Chapter Text

Chapter 1: The Grapewine

It’s Friday.  Dick keeps his head buried in the pillow, hoping that if he pretends to sleep, he can stay in bed a bit longer. Marcel caresses his arm and kisses his temple. “Your mates came home last night. I think it’s time you go up to them, ukochany,” he says. Since he got mated, he’s become so tender in their stolen moments. Stolen, as in the nights when Marcel feeds and they make love. Dick’s not sure if Ilya knows the nature of their relationship or if he’s jealous. But at least once a month, Dick helps Marcel sate his hunger and gets his own craving sated, all while Marcel whispers ‘beloved’ in Polish to him with eyes as warm as Tony’s. Dick loves too many Alphas. But his and Marcel’s love is 95% platonic and 5% a bad idea. At least, that's what he keeps telling himself because the alternative is 50% platonic and 100% a bad idea, so 'best friends' is what he labels it.

Dick whines. “I don’t want to get out of bed,” he complains, then pushes himself up on an elbow and rubs his eyes. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m not usually this tired.”

Marcel chuckles and shuffles down to rub his nose back and forth over Dick’s belly with a soft smile. He kisses him under the navel, then rests his head on Dick’s thigh. “I’m sure there’s a good reason for it, and if you’re determined, I believe you can convince one of your mates to languish in bed with you all day. But I need to get going. I promised Nikita that I’d devote my day to his lessons, and he’s a morning person.”

“Morning people are so annoying.”

Marcel chuckles, fingers trailing over Dick’s belly. “You’re a morning person.”

Dick smirks. “As I was saying…”

They share a look and giggle.

Dick walks into the kitchen, where Mike, Raff, Mar, and Tony sit at the kitchen table, reading the news. There’s a stack of papers and magazines amidst the coffee cups and sandwiches on the table, the haul from the week they’ve all been gone. He greets them all with brief, affectionate temple rubs, then veers off to brew the anti-pregnancy tea. Tony looks up from his newspaper with an amused smirk. “I take it you had fun this weekend?”

Dick hums his agreement.

Tony keeps looking at him with amusement. He says, “It won’t do much good now if you forewent drinking it. You’re gonna need something stronger."

Dick is so damned tired. He almost feels hungover, which is unusual since he had a full Siberian experience last night. That usually cures all bodily discomforts. “I’ve been drinking it daily, dear,” he answers, staring at the kettle while waiting for it to boil.

“Ah,” Tony says, smelling like he’s laughing. 

Mar’s content purr lays a pleasant backdrop, and the scents of his mates in the room soothes Dick’s soul. He preps the tea strainer with the herbs. He’s almost out, only has enough tea for three more days. Yesterday, he’d asked Marcel for more. Usually, Marcel gives it to him right away, but yesterday Marcel held him, taking deep breaths through his nose snuffling Dick’s hair, and said, ‘Later. You won’t be needing it now,’ so of course, Dick forgot to remind him before he left Marcel’s apartment. Oh well. He can ask him for more tomorrow.

The kettle is ready, so Dick puts the strainer over his cup, pours hot water over the herbs, and puts the kettle away. He turns around, leaning his ass against the countertop, and watches his boys. Their plane landed around 3 AM, so they’re all very tired, but like idiots, they got up early to go to work anyway. 

Tony puts away his newspaper and grabs the latest issue of The Grapewine. Some days Dick wonders why they’re subscribed to a trashy gossip mag like it, other days, he’ll read the gossip with glee.

Luci comes shuffling inside, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He smells hungover. Dick muses that maybe he can be convinced to play truant and lay in bed all day with Dick.

“Luci, you sneaky bastard. I thought you’d be gone all week like the rest of us, and instead, you come home to give Dick a good railing,” Tony teases and tuts.

Luci looks up at him with a slight frown. “I didn't? Why would you thi–?” His eyes go wide, and his face snaps towards Dick. “No way… who did it?” he says, hurrying up to Dick to plaster himself against him, sniffing intensely at Dick’s neck. It tickles, and Dick tries to push him away, but when Luci licks at his ear gland, he relaxes and allows it.

“Did what?” Mike asks, lowering his newspaper.

Luci puts his forehead on Dick’s shoulder and siphons, then turns his head to look at Dick. “Who is it? Who's the father?” he asks.

Mar’s eyes widen in surprise. “He's pregnant?” 

“No, I can’t be pregnant,” Dick denies, cold dread running down his spine, suddenly wide awake.

“Yup, he’s as pregnant as they come,” Tony confirms with a smirk.

The scent of excitement permeates the kitchen. Mike and Raff get out of their chairs and scramble to Dick, sniffing intensely at him wherever they can reach. Normally, Dick finds it endearing when Raff mimics the behavior of people who can smell, but not now. Now all he can think is, ‘Ooooh, I fucked uuuuup!’

Mar gets up and comes to join them, pushing Mike out of the way so he can get to Dick’s ear gland and siphon. Luci sinks to his knees and hugs Dick around the ass, shoving his nose against his belly with the scent of joy. “Hello, Aiden, Daddy loves you,” he says, purring a loud all-is-well. Dick’s heart is pounding so hard he can barely hear. His hands feel cold and clammy, his chest overheated.

“Who’s the father?” Mike asks.

“How do I get rid of it?” Dick asks without thinking. His head is spinning. He fucked up. He fucked up. He fucked up.

There’s a collective scent of horror. Luci yelps like a wounded dog. “No! Don’t kill Aiden,” he pleads, looking up at Dick with eyes wide with terror. At the kitchen table, Tony’s sniggering.

“Oh, shush, son,” Mar scolds. “He’s just a blastocyst at this stage. Pregnancies are dangerous and it’s up to Dick to decide if he’s brave enough to bring Aiden to life.”

“Hah!” Tony throws a sandwich at Mar so he has to dodge away from Dick. It lands on the counter, just barely missing the superfluous tea. “Fucking manipulative asshole,” he sniggers. 

Dick stares down at Luci’s devastated red eyes. “You’re supposed to be the father of my firstborn,” he says. His voice sounds hollow even to himself. He fucked up.

“I am! I am. I’m the dad. This is my daughter,” Luci says, and lets go of his ass with one arm to cover Dick’s belly with a hand. “I’ll be the best dad ever, I promise. Please, just keep her,” he pleads.

No no no. I fucked up.

“Who’s the father?” Mike asks again.

“Is it Jed?” Raff asks.

“It can’t be Jed, he was with us,” Mike says, then, to Dick, “Is it Carter?”

“Did you manage to convince Carter to knot you finally?” Mar asks.

Gods, would that it be Carter. He’d be thrilled to have a kit with Carter. Not his first, that’s supposed to be Luci’s, but if he had to fuck up, Carter would be the man he’d want to fuck up with. Only problem is that the bastard still isn’t putting out. He shakes his head numbly and takes deep breaths trying to calm down.

“Is it…” Mike, Raff, Luci, and Mar present options and shoot them down without Dick having to say anything. By the table, Tony goes back to reading. He flips a page, and suddenly he smells like he’s guffawing. Helplessly, Dick looks his way. Tony’s face is passive, but his dimple is deep enough to be drilled by an oil rig. He’s up to no good, the sparkle in his dark eyes when he looks up to meet Dick’s gaze confirms it.

“Who is it?” Mike asks again, nudging Dick to snap him back to reality.

Who who who? Who did I sleep with while all my mates were out of town?

There’s only one acceptable answer. “Marcel,” Dick answers.

“It’s not Dad. He was with his pack until yesterday,” Tony, the damned traitor, says.

“Nonono, it has to be Marcel,” Dick argues desperately. It has to be him! Because if it’s not him… “I slept with him yesterday and since he was using a condom I let him give me the full Siberian experience. He injected me with fertility venom so it has to be him!”

“In that case, it's going to take caedisadryl or interfectiodrin if you want to get rid of it. Fertility venom strengthens a pregnancy. Besides, it's not his, Dicky, it's been attached for at least a day, maybe even a full three days if my nose is to be believed,” Tony says. 

Dick can barely keep from hyperventilating. He knew. Marcel fucking knew! That’s why he wouldn’t give Dick the tea, and why he insisted it was safe for him to inject the venom. The condom had nothing to do with it, the bastard just got kitty fever like every other idiot in this room. 

“Are you out of your mind?!” Mar protests with a glare at Tony. “Both caedisadryl and interfectiodrin could actually kill Dick.” 

“So convince him to keep it,” Tony answers with a shrug. “He should have thought of that before he went out fucking Progs and Betas without protection,” he says, amused. “When they get involved, all bets are off. Trust me, I've got countless kits in the USPR to prove it.”

“Oh, please. Dick hasn't been sleeping with any Betas,” Luci says with an eye roll. “Tell him, Dick.”

Tony smirks and turns The Grapewine around so all of them can see the Williams Weekly spread. “Yeah, Dick, tell me,” he says sarcastically, then sniggers.

Everyone stares at the magazine pictures, then, as one, turn their heads to stare at Dick in disbelief.

Dick blushes crimson and flusters, “Oh dear. Well, I might've had a drink or two too many, and you know how I get…”

Tony laughs. 

At least one of them is having a field day.