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It was three years since Vox Machina vanquished the conclave, three years of semi-peace in Exandria, and the night before the big celebration of the anniversary of peace. And for the members of the core team that fought RayShawn and saved the world, this meant gathering together for a night of much more debauched frivolity, reminiscing with ale, and food, and only those closest to the team before needing to be poised and refined for the events of the following day.
The core seven wanted some time together, an event that in the past three years only happened a handful of times: Vax and Percy’s wedding; Scanlan and Kaylie’s first big show together; Keyleth’s ceremony at the end of her Aramente. Of course they had seen each other in smaller groups, but so rare was it that they all found time to gather and spend more than a few hours together. So they wanted time to be together, to enjoy each other's company, to relax and just be. The rest of their close friends and family could join in a few hours, letting the team unite and celebrate as they used to.
That is to say, all of Vox Machina were well on their way to being completely sloshed in the private dining room of WhiteStone. Well, all of Vox Machina minus one raven haired half-elf, who is mysteriously late to the hullabaloo.
“Don’t worry,” Pike says, when asked why she came down without Vex’ahlia. “She’s fine, just taking a little longer than usual to get ready. I promise, she was just behind me.”
“Hmm,” Percy hums, rubbing his chin as he watches Scanlan lose another arm wrestling match to Grog. He begins to stand, pushing back from the table. “She has been feeling under the weather the last few days, maybe I should go see if she's okay?”
“I’m sure she’s fine,” Keyleth says, leaning over on Vax as she hiccups, her eyes drooping. “Pike was just with her, and I’m sure Pike would’ve told us if something was wrong.”
“I suppose so,” Percy says, sitting back down.
“I’m sure she’s just making sure she…” another hiccup “... is looking her best to see her favourite…” hiccup “... uh… what was I saying?”
“Aaaand, that’s enough ale for you,” Vax replies, scooping the still half-full cup out of Keyleth’s hands and drinking it down himself while Keyleth gives a retort about not being too drunk yet, and being much better at holding her ale than before.
“Is Keyleth drunk already?” comes a voice from the doorway, everyone turning to see Vex standing with her arms crossed and leaning against the doorframe, the picture of casual elegance as Trinket lumbers up beside her. “I so wanted to get to see my future sister-in-law sober, at least for a short while.”
“VEX!” Keyleth calls, “Come join in!”
“Yes, sister,” Vax calls, waving her over and reaching for the last unclaimed goblet on the table. “You’re at least three drinks behind and do not think I’ll be waiting for you to catch up!”
Vex rolls her eyes as she walks over, greeting her friends and giving Keyleth and her brother a shoulder squeeze as she passes them on her way to Percy.
“Hello, darling” she murmurs, giving him a kiss as she opts to sit on his lap rather than the chair beside him. “I hope I didn’t keep you all waiting long, though clearly you didn’t bother to wait at all. No matter, I won’t be partaking in any ale tonight anyways.”
“Are you feeling alright, dearest?” Percy asks, his hand instinctively going to brush some of Vex’s hair that fell out of her braid behind her ear. “I know you’ve been down the last few days, but Pike said you’re doing fine.”
Vex looks towards the Gnome, who gives a wink back in reply. Vax’s eyes dart back and forth between his sister and the cleric, trying to figure out what is going on, as clearly something is up.
“I’m feeling fine, Percival dear. Just, I may hold off on the ale for a while,” she replies with a nonchalant shrug. She pauses a moment, waits until the room quiets and Scanlan and Grog have turned towards her, the latter flabbergasted that someone would willingly say no to alcohol.
“Probably for, oh, nine months or so, give or take.” Vex waves her hand, brushing off the comment, but smirks a little when she feels Percy freeze below her and the room go silent.
Everyone is still for another moment before they all begin to speak on top of one another.
“Someone’s been getting biz-zay” Scanlan sing-songs, miming a lewd action from across the table.
“I told you she’s fine!” Pike calls.
“Little De Rolo?” Keyleth smiles, looking up at Vax and bouncing in her seat. “Little De Rolo!”
“Sister, this is wonderful!”
“No ale? What do you mean no ale?” Grog cries, his own goblet sloshing as he slams it to the table. “Ain’t no reason for giving up ale when we got things to celebrate!”
But with all the commotion, Vex only has eyes for one person in the room.
“Are you certain, darling?” Percy asks, eyes shining with unshed tears as he uses his hand to turn Vex’s face towards him.
“Pike confirmed it just a few minutes ago, it’s why we were late,” Vex replies, a lone tear falling down her cheek as she smiles at her husband.
“And why you’ve been feeling so down in the mornings, I suppose,” Percy says with a laugh before pulling his wife in for a kiss. A kiss that he meant to be quick and chaste in front of their friends, but one that Vex doesn’t let him out of too quickly. Not until Scanlan starts whistling do they break, and even then the smiles on their faces don’t go away.
“Vex'ahlia, you make me the happiest man alive,” Percy says, squeezing her tight.
“Well, you definitely helped with this one darling,” Vex replies, leading to a groan from her brother who was walking around the table to give her a hug.
“Please, spare me the details of the how, and let me just be excited for the what,” Vax says, pulling his sister off of her husband’s lap and into his arms. “All joking aside, I am so happy for you Stubby. You are going to make a fantastic mother.”
“Awww, they’re going to be the cutest little thing!” Keyleth says, joining the twins in the hug and wrapping her arms around them both. “Do you think it’ll have dark hair like yours, or white hair like Percy?”
“My hair isn’t naturally this way, Keyleth,” Percy says. “And honestly, as long as it's healthy I don’t care how it looks.”
“Corny,” Scanlan says with a cough, laughing when Pike elbows him in the stomach.
“Let them have this moment,” Pike says, eyes shining with happiness as she watches her friends from across the table. “Don’t ruin it just because you can.”
“Alright, alright,” Scanlan sighs, before standing up onto the table and lifting his goblet in the air. “I propose a toast, in honour of these two doing what they do best! And the fact that Vex has to abstain for the next nine months.”
Everyone rolls their eyes at Scanlan, moving to lift their goblets in a toast regardless, Vex grabbing an empty one and filling it with water. Just as they are about to clink their glasses, Grog speaks up.
“I still don’t get it. What are you all so excited for? And why can’t Vex drink for nine months? I feel like I’m missing something. Vex loves ale - she wouldn’t give it up!”
“Oh, Buddies,” Pike says, moving to put her hand on Grog’s knee.
“I just…” Grog’s voice gets quiet, and he curls in on himself a little. “Everyone seems to know what is going on and I just…”
“Grog, Darling,” Vex says, her eyes softening at the innocence of her friend. “I’m not giving up ale because I want to, gosh no. I am giving it up because Percy and I will be having a baby.”
“And nine months is how long it takes for a human, or well, half-elf and human, pregnancy,” Percy adds.
The room is silent for another moment, before Grog’s face lights up.
“We getting ourselves a little adventurer? I was confused as I don’t really know much about havin’ babies, other than the making of them part.”
“Which I’m sure they vastly enjoyed,” Scanlan adds with a smirk.
“Oh, don’t worry, we greatly did. Often, especially when I was ovulating. Sometimes on two or three different occasions during the same day.” Vex replies, Percy chuckling behind her while Pike gives Vex a high five. “You definitely want to watch where you sit in Percival’s workshop.”
“Can we please just finish this toast, before I learn more things that I do not want to know?” Vax says, his hands covering his ears as he collapses in a chair and tries to hide himself in the table. Then he adds in a murmur, “Like how I am never going into Freddy’s workshop again.”
“Oh, come off it,” Vex says, playfully slapping her brother on the shoulder so he looks up at her. “Be happy! You’re going to be an uncle.”
“Hmm… I suppose I am,” Vax says, perking up a little as he begins brainstorming ways to corrupt the child against his sister.
“In truth, we were hoping all of you will be aunts and uncles to our little ones,” Percy says, his hand moving to rest over Vax’s stomach where she still sits on his lap. “We love you all so much, and even though we don’t get to spend as much time together with you as we want, we know that you will all be important people in our child’s life.”
“We’d be honoured!” Keyleth says, her eyes tearing with happiness. “Hey - who’d’ve thought three years ago that we would one day wind up here?”
“Considering how three years ago Percy was dead…” Pike says, cringing as she looks at the gunslinger, “And Scanlan was in a coma… and we still had Raishan to deal with…. Probably none of us.”
“And that is my reminder again to thank you for bringing me back,” Percy says, smiling at his Gnomish friend. “To thank all of you, for bringing me back,” He adds, looking around at each member of his team, each member of his family.
“To living, in peace and without any dragons trying to destroy the world,” Pike says, raising her glass to get the toast started up again.
“To saving the world so we can drink ale,” Grog says, raising his glass, before winking at Vex and adding “and not drink ale.”
“To family, both old and new, that make saving the world worth it,” Scanlan says.
“To keeping the world safe without having to risk our lives anymore,” Keyleth adds.
“To finding the ones you love and keeping them close,” Vax says, wrapping his free arm around Keyleth.
“To Vex, for bringing me back and continuing to show me the happiness I never thought I’d have in this life,” Percy says, eyes on his wife.
“To all of us, for somehow staying sane, alive, and happy these past three years. To my future child, who will only know peace and happiness and love thanks to all of you” Vex says, pausing before adding, “And to no more fucking dragons.”
They all clink their goblets together, laughing and smiling as they embrace the happiness of the moment, realizing that while they’ve been through a lot, the future is still filled with adventures and possibilities.
“To Vox Machina!”