Chapter Text
Vox lets out a long deep breath as he sits on his knees, resting his chest on one of Val's stupid exercise balls. He sways gently back and forth trying to keep himself relaxed and distracted.
He can do this.
He's already been laboring since—what—this morning? Fuck, this would've been over already if it wasn't such a pain in the ass to get ahold of Baxter! That slimy bastard has been in and out of the tower non-stop recently. Just when he actually needed his ass.
If he knew he'd be waiting this long again in his dingy lab he would've just stayed in Val's room instead.
“You've got about thirty more seconds babe,” Val tells him gently while brushing his hand over his back. He's been timing his contractions so he's at least a little prepared for when they come.
Vox cries out as another one twists his gut. He trembles, clutching his fists until his claws draw blood, “Fuuuck—fuck!” He whimpers, trying to breathe through it.
“Uh—or not—what the fuck is taking those assholes so long?!” Val hisses as he sits down beside him to massage his hips, “Breathe Voxxy…”
“What the fuck do you think I'm doing!” He snaps before the pain turns into something stabbing and tearing. Vox shouts and wraps one of his arms around his stomach. “Fuck?!”
“Baby—” Val carefully pulls him back upright. Vox cries at the motion, breathing heavily. It hurts so fucking bad.
He's going to be sick—
“Val—” he starts before covering his mouth, feeling bile raise up his throat. Valentino flinches back when blood gushes between his fingers and splatters onto the floor.
“Vox?! Oh fuck!”
His screen flickers staring down at the dark blood dripping from his claws. Static hazes his vision while the room feels like it's spinning around him. His body slowly wavers, losing the strength to even keep himself sitting upright. “Babe—” he barely gets out before his screen cuts out then back on a few seconds later.
“Fuck this,” Val panics and picks up Vox's limp body from the lab floor. He kicks open the doors to Baxter's operating room just as Vox goes unconscious in his arms again.
“I told you two to wait!? This equipment requires specific assembly and calibration—”
“Help him?!” Valentino screams over him, presenting Vox's lifeless body in his arms. He's burning hot!
“Satan's throne!” Baxter quickly collects a few wires from the floor and shouts at Vox's assistant, “You! Eel! Prepare to run diagnostics and force shut down Vox's firewalls—he’s been laboring too long.” The small scientist jumps up and plugs the wires into the back of Vox's head. “Hurry, hurry! Put him on the table—”
Valentino lays him out and takes a step back wrapping his arms around himself, “What the fuck is happening?”
Baxter pulls a metal tray full of instruments close and cuts through Vox's shirt, “Had I been given a proper delivery time frame—and the chance to study him in the first place,” he mumbles the last part, “I would've had all of this prepared in advance! I don't often give live births but I assume with how long you've been waiting Vox's systems have finally recognized the child and maybe its software as a foreign entity and is trying to reject it. Except it has nowhere to go and it is now destroying itself.”
“All of his firewalls are triggered on level five—I’m going to have a hard time getting them all back down,” Ethan types as fast as he can on the three large screens Vox is connected to, “His internal temperature is already at 110 degrees.”
“Thank you for the warning,” Baxter pulls back to switch out his goggles and gloves for something thicker, “Try to get his vents operating. Mr. Valentino, I would look away if you're squeamish.” He flashes the scalp in his hand before pressing it into Vox's stomach.
Val watches the first layer of skin split before he has to turn away. He can't watch Vox like this. “Is he going to be okay?”
“Depends on the damage we find after we extract the specimen…” Baxter mutters behind him. He really wishes he wouldn't refer to their baby that way. A suction sound echoes off the walls and Val covers his head with his upper arms to block out the sound. “This is a lot of blood—”
“We’re looking at hours of repair,” Ethan sighs, “There's a lot of long term damage here. He should've let you watch him.”
Fuck—
Valentino pulls out his phone to text Velvette what's going on, swallowing the lump in his throat. Vox stopped telling him how he was feeling after the night at the Gala. He stopped telling him how much pain he was in and he didn't want to push him too hard for real answers.
It's all his fault.
Maybe this was a mistake—
‘Voxxy is real bad off. I don't know what to do. He's bleeding a lot.’ —Val
‘Fuuuck, I'll be down there as soon as I can. I've got some stitches to finish up. Just hold on love.’ —Babydoll
“Please hurry,” he whispers to himself with his phone trembling in his hands.
Damnit—damnit?! He didn't want Vox to be this way—he didn't want any of it to be this way! He thought this would be okay, that it'd keep Vox with him, that it'd make him happy.
Why can't he just be happy?!
“Mr. Valentino—Valentino?! I need you to take the child!”
Val spins around and his eyes widen staring at their baby. In Baxter's arms they were nearly the same size but compared to him and Vox…it's so tiny and helpless.
“Easy, its—screen is still flexible. I assume it should harden in a few minutes,” Baxter places it in his arms, “It was overheating and under software attack inside of him so let it cool and it should be okay…Vox is going to require extensive repairs so I suggest you give us time.”
“Okay—” he answers breathlessly and covers their baby in his wings. He glances at Vox's still black screen before he forces himself back into the corner of the room instead of leaving all together. He can't leave Vox—not like this.
Valentino pants softly as his back hits the wall and he carefully slides down it onto the floor. More suction and typing and singeing center around the operating table but Val is able to tune it out easier now.
He carefully watches their son. Counting his tiny rapid breaths puffing out of his gills. Four arms curled on his chest, soft shriveled wings on his back. Val brushes his long wire antennas off of his screen.
He's so—them.
He's perfect.
Minutes go by and he never takes his eyes off of him. Only smiling softly when his little screen flickers on just like Vox's does. White and pink eyes blink up at him with a pale grey background. They're wide and confused.
“Hola mijo…” he whispers softly, curling himself tighter around him. A big scary lab wasn't the first thing he wanted him to see. He hoped it would've been both of his parents instead.
“...Val…” Velvette calls out to him gently before she kneels down in front of him. She places her hand on his leg to comfort him. “I-I saw Vox, is—”
Valentino squeaks before he spreads his wings slightly so she can see him.
“Oh shit, look at the little guy,” She smiles and whispers, “What are you two going to name him?”
He and Vox did talk about this. They never finished it because Valentino didn't agree to the name until now. He glances up at Vox in the distance and realizes how much he sacrificed to give him this. He can compromise on a name.
“Vax,” he sighs happily watching Vax’s tiny hand squeeze his finger.
***Two Months Later***
“Vox—Vox?!” Valentino growls softly and slams his fist against the wall, “Wake the fuck up you fucking asshole!”
Vox groans as his screen flickers on. He lets out a little tired breath, blinking up at Val.
“Un—fucking—believable.” Val hisses at him and grabs his arm to drag him out of bed only for him to land on the floor when his legs don't catch up with him, “The only reason you got your stupid body back is to take care of our son while I work for the both of us and you can't even get up on time to do that.”
“Val—” Vox sighs, slowly grabbing at the mattress to pull himself up.
“You're so fucking pathetic—” Valentino throws his clothes onto his face, “Don't try to act all sorry for yourself now after you tried to kill all of us over that fucking deer?! You were going to kill our son Vox!”
“I know—you’ve reminded me every day since it happened…” he pulls his suit off of his screen, “Two weeks ago.”
“It hasn't been long enough,” Val glares down at him and Vox can't help but curl in on himself slightly, “Velvette should've sent you Vax's usual routine. He'll be waking up soon and he needs to be fed and changed. Get your shit together and go take care of him.” Valentino finishes before storming out of the room with the doors slamming behind him.
…
Vox chokes a sob with tears leaking down his screen before he could realize what's going on. He buries his face in his clothes to block out the rest of the room around him and muffle his pathetic cries. Why is this his fucking afterlife?
‘Oh Vincent—don’t tell me you're really crying, dear…that isn't a good look on you.’ He curls in further on himself hearing Alastor's voice ring in his head. ‘Nobody’s feeling sorry for you with that pathetic face.’
“Fuck you?!” He shouts in the empty room before he realizes what he's doing. Vox glances down at his trembling hands, filling his lungs with shuddering breaths.
…
Okay…
He clenches his fists and forces himself up. He just needs to get this over with.
The doors slide open to Valentino's room and Vox steps inside, scrolling through his phone. He frowns at the nothing but praise for Valentino and Velvette and the hate for him. He doesn’t know why he even bothered opening his social media. Probably because it's the only thing he's allowed anymore. No more external circuit access, no administrative permission, no company logistics. They even locked him out of his own cameras.
He's nothing but a glorified nanny now when he was once the biggest fucking thing in hell.
The whining beeps and cries don't even register to him until he reaches Vax's crib. He glares down at the needy child reaching for him. Fluttering his ridiculous wings uselessly. Still too small to lift up his fat squishy body.
Fucking failure.
“This is all your fault,” Vox grits underneath his breath. He ruined everything. His mind, his body, his life!
Tears start to well up in Vax's eyes, not because he understands, but because he's not getting what he wants.
Even after he's given and taken everything out of him he's still begging for more. Stupid fucking baby.
Vox grabs him and carries him away from his body. Vax brings one of his upper hands to his mouth and sucks on it. Vox cringes seeing that he's got Val's tongue out of the two of them. Good.
He's Val's son after all.
An anniversary gift.
A horrible life altering, shitty gift.
Not his.
He walks into the kitchen trying to make a bee-line for the chair before it leaks on him.
“Why the fuck are you holding him like that?” Velvette's voice grates on his audio receptors, forcing him to a screeching halt.
“Oh—are you an expert now? Did you have a little lesbian orphanage when you were alive—did mommy and daddy teach you how to hold babies and take such good care of them, huh Velvette?” He mocks in a baby voice, “You think I don't know what the fuck I'm doing?”
She stares at him silently before she nods and gets up from the bar top, “Fuck you, Vox. Fuck. You.” She storms out of the kitchen, “Fucking dickhead—”
…
Vox turns back to Vax and sees all of his disgusting pink drool leaking on his claws. “Aw—fuck?!” He rushes to put him down in his chair and flicks his hands. “Fucking—damnit! Fuck!” He slams his fists on the counter and pants shakily.
He hates this—
He hates this so fucking much?!
Vax cries at him and he fucking can’t—
“Shut up?! Shut the fuck up you little fucking brat—” he shouts at him.
…
Vax stares up at him, tears leaking down his screen.
…
Vox swallows thickly before he turns to the fridge and grabs one of his bottles. He shakes it up and tosses it into the microwave. Bracing himself against the counter to watch it spin around and round and round. Digging his claws into the marble.
The microwave dings when it's finished and he pulls out the lukewarm formula.
“Open your mouth.” Vox demands of him. Vax just blinks so he smooshes the nipple against his face until he latches. His four hands immediately reach up for the bottle to keep it in place as he gulps it down.
Like he's starving or something.
He hasn't eaten either, you little shit…
…Not that he needs to anyway. He put on weight while the parasite grew inside of him. He's got to get it off if he wants to start rebuilding what little bit of an image he still has. Another thing he needs to fix since his life's been ruined.
‘Honestly Vincent, it isn't flattering to the eye. If you really cared about your audience you'd keep the weight off so they wouldn't be so distracted by your body…’
Static clouds his vision hearing Alastor’s voice echo in his head again. His eyes flicked from Vax to his torso.
After a minute Vax pulls away from the bottle when it's empty and hiccups hard enough to bounce his entire body. Vox tosses the dirty dish into the sink for Kitty to clean and picks up the baby to bounce him away from his body. The less touching the better.
Ugh…
Once this is done all he has to do is change him, put him down for a nap and hope he simply never fucking wakes up again. Then Val can't say shit about him not doing his part.
*******
“This is a bad idea, Vee.”
Val squeaks while handing off a whip to the whore passing behind him and blowing out a big puff of cherry smoke. Velvette waits for him to finish up giving notes to Travis before he sighs and turns back to her, “And what makes you say that, my love?”
She purses her lips together, eyeing the empty patio on the other side of the busy studio, “Can we talk—out there.”
Val hums before he nods and gets up to follow her. The doors behind them close and Velvette sighs, taking Val's cigarette holder for a hit.
“Vox isn't out of the fucking loony bin, Val. You should've seen the way he snapped at me this morning—” she blows out a puff of smoke and hands it back to him, “This isn't normal.”
“What about Vox has ever been normal?” He huffs, “He’s probably working off steam from the shit I gave him, pinche pendejo…doesn't mean he should direct it towards you. He knows better than that.”
“Exactly, babe! Vox—the old Vox—whatever! Would never Val, I'm—” Velvette lets out a breath, “All I asked him was why he was holding his own kid like a fucking infectious disease! Something isn't clicking, something isn't right up here!” She points to her head, “I don't think you should leave Vax alone with him…Maybe we could program Kitty—”
“No!” Valentino cuts her off, crossing his lower arms tightly. “I don't want a fucking robot raising my baby when he has us, Vel! Vox wanted this just as much as I did! He wanted this with me!”
“Val…he wanted to use Vax,” she lays it out for him gently, “and he did. And when that didn't work he tried to kill him, himself and us. He dropped all of us like hot shit over his own fucking ego.”
Val turns away from her, gripping the banister as he stares out into Pentagram City. She watches the tears well up in his eyes and the drooping in his antennas.
…
“...you're wrong…” Val whispers shakily, “You didn't see him like I did—you didn't hold him like I did when he told me. He was scared…but he was happy and he wanted Vax. He even wanted him to be better than us that—fucking idiot…then the Radio Demon got in his head and twisted his thoughts, you saw it.”
“Val—”
“Please Velvette,” he begs her, “He's sick and fucked up right now, I know, but we can't have him doing nothing and wallowing in it. Vax is what he needs to realize that he isn't whatever—fucked up image he has for himself. He could be that kid's whole fucking world he just needs to see it—and we can't force him to do that.”
Velvette looks up at him before she sighs and steps closer to rest her cheek on his arm.
“I just hope you're right about this, Vee…”
Angel Dust straightens up off the wall by the patio doors with his arms over his torso. He glances out of the glass at the two of them before he ducks off back into his dressing room.