Private Upsizing

[Amani Serys]

Amani drummed her fingers against the table in anticipation, slowing down enough to shove a bite of egg into her mouth, when Alicio suddenly sprang to life. She nearly choked, swallowing down her food as she jumped back over for a look at the screen, almost shoving him out of the way in the process. Her eyes scanned the page up and down a few times, confirming what she was seeing.

"…Y-Yeah!" Amani tossed up her hands, "That's great!" It had pretty much everything they needed. A park nearby. Close enough to the Temple and the Senate. And of course, the space they'd need for a new family member, with some to spare. A bit on the pricey end, but that's more or less something you accept with a downtown Galactic City high-rise.

She wrested control of the datapad from her husband for a moment, flicking through the pictures posted of the apartment, "Ooh, look at the kitchen. That's niiice," A bit more spacious than the one they had now. It was something she was hoping to get as part of the deal, but was afraid of narrowing the options too much. Indeed everything was a little bit bigger there, it seemed. Just what they needed. Amani hugged Alicio, squeezing him tightly, "It's not gonna get better for us than that. Book it."

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

After nearly being pushed from his seat, Alicio crowded next to Amani, to view the datapad's tiny screen as she did. He broke into a big smile, his excitement mirroring hers.

But he hadn't even thought to look at the pictures. So, of course, as Amani mentioned them, Alicio crowded her even more "Wait, an actual kitchen? Let me see!" Alicio smushed his face next to Amani's, to get a good view. Indeed, it was more spacious than their current kitchenette. The Count gazed at it longingly, imagining the meals they could make with all that space.

Alicio looped an arm around Amani as she hugged him, laying his cheek on her shoulder for a moment. "Consider it done." It only took a few button presses, and a visit was scheduled.

They were actually doing it. He could hardly believe it. He hugged Amani from the side again, his voice gentle, and perhaps in a little awe. "We're going to be parents."

- Amani Serys -

 

[Amani Serys]

"Wait, an actual kitchen? Let me see!"

Amani's grin widened, knowing Alicio would love having a genuine kitchen, "We've got a lot of cooking to catch up on," They both glued their faces to the screen, admiring the space. Now they had been officially won over. The visit was scheduled, and the wheels of change were in motion. A new home, and a new family.

Amani squeezed her husband back, nuzzling her face in the crook of his neck, "Let's wait a bit before we ah, tell the public, hm?" She pecked his cheek. Royal babies were prime material for media coverage. The last thing they (or their landlord) needed was an army of Alderaanian correspondents breaking down the door before even the parent's knew what was going on with their baby. Of course, being pregnant couldn't exactly be kept hidden forever, "At least until after we get our first sonogram?"

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

"We've got a lot of cooking to catch up on."

"Mmm..." The Count hummed low in his chest, imagining all the possibilities. All the space for bread. Maybe they would have the space for him to start learning pastries...

Amani and him shared a private moment, one of those little things that Alicio loved so much, and tried to commit to memory, before she turned their conversation to the wider galaxy. He discovered a hooked grin, suddenly considering the reaction of the public. "Yeah, that seems like a good idea."

"A new member of the ruling family is... a big deal for Alderaanians." Especially considering he and Amani were the only continuing branch of that family. "I shudder to think of the volume of gifts from the other noble houses. Not to mention the response from the populace. And the paparazzi."

It would be a lot. But too much adoration was probably a good problem to have.

"Who should we tell? Valery, obviously. Probably Kai, too. Maybe he can help out a little. Anyone else?"

- Amani Serys -

 

[Amani Serys]

"A new member of the ruling family is... a big deal for Alderaanians."

"Mhm."

"I shudder to think of the volume of gifts from the other noble houses. Not to mention the response from the populace. And the paparazzi."

"Mmmhmm." Amani hummed knowingly. The whole planet would likely be talking about it, on top of whatever coverage it got across the rest of the. Still, she more or less came to the same conclusion as Alicio; There were worse problems to have.

"Yeahhh, Kai should probably know," Considering he was the family bodyguard and all, it made sense to keep him in the loop, "Honestly I say we keep it bare minimum to start. Anyone else is just a… case by case basis." Lest the truth spread too quickly before they can get on top of it. Over time the number of people in the know would probably spread regardless, but this made it more manageable.

"In the meantime, we've got a lot of preparing to do. Clothes, toys, diapers, a whole room, a whole apartment." She was getting dizzy thinking about it all. At least they'd be able to start without an entire planet nipping at their heels.

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

"We'll keep the circle small," the Count agreed, leaning back into his seat, to feign relaxation. In truth, he was practically vibrating, a mix of excitement and nerves.

It was a long list of things to do to prepare for a child. Which made sense. They would be providing for an entirely new life. Which was beautiful, and terrifying, all at once. Those emotions played across his face, as well as a sudden, irreversible need to get things done. "Well... I did take the entire day off. We could go shopping." He wiggled his eyebrows. "Incognito."

Alicio and Amani couldn't be seen buying baby supplies. But a disguised human and mirialan could.

- Amani Serys -

 

[Amani Serys]

Amani had begun to pace the apartment, ultimately stopping herself by flopping back onto the couch. Her eyes shut as if to drown out the millions of thoughts competing for her attention, but her legs kicked over the armrest with still pent-up energy.

"Well... I did take the entire day off. We could go shopping... Incognito."

One blue eye peeked open, "Incognito?" A smirk grew. It sounded both productive and fun. She swung her legs over the front of the couch and stood right back up, "Don't suppose you have any fake mustaches lying around?" Amani snorted, already looking around for possible disguise pieces. She went to the bedroom and picked out an old mirialan shawl of hers, covering her head and shoulders, "Hey, you know what would really make you hard to recognize? Wearing a color other than black." Her grin widened at the thought.

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Amani seemed to forget the food entirely, having begun a pacing routine that had begun to strain the Count's neck. He was about to remind her to finish breakfast, they'd worked so hard on it, but thought better of the tease. Instead, he simply tried to stomach his own food, realizing it had gotten much more difficult, without an immediate goal set before them.

At the mention of fake mustaches, Alicio smirked, putting down his utensils. "Left them on Alderaan. Next to my glasses with the big plastic nose." Alicio snickered, standing as well, and floating into their bedroom, digging into their closet. He knew he had something discreet in their somewhere.

"Hey, you know what would really make you hard to recognize? Wearing a color other than black."

"Ha." He deadpanned over to Amani, barely keeping a smile from his face. "For your information, I was wearing purple the night I asked you to marry me. And white at our wedding. And..." Alicio fought to find another example, his mouth parting as if to continue the list, before closing it again. "And... maybe you have a point."

Finally, the Count found what he was looking for. It was a familiar outfit to Amani, his trenchcoat/hat combo from their time on Denon together. He threw the coat on, placing the hat carefully to conceal his dark hair, the brim barely shading his grey eyes.

"Eh? Mysterious, right?"

- Amani Serys -

 

[Amani Serys]

"Speaking of glasses…" Amani seemed to be reminded of something, and continued looking. She looked back at him to waggle her finger, "Special occasions don't count," Alicio himself seemed to realize how short the list was regardless, and the mirialan nodded, "Mmmhmm."

He assembled a disguise of his own quick enough, recycling the ensemble he put together from Denon, "Definitely mysterious. Just don't try too hard to look like you don't wanna be seen," Sometimes, that had a way of backfiring and drawing more attention, "Maybe we should do some new clothes shopping for ourselves while we're at it."

Amani found what she had been looking for, picking up a pair of non-prescription glasses and pushing against the bridge of her nose, "Eh? Do I look good with glasses?" She brushed her nose, then scrunched it up as she giggled. Between that, the shawl, and a casual getup, she would probably be able to deceive any passing eyes.

"Oh, hey," She looked back at her plate on the table, rediscovering her leftover food. Amani slid on over and scooped up the remaining quarter of toast and egg, shoving it into her mouth gracelessly. She smiled innocently, grabbing a piece of fruit to bring along with her, "You ready to go?"

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

"What can I say? I have a brand." He smirked towards Amani, conceding the fact that he might, just maybe, wear too much of one color.

Her response to his subtle clothes coaxed a raised eyebrow. "Of course," he said, tilting his hat down to cover his eyes, and popping a collar up to hide his chin, immediately overacting his part, like a secret agent from a spy holo. "I'm the perfect image of stealth." Her comment that they could go clothes shopping themselves earned an easy smile. "That might be fun. I think there are a few shades of black I haven't gotten yet. And... you might need maternity clothes. For later. Just in case."

Watching his wife try on some glasses, Alicio stifled a giggle. "You look lovely. But I have to ask where you even got those."

Watching Amani scarf down the rest of her food, the ever-dignified Alicio stuffed a few pieces of fruit in his cheeks, swallowing after a moment, and joining her at the door. "Ready."

Thankfully, it was only a short speeder ride to a nearby mall. hundreds of stores and booths surrounded the two of them, and a few thousand more people milled among the crowd. Amani and Alicio hadn't gathered any attention. Hopefully, it would stay that way.

"So, the Holonet said that there was a baby supply store somewhere around here." Alicio let his eyes glance around the tumultuous mall, looking for... whatever a baby store looked like.

- Amani Serys -

 

[Amani Serys]

Amani rolled her eyes teasingly, "You're a dork, is what you are." The pot called the kettle. She approached, helping fine tune his disguise for maximum effect. Lifting up his hat for a moment, she planted a kiss on his lips, before tipping the brim back down. The mention of maternity clothes was a wise one, and Amani tapped her temple, "Now you're using your noggin."

Amani peeked into the bathroom to get a good look at her own disguise in the mirror. She stopped back out for a second opinion, to which Alicio raised questions about the glasses. She pouted her lip, "A store. Don't you know? Glasses are fashion now." She wiggled the frames to accentuate her point. There was nothing all that flashy about them, but hey, some people just looked good with glasses.

Together, they shamelessly wolfed down what remained of their breakfast, then stepped out the door.

---

The nice thing about Coruscant, was that so many people from so many different backgrounds all crowded into the same space. A human and a mirialan in subtly obscurative clothing hardly stood out to the rest of the passersby, who all had their own business to worry about.

Amani peered more intently at the surroundings shops, as if that would suddenly cause the baby store to appear in front of them. Surprisingly enough, it actually did, "Oh!" She grabbed Alicio's hand, already slipping through the mass of people towards the intended destination. As they got closer, it became clearer; A simple storefront covered in pleasant pastel colors, and a sea of baby toys and supplies visible through the windows. They reached it easily enough, disguises seemingly uncompromised. "Cute," Amani remarked, taking in the sights of the store. Soothing music played throughout the store, and a variety of babies were here with their perusing parents. "Whatcha wanna look at first?"

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio smirked knowingly a moment before he felt Amani grasp his hand, stepping lightly to keep up with her as they bobbed and weaved through the crowd. He was adept at navigating a ballroom, but a supermall was an entirely different beast.

Finally, they landed at their destination. Alicio glanced around the room, opening his mouth slightly as if tasting the calm music. He nodded approvingly. "This will do nicely," he noted, repeating Amani's sentiment.

The question of what to do first puzzled the Count, as they stepped into the store together, dodging around families new and old. He examined a display of brightly-colored toy ships, pursing his lips. "Well... The essentials. Clothes first." he turned towards a different section of the store, considering the racks and racks of differently-sized onesies. "We'll just have to find some gender-neutral clothing. And... maybe something that looks good with green."

- Amani Serys -

 

[Amani Serys]

"Good call," Amani nodded, following Alicio to the clothing section. His point about finding a complementary look for green made her giggle. "Well… how about this?" She held up a white onesie, on the slightly larger side, with a cutesy stitching of a porg on the front, "White is pretty neutral. And it's a bit bigger just in case." Hopefully just not too big. "I mean, we'll need more than one, but, good start right?"

She folded it up, and laid it over her arm, "More onesies. Diapers." Lots and lots of diapers. "Maybe some cold weather clothes? Surely we'll have to bring our baby to Alderaan, and Mirial, at some point." Once they had settled into raising a baby, of course. Parenthood was going to be a whole different journey all its own. "A baby grand tour, of sorts," Amani chuckled.

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

"A great start," Alicio agreed, appraising the onesie with a smile, imagining a little baby wearing the clothing. He unhooked an item from a rack himself, a soft grey with a squad of adorably-proportioned X-wings rocketing across the front, held it up for Amani to see, and shrugged. "Could work, right?"

At Amani's suggestions, Alicio snorted a little, his lips curling into a smile. "Good thinking ahead. Would hate for Baby to catch a cold from their Grand Tour." After a quick stop to pick up a package of diapers, they migrated to the winter section, where he saw a few tiny jackets and and fluffy materials. His eyes immediately landed on a little blue hooded suit, and he made a strangled sound in the back of his throat.

"Ahem. What about that one?" he said, inclining his head towards it, but unable to grab it due to the diapers in his arms.

"If we're thinking this far ahead... do we want to get a crib? Or a hovering pram?"

- Amani Serys -

 

[Amani Serys]

"Definitely," Amani concurred, touching the fabric of the onesie Alicio held up, "Add it to the pile." They collected a few more clothes, as well as diapers, before finding the winter gear. A slide of holographic images depicting babies in cute puffy clothes was on the wall, but not even those could compete with the mental image of impinging their baby in the little outfit Alicio pointed to. Amani's eyes widened, "Awwww~" She cooed, "It's adoooorable. We gotta get it." She snatched it as if someone else were going to steal it out from under them.

"Hmm, crib, yes. I think so. A hovering pram wouldn't hurt for going out, either. Unless you think we should hold off for now?" She meandered past a pair of small baby gloves on the way, and picked them up just as quickly, before heading over to a row of baby cribs. She ran her hand across one, the frame was white, and the bedding inside was dark blue, with a starry night sky depicted on the fabric, "That's cute. What do you think?"

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Toting the box of diapers under his arm, Alicio followed dutifully behind Amani as she led them throughout the store. He nodded along emphatically as she squealed along with him at the blue suit. He was glad to know that he wasn't the only one that found it massively adorable.

"Crib for sure. Maybe we save the pram for when we actually need to go out, huh?" Alicio figured having the crib sooner would certainly help when they started preparing the baby's room.

After a quick stop to pick up gloves, Alicio cocked his head curiously at the crib. "Mmm... I like it." Then, he seemed to suddenly realize something. "Do you think the store can ship it to us?" He gestured at the box in his hands, and the baby clothes in Amani's. "Maybe if we land the new apartment."

Alicio inclined his head to another section of the store. "Toys?"

- Amani Serys -

 

[Amani Serys]

"Works for me," Amani nodded. The crib would be more important to have from the get-go. The one they settled on was simple and comfortable-looking, "Probably, right? We can always ask." They didn't exactly have the hand space to carry it off with them, "Maybe we can place a hold on it, until then."

Alicio pointed out the toy section, which they had now circled back around to. Amani nodded, and came across a selection of stuffed animals, "Chauncey could use a new friend, too," Her eyes scanned the diverse selection of animals, spotting one she thought Alicio would like, "A ha! Check it out," She picked up a stuffed thranta, waving it in front of him, "Cute, right?"

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio nodded once, his eyes already scanning the room for employees.

But the negotiations would have to wait, as the couple found their way to the toy section. Alicio smirked. "That's right, we already have Chauncey at home, too. What child wouldn't love his stupid little face? Though... I would worry for Chauncey's safety." While hesitant to admit it, he didn't want a memory from his and Amani's first date to be slobbered on and pulled apart by young hands.

Amani's discovery brought a genuinely excited smile to his face. "That's... perfect." He learned a childlike love of thrantas from a young age, too. Daydreams of bringing the whole family on a thranta-back ride flitted across his mind. Him and Amani, the kids nestled between them...

Kids...

Shaking his head to banish the vision, Alicio set down his box to examine a few brightly-colored toys, comprised of strange textures and easily-chewable plastic. "Mmm... What do you think? I was doing some research on the taxi ride over... It's beneficial for babies to have their sense of touch stimulated from a young age. So..." He jingled some plastic doodads on a keychain, each containing various large buttons, spinning mechanisms, and soft rubber.

- Amani Serys -

 

[Amani Serys]

"That's right, we already have Chauncey at home, too. What child wouldn't love his stupid little face? Though... I would worry for Chauncey's safety."

Amani smirked, "That's what this one is for," She said, presenting the Thranta. Maybe their child could get Chauncey privileges when they were older. Although given Alicio's excited reaction, perhaps he'd like the thranta all to himself as well. She chuckled at the thought. The Count pointed out another toy— a peculiar plastic contraption, specifically designed to stimulate a baby's growing mind (and teeth). "I think that'll do wonderfully," She concurred. Her eyes then wandered to a crib mobile, which had a little moon and stars hanging from it, slowly rotating, "Oh- That'd be nice for the nursery."

Amani took inventory of the items they had already gathered, and nodded, "Anything else catch your eye? Or should we stop while we still have money?" They'd have more time to get things, and could better narrow down what to shop for once they had an ultrasound done. But with today's shopping spree, they at least didn't have to do it all at once.

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio inspected the little winged cetacean again, a jokingly stoic look on his face. "Thank you for your sacrifice, little thranta. You will be missed."

The Count felt a smile pull at the corner of his mouth as Amani pulled up a multi-armed mobile, a hand scratching under his chin. "Space theme?" He considered the idea. "I like it."

"Anything else catch your eye? Or should we stop while we still have money?"

Alicio considered the questions for a moment. "Well... we have a lot of time before we really need any of this. We don't need to pick up everything. It does occur to me that we went shopping the hour we learned you were pregnant..." A sheepish laugh escaped him, glancing down at Amani with love in his eyes. "Are we that baby-crazy?"

- Amani Serys -