“It’s good to meet you at last!” Zauxir was so excited to finally see Oa in person. Oa was surprised to see Zauxir as well. She had so many questions; she doesn’t know which one to say first. The two had arranged a meeting at Oa's home, and here Zauxir was, in her female transformation.
“Y-you are Zauxir?” Oa gulped nervously, she knew it was her but even so, that was the first thing she said, as if she needed confirmation.
“Yes, it's me, Zauxir. And I’m so glad to see you expecting! And so late to see you in this condition, at that.”

Unsure, Oa tilted her head confused. “What do you mean?” Oa asked.
“Oh? Don’t worry about it. I’m sure you have some questions.” Zauxir smiled, hugging her swollen middle “You’re so cute with that belly! It really does suit you. You must be so happy.”
“Yeah… happy…” Oa frowned; she was definitely not excited about it. And Zauxir noticed.
“What’s wrong? Was it something I said?” Zauxir asked, worried. Why would she have had such a negative response?

Before Oa could say anything, the two's focus shifted to Wiel’s arrival. Rather than being stunned from seeing another Ozkvin, he was mostly pleased to see her, to Oa's surprise. “Oh, Wiel!” Oa said, as she changes her view back to Zauxir “Um, Zauxir! This is my husband Wiel.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Zauxir.” Wiel approached the curious Zauxir and bowed to her quickly, to show respect. “I didn’t expect to see you come this far… expecting as well.” Wiel noticed her somewhat large belly, however it was still smaller than Oa’s.

Astonished, Zauxir nervously laughed amd addressed her condition. “Yeah, that’s what happens when you are constantly breeding new life. Maintaining a hive isn’t easy, you know.” It was an unusual answer, which caused some urges in Oa’s mind. A nagging, a yearning for something, something that she couldn't identify.
“Are you saying you’re some kind of brood mother?” Oa asked, trying to process what Zauxir had said. It was very bizarre.
“Of course! You should know by now, it's the same as your pregnancy. Except mine seem like they'll be larger on average.” After saying this, there was a brief silence in the room.

“Sorry, what?” this confused Oa.
“Huh? Don’t tell me you haven’t really felt any instinct! Haven’t you felt the need of nesting at least?” Zauxir asked in a worried tone.
“I haven’t really followed my instincts since I live with Wiel. But… I do feel some urges…” Zauxir was perplexed after hearing this. Zauxir spent a few minutes trying to explain Oa about the hive and the pregnancy ‘aftershock’, where once she gave birth, she'd concieve again and again. It gave much-needed context to the urges she had started feeling earlier.

“Oh, gosh… I didn’t know…” Oa was more concerned about her pregnancy than before. To the point even that Zauxir noticed that there was something wrong with her.
“Oh dear. Are you all right?” Zauxir laid a hand on her shoulder reassuringly, and looked at her body. “You look a bit thin. Has she been eating properly?” she asked Wiel.
“Most of the time.” Wiel replied, before adding “Though, she's been eating less lately.”

“Poor thing.” Zauxir gave her a quick hug. “Ozkvin like us need more food than other species; we get frail really easily if we don't eat. You need lots of calories to maintain your body- you look malnourished. Just look at me, I'm thin- lanky, even- and I eat high calorie things regularly.” Zauxir bounced with excitement at a thought she had just gotten from this conversation. “I know! Let’s go to a fast food restaurant!” This surprised Oa, and she was unsure if she wanted to go.
“I… I’m not really that hungry.” Oa replied in a slightly distant tone. Her husband tried to console her about the situation.
“Come on, sweetie. Not even a tiny bit?” Wiel said, feeling her middle. With her husband on Zauxir's side, she had no choice but to accept. She sighed.
"Fine, I’ll go…”

Before long, her husband brought them to a restaurant nearby, before going around to check the nearby stores out. They ended up entering a fast food restaurant that served triple meat burgers with bacon. And according to Zauxir, that should kickstart her new diet. Thankfully, there was a special discount on the burgers. The meals costed very little because of this, thankfully.

The two sat near the wall of the building, the sun shining on the two as they ate. The red and white sign was visible through the window, where one could admire it's red and white design. As the two unwrapped the packaging, they witness a monster of a burger. Just as advertised, it contained triple the meat, triple the bacon, as well as triple the cheese of a normal bacon burger, which was already large. Oa’s mouth watered as she gazed hungrily at the greasy goodness of it all.

Without hesitation, Zauxir took the first bite. However, she noticed that Oa haven’t started eating yet after a few bites. “What’s the matter? Aren’t you hungry?” Zauxir asked, catching Oa off guard.
“Huh? Sorry… I don’t feel like eating…” Oa respond in a shy tone, as she place the burger back on the plate.
“Your mouth disagrees otherwise.” Zauxir added, leaning closer to Oa, noticing the drool dribbling from her mouth. “Come on girl, you need to eat. It’s not good for the brood if you don’t.”

“I have so many questions…” Oa’s mouth shivers.
“There, there.” Zauxir reassured her, patting her shoulder, trying to calm her “I’m sure you do. Just tell me what’s wrong.” Zauxir looked at her and felt a sense of fear. Oa then sighed before looking at Zauxir
“Ever since I became an Ozkvin, I always wanted to know who I am… my purpose. I thought I knew when I meet Wiel, but ever since I got pregnant I don’t know what to do. I’m afraid, Zauxir.”

“Afraid, Oa? Afraid of what?” Zauxir asked with concern.
“I’m afraid of my future, Zauxir!” Oa whimpered. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I have problems figure out what to do with life, and now I am expecting to care of my brood? I don’t even know what I am!”
“Sadly, I don’t know either.” Zauxir replied, scratching her head lightly, trying to calm her.
“You don’t know? I thought you knew the answers!” This annoyed Oa, she was hoping to have answers from the person who save her life, but it seemed that she was wrong.
“I don’t know all of them. But there is something I can do.” She then placed her hand on top of Oa’s hand, and smiled.

Oa stops her whimpering as she felt a warm feeling on her hands. “My child, I know how you feel and what you been through. All I am asking is not to be afraid.” Zauxir then placed her hand on her own womb, which had seemingly grown a bit since they had come to the restaurant. “When I was in the lab, I was all alone with no one to comfort me or to love. But then, my children came to my life, and gave me a purpose… to be their mother. To give them life and joy as they've given to me. And what joy they've given me! I would have brought Zell if I had known you were as stressed as you are.”

Then, she placed her hand on Oa’s womb, resting it there for a moment. “You may not know it, but you do have a future. You have a family. Wiel, your children, me, my children, and so many more you have yet to meet. Your future is brighter than you can ever imagine. There will always be uncertainty in your life, as there is in mine, but with that uncertainty comes the potential for lots of joy. Just let it happen and embrace what's here- I'm sure you'll feel better about it once your first brood arrives.” from these words, Oa felt a warm sensation from within her heart. A knot that she didn't even know was there untied. She began to feel better about the situation.
“I… I don’t know what to say...” she felt like she wanted to cry, to let all of that stress out, but didn't have the eyes to do so. Zauxir slid Oa's plate towards her to encourage Oa to eat. “Just eat your burger, sweetie. You need the nutrition.” Zauxir said, and went back to eating. Oa looked at her burger, and started to smile.
“Okay… I will.”

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Story and artwork by  Derrysome

Grammar correction and additional details by  daebelly

Ozkvin specie belongs to  stationaryspoon and  daebelly