don't need much for myself so I don’t mind splurging for the little ones. Halloween only comes once a year after all.”

Sun couldn't help but to be a little put off since all he had gotten was the fun sized ones and he had a feeling Lunar had eaten most of them while his back was turned. 

“Hang on a moment.” Before they could say anything Ruin vanished back into his house for a moment, returning with a silly bright bag tucked under one arm. “I figured this would be more appropriate for the small ones.” 

Curious and cautious Eclipse took the bag, opened it and was surprised that the bag contained life like stuffed animals. The eyes had been embroidered on so there was no chance the brood might accidentally chew it off and choke on it. “Thanks.” he handed Sun a small gator, who gave it to a very cranky Sirrus who immediately grabbed the stuffed animal. “They might not even eat candy but they do like soft things." 

“Could give them some when we get back and see if they like it or not. Hopefully we don’t end up with more sugar fiends.” Eclipse distributed the rest of the plushies to the brood who chirped happily over their new gifts. 

‘Sure Ruin didn’t do anything to those?’  Solar side eyed the amalgamation. 

‘Pretty sure. I doubt he’d ever do anything to harm a child.’ 

‘He killed a lot of them when he set off that doomsday machine.’ 

Sun resisted the urge to say anything. It was still a sore spot for them all. 

Jack made a grab for the candy bars while the adults were preoccupied, very carefully pinching a few between his fingers and slipping them out of the bowl and into his pockets. While he did feel a little bad for stealing this devil was the one who killed his father so it evened itself out.  

“They are quite the handful I imagine.” Something warm blossomed in his chest when the small one chirred and held all the tighter to his stuffy. 

“They can be when they are cranky or hungry.” 

Ruin almost suggested he could baby sit but he sensed that would not go over well. Not to mention he didn’t want to be in the house with Jack or Solar, not that he blamed either one. 

By the time they got back it was getting dark and the little ones were getting sleepy. Just in time for the adults to settle them down and have their own little party complete with some alcohol and bad horror movies. 

Chapter Text

KC walked through the house silent as a ghost picking up wrappers, empty bottles and cans, fast food boxes, left overs from the party. Unlike the others he chose to stay sober due to the little ones while Eclipse barely touched anything alcoholic. Checking the basement room he found Jack in an exorcist worthy pose on the floor among a small pile of candy wrappers. Smiling he scooped Jack up and put him to bed followed by a sleepy cranky Lunar. “Hush, you are tired.” Lunar of course whined like a cranky toddler and burrowed into the covers like a grub. 

Upstairs he gently extracted the trio of sleeping broodlings from the tree and carried them to the bassinet Sun’s room. They yawned and whined when laid down though quieted down once a pacifier was placed in their mouths. 

Eclipse was all but passed out on his bed, Atlas tucked away in the lovely space themed bassinet. KC tugged the quilt over the slumbering DCA before tip-toeing out of the room, closing the door behind him. 

Solar rolled over and yanked the pillow over his head with a groan, trying to ignore the incessant ring of the phone. Realizing it wasn't going to stop he hesitantly answered. “What?!”

“Terribly sorry to wake you-”

Now he's awake. Sitting up with a growl, Solar scowled at the far wall. ”How the hell did you get this number?” 

“That of no importance. Do you know where Moon is?”

“He's asleep-”

“He's in my back yard without a stitch of bloody clothing clearly sauced.”

God damnit Monty. “Alright…I'll be over to get him in a few minutes.”

“I do appreciate it, Solar. I've been treated to more bare backside than I ever care to see.”

Groaning and rolling his eyes, Solar got up, groggily put a pair of shorts on since he didn't want to expose Ruin to more bare ass. “I hope I don't have to fish him out of the hot tub.”

Ruin stared at the unwelcome guest through the sliding door. Moon stared back, pupils blown and body far too relaxed. It had given him quite the fright when he had gotten up to investigate an odd noise only to see a nude Moon zombie shuffling around his yard. The sight had sent him into a panic attack, the rush of memories involving that damn virus had him on the floor, screaming and weeping at the same time. 

According to the ridiculous clock on the wall, the rim of it spouted plastic spoons and forks, it had taken nearly an hour for him to collect himself before calling for help. 

Outside Moon was still off in bloody Neverwhere.

After scrubbing the tears from his faceplate he called the only number he had. 

“I don't know what the hell you got into Moon but I do hope you never-” the Lunar bot slowly turned and Ruin got an eyeful of the full moon. Grimacing, he turned away. “Really now Moon. This is a bit much.” He wondered if there would have been a time when he would have found this funny. “Absolutely not. I rather not see someone's bare arse. I really need to get some curtains.” 

Solar stepped into the overgrown yard. “Moon? Where are you bud?” Not that he needed to search when Moon was standing on the porch, illuminated by the porch light. “Are you...high? I'm going to kill Monty “ he vented harshly. “Alright bud, let's go home.” 

Moon of course ran off into the bushes.

Since Solar had everything well in hand and he really didn't feel like wrangling a naked Moon Ruin walked back into the living room then flopped onto the couch. “I really should replace this thing. It's ugly and the springs poke out in places “ And something was still living in it. 

Carrying Moon over one shoulder Solar trudged home. Totally going to kill Monty for this. Probably should find out what the hell the gator gave him. The phone rang a few times before a worried sounding Earth picked up. “Do you have any idea what Monty gave Moon? I found him naked in Ruin’s back yard.” 

“Is he alright? I’m not sure what they were taking, it's not like Monty to do anything illicit or dangerous.” She looked to the back yard where Monty was, passed out on the lawn furniture, snowing. It wasn’t that odd for them to drink or smoke something but that was worrisome. 

Solar resisted the urge to point out that Monty drank his body weight in alcohol and did all manner of illegal things.  “He’s fine other than being really high. Sure you don’t have any idea of what they may have been doing.” Moon didn’t protest being carried like a sack of potatoes. 

“No, sorry Solar. I’ll give Monty an ear full once he wakes up.

“Whatever it is, it will likely wear off in a few hours. Pretty sure the massive hanger over they will have will be punishment enough.” Hanging up he marched inside, flopped Moon onto the couch and retrieved a blanket from their room only to come back to the lunar bot groping poor Jack's face who had come out of the basement for some reason. 

“I don’t like this!” Jack protested. 

“Moon…Moon, come one bud, stop doing that…it's not nice..” Solar gently removed the other’s hands from his son who promptly ran and hid in his fort. 

“What's wrong with him?” 

“He’s really high right now Jack.” He led Moon back to the couch and wrapped him up like a grub in the blanket, turned his back for a moment when he heard something only to find Moon gone. “Damn it Monty.” A quick search of the house found Moon standing in front of the fridge. “Come one bud, back to the couch.” In the confines of the house the rank smell of something very illicit was difficult to ignore. 

Of course keeping Moon from wandering off wasn’t easy. Every damn time he turned his back Moon was gone. In the end he had to hold onto Moon’s starry hat and pulled him into their room, shutting the door and pushing the dresser in front of it so Moon couldn't walk out. “Come on bud, let's get you to bed. Hopefully you will be yourself in the morning and can help me kick Monty’s ass.” Thankfully it didn’t take much to get the other to sleep, bundling him up in the blankets. 

Solar’s crescent wrinkled in irritation as he was pulled out of a calm sleep by the sound of crying. “Hang on…I’m coming..” he tossed the covers to the side and got up, shuffling to the bassinet. “Usually you are really good about sleeping throughout the night.” He plucked the fussing infant up and immediately knew what the problem was. “Let's get you changed.” 

Changing someone who did not want to be changed and was very irritable due to being tried wasn’t easy and it ground against his raw nerves. Don’t yell at her, don’t yell at her, don’t yell at her. She’s only a baby. He vented harshly and willed the anger to simmer down. She was tired, he was tired. They were both a lill cranky. 

The crankiness was turned up a notch when he didn’t use the wipes from the warmer. The scowl and grumpiness would have been funny any other time. “I know…I’m tired…” He pulled the clean onesie over her slender limbs then picked her up, carrying the grumpy infant back to their room. 

Crawling back into the nice warm bed he allowed his adopted daughter to crawl around on the thick comforter, tiny hands patting at Moon who grumbled and yanked the covers up over his head. Solar laughed despite the exhaustion and headache when she looked back to him, confused. “Your uncle is a bit cranky.” Moon curled up more and became more grublike which drew her attention. 

Aurora crawled over to the mass, eating comforter more than once, tiny hands pulling and patting at the tightly bound quilt while chirping softly. Eventually she became bored and crawled back to her adoptive father. Yawning she curled up against his chest into a tiny ball, drifting off to sleep. 

Come mid morning Solar carried her into the kitchen, passing Moon who was hunched up on a bar stool at the kitchen island, head in his hands. “You okay in there bud?” 

“My head really fucking hurts. How the hell did I get back home?” 

“You were in Ruin's backyard. Naked.” 

Horrified Moon jerked his head up and regretted it immediately when his vision swam and head felt as if it was going to blow up. Like there was a team of evil gnomes burrowing into his head. “What!?” 

“I had to chase you around his yard while you were high as hell and naked.” Solar chucked, popping a bottle into the microwave. 

“I'm going to kill Monty” He groaned and buried his head back into his hands. Ruin was never going to let him live it down that he had been running around his yard naked as the day he was made. 

“What  the hell did you do while over there? You were pretty out of it.” 

“Don’t know. Fucking Monty said he had a new supplier , bastard must have laced it.” Moon squeezed his eyes shut. He felt like crap. “Never doing that again.” 

“Good. Next time I’m leaving you at Ruins.” Hearing the microwave ding he pulled the bottle out, checked the temp then gave it to a half asleep Aurora.

“Don’t you dare.” 

“Don’t get so high you take all your clothing off.”