Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A shuddering wind travels through the leaves of the desolate woods. The only sounds being the hesitant tremble of leaves in the struggling breeze. Not even the birds dare to chirp or sing in this area, not now. A trail of blood and shifted earth reveal a struggle, and not too far away, hunched over a bloody corpse, the victor is revealed.

This one isn't like the other beasts of the woods. While his actions match that of any predator, his appearance is anything but. A large, tall man with pale yellow skin, a sunny yellow sweater vest and blue jeans indicative of a work uniform, a dark unsettling corruption covering his entire right arm and slowly creeping up from his feet and left hand, forming dangerous claws. His clothing has begun to decay, whether from simply the amount of time the man has been in the woods or from the corruption itself, exposing an unnaturally jutted spine and spiked tail.

The most damning part of this horrific fusion between man and beast is his stomach. Large, round, and heavy, much too big to simply be explained away with over-eating. No, this creature is with child. But how? How could a monster like him have possibly found love?

If he did find it at some point, it’s clear he’s all alone now.

John Doe continues to work at the meal. It took a lot of effort to even track down an animal in his fatigued nauseous state, and then being able to take it down was a whole different story. However, he was successful, and now he could satisfy his endless cravings.

Burying his face into the carcass once more, John tugs at the fleshy ribs of the animal, the crunch of flesh and bone satisfying not only his hunger, but the corruption's desire for violence as well. It's been… extremely difficult for several months. Not only with the pregnancy weighing down on him, but his captor had been disappointed with him for a while now.

At first John Doe didn't know why he was struggling in rounds before he began showing. Unnaturally fatigued, unwilling to chase down survivors for long, and then when the cravings began, the Spectre itself would have to pry John from the survivors corpses. Furthermore, he was especially irritable outside of the rounds as well. While he was already a danger to interact with before, now it almost seemed like he was itching to pick a fight with the other killers. And whenever he returned with a corpse from a successful hunt, nearly the whole thing would be devoured in seconds. The other killers would sneer or tease at him for this, but it stopped when the baby bump became noticeable, and there wasn't any doubt what had caused John Doe’s new behavior.

Since then, there was a silent vow between the others to simply not disturb him during the following months. But as his condition progressed, John Doe became more and more irritable. The Spectre was furious at John Doe’s lack of performance, but despite the other killers offering to take his place instead, the Spectre found it more entertaining to torture the poor man instead. Making the corruption pulse so painfully he was kept up at night, scaring away animals during John's hunting excursions, or even worse, giving back just a shred of his former sanity to simply revel in the horror of his condition, just to take it all away again in the next minute.

It was a miserable time for him, and he continued to deteriorate the more his belly grew. And soon, John would do the unthinkable. Once again he had returned from an unsuccessful hunt. Already his condition meant he couldn't stalk prey for as long as he’d like to, and the Spectre scaring them off on purpose wasn't helping. The starvation had quickly begun to show its consequences though, already losing an unhealthy amount of weight in the last couple months. And while he tried to hide it, the killers noticed a couple of his fangs had fallen out. So they should have seen it coming when John returned to their camp, just to immediately pounce onto the small red demon.

He was not exactly the best choice of a meal for John, the boy was barely skin and bones. But he deduced the child wouldn't put up much of a fight unlike the others. What he didn't predict however was the aloof green and black swordsman immediately jumping to defend the now sobbing and struggling demon. John had left that encounter even hungrier than before, and now sporting several bleeding cuts among his body.

Since that day, the Spectre decided that John would be punished by exile. He was no longer allowed in the killers camp, and instead was perpetually forced in rounds, and even when the survivors were sent back, John would have to stay, unable to leave without his warden's permission.

John lifted his head up from the barren carcass, he was still hungry, but it seemed like he picked the body clean. He growled and began clawing at the corpse, trying to see if there were any morsels left.

However before he could pry further into the dead animal, John Doe felt his vision blur, and a tugging in his chest. A round was starting. Normally John would be pleased, and begin to hunt the survivors instead. They were far easier than the swift footed prey after all. The only difference though, these prey could fight. And John Doe was not in any condition to fight against them. Not only was he weak and aching all over, but now he feared for his offspring's safety. His parental instincts valuing his unborn child's well being before his.

Thankfully, he had already dug out a shelter beforehand. Another result of his new instincts blooming from the pregnancy. He had spent days digging endlessly, finding straw, soft grass, and other materials for the bedding, but he had finished his makeshift nest quickly.

Heaving onto fours, John crawled towards the save haven and curled up in the very back, hoping to hide himself from the survivors. He was awfully heavy now, barely being able to stand upright, he was forced to travel on all fours like an animal. John huffed, kneading the bedding slightly before curling in on himself, and shutting his eyes.

 

John stayed like that for a while, drifting in and out of sleep. He’d open his eyes whenever he heard a sound too close to the opening of his shelter, just to close them again when he deemed it was nothing. He had done a good job hiding himself for a while now. In fact, he wouldn't be surprised if the survivors didn't even know he was pregnant. Which was good, he would hate for them to take advantage of that fact.

But now that he was on his own, with his own thoughts, John's mind began to wander. He never really processed the implications of a pregnancy in a realm like this. By the time John had realized what was happening to him, the instincts of protecting his future offspring overpowered any sort of questioning of the logistics. Such as who the other parent is.

John wasn't stupid, he knew there had to be someone else for a pregnancy to happen. His memory was extremely hazy, but based on the timing of the pregnancy, he would have conceived before he arrived here. But what was there before? Every time John tried to think of something or someone beforehand, nothing came up. It was all blank. And John was sure none of the killers were the supposed other parent either.

When John was still staying in the killer's camp, right in the middle of his pregnancy, he remembers the green and black one attempting to bond with him. He would keep his distance, which pleased John, and speak to him. The way the winged creature spoke about him made it seem as though they knew each other before, but John himself could not recall seeing the swordsman at all before arriving here.

She was always kind to him though. Before he was indifferent and barely regarded John Doe other than fighting for food, but after he discovered he was pregnant, he had changed. He would make sure the other killers didn't disturb John while asleep, he would bring morsels during his hunts for John to eat, and lend a helping hand whenever the morning sickness got especially bad. John never understood why he did such things, only recalling the creature mumbling something about it being something Jane would do.

Jane.

A name that the green and black monster brought up a lot. However John couldn't for the life of him recall what that name means to him. The creature kept bringing her up though, so she must be important somehow.

The green and black creature was very good to him, but John remembers the event that caused his banishment. The anger John had felt when the swordsman prevented him from reaching his meal. The betrayal and rage in the creature's eyes when she was forced to slash at John and chase him off away from the camp. Now John was truly alone. He would be lying if he said he didn't miss the company of the creature, even if they did betray him in the end.

“ What the FUCK-”

John perked up from his restless, slumbering, thoughts, tilting his head up to view the intruding noise. Just beyond the thicket of his well-protected nest, he could make out two figures, one a sunny-skinned, red clothed robloxian, the other a blue haired and sturdy guest. Both John Doe recognized, and both posed a danger to him and his offspring. He lifted himself up, as best as he could, arching his back and letting out a warning growl. He did not have the capacity to fight, but he hoped his display would at least scare the intruders off.

The red clothed robloxian who had let out the exclamation simply stared, mouth agape and looking between his companion and John. John Doe wasn't too worried about him, he remembered the swift boy during rounds. He was quick, but fragile, his bones and flesh coming undone quite easily beneath John's claws. Even in his gravid state, if the foolish pizza boy wished to pick a fight, he would lose quite easily. It was the other that John was worried about. Unlike his ally, the soldier's face refused to allow a hint of emotion to come through. He simply stood, brows furrowed in deep thought as the pizza boy silently begged him to respond to the situation.

This survivor was different from the rest. He held no fear when faced with John Doe or the other monsters that would hunt them down endlessly. And while the others relied on manual weapons to inflict even the slightest scratch, the soldier only needed his own fists to defend his team. He could easily put up a fight even against the strongest foe, and while John was sturdy enough to withstand the blow, he was worried his unborn child wouldn't.

John's back was aching now, his heavy stomach weighing him down and begging him to return to his laying position. But his fear outweighed his physical concern, as he continued to hiss and snarl at the two survivors.

After an achingly long few moments, the blue haired soldier spoke up, “ Elliot, how many more pizza slices do you have in that box of yours?”

Elliot stared back at his companion, dumbfounded, but still answered, “ Like about 3 quarters, why?”

“ Good,” The soldier huffed, “ Leave it for him then, and then we’ll go back to the rest.”

“ What, Guest-, WHAT? Are you insane?? What if someone gets injured!” The pizza boy replied, exasperated at the request.

The soldier remained unfazed at his allies outburst, simply raising a brow at him, “ Injured? I doubt Mr. Doe is in any condition to achieve that, as long as we don’t disturb him any longer that is.”

Elliot continued to stare at Guest in disbelief, his gaze turned back to John. Elliot took in his state, he was still pretty large, but had definitely lost weight everywhere but his stomach since Elliot had last seen him. His clothes were somehow even more unkept and ragged than before, and even from a distance he could see heavy eyebags and wrinkles littering his face.

The pizza boy let out a sigh of defeat, “ Alright alright fine, but I'm just gonna leave it outside ok?”

The soldier let out a hum of agreement before giving John one last glance, nodding curtly at him. A silent vow between parents, before walking off. Elliot gently placed his pizza box near the entrance of the nest, opening the lid to reveal its contents. The smell of cooked cheese, bread, and meat wafted into the den, John tilting his head up to sniff the air. Drool was already accumulating in his mouth, seeping past his lips and dripping onto his shirt. The pizza boy noticed, giving one last grimace before quickly turning tail and catching up with the guest.

John waited motionlessly until he could not hear the footsteps of the intruding survivors. Once he was sure they were gone, he crawled up to the entrance and pulled the box with its desirable contents into the nest with him. The smell was even more overpowering now that it was within arms length, and John's tail wagged excitedly at the prospect of an easy meal obtained without struggle. Though a part of him was confused as to why the prey was helping him. He had hunted them down countless times before, even before he knew he was carrying. He had seen them beg and cry and shout for mercy, of which John gave none. And yet they were assisting him.

It almost made John feel bad for all the terror he had caused them.

Almost.

Without another moment of hesitation, John tore away at the pizza. Barely chewing it before gulping it down, the grease smearing against his face and vest. He sniffed and licked away the remains left on the box, making sure no crumb was left behind. Then, John grabbed the remains of the box and tossed it outside, before settling back into his nest with a pleased sigh. His hunger was now satiated, and John grumbled and purred to himself in satisfaction.

It seemed his offspring was also sharing in his good fortune, as they let out a few subtle kicks against John's belly. John purred at his child's activity, curling up into a ball as more grumbles and purrs spilled from his maw. With the aching feeling of a full stomach, John let out a wide yawn and settled his head down for a peaceful slumber.

It had been a while since John had gone to sleep without feeling the pang of hunger nipping at him. It seemed that the robloxians pizza had also soothed the aches and pains of injuries long past, something that John did not care enough to question the logic of. He had managed to doze off for a good few hours now, when a sharp pain in his midsection awoke him suddenly. John craned his neck down to see what could have caused the disturbance, but saw nothing. No blood, no scratches, no bruises. He huffed and settled back down to return to sleep, only for the pain to come back, even sharper this time. John hissed in pain as he felt a strange liquid near his pants, one that was unfamiliar, foreign.

The realization hit John, the baby was coming, he was in labor. John immediately sprang up, his adrenaline pumping as instinct propelled him to remove his garments and lay on his side, all the while the contractions continued, becoming more frequent and even more painful as the minutes passed. John whined in agony, panting from the contractions as he waited for the next step in the labor process.

He’s not sure how long he was there, possibly for hours, his child was seemingly taking its time. John Doe himself was left in the pain and anguish of the intensifying contractions and aftershocks. He was drenched in sweat at this point, his eyes screwed shut to try and distract himself from anything but the birth. He was still exhausted, but his cramping stomach didn't allow him to rest for even a second.

John prayed silently to himself that the birth would go by without trouble, but it seemed that fate had other plans as he felt a soft hand caressing his cheek.

John didn't want to open his eyes, he couldn't. The only others out there would be the survivors, and they had little reason to care for him. He stayed there shaking not just in pain, but fear, waiting for the strike against his body to arrive, but it never did. Slowly, John squinted at the figure who was brave enough to enter the nest of a monster in labor.

Pale yellow skin, pink hair, a dark maroon hat and trenchcoat covering her chubby frame, her eyes as grey as stone sparkling with pain and love. So much love.

“ John.” Her voice as soothing as honey. Like a siren song dedicated just for him.

Her hand continued to caress his face as the other went to grab his less corrupted hand.

“ John, I’m here now… it's okay.”

Her hushed words put John in an almost trance-like state. She seemed so so familiar. From her face, to her actions, to her words. He needed to know who she was, but before John could open his mouth, another sharp pain rippled through his worn body, and he squeezed the woman's hand for dear life and roared in anguish.

The lady continued her comfort, glancing down towards John's legs before moving her hand to rub his back in comfort.

“ It’s alright, it’s alright, you're doing great hun, they're almost here.”

Almost there. The words encouraged John enough to settle back into position. He panted and breathed heavily, as his body prepared to push.

A scream tore through John's throat as the first push wracked his body, blood seeping out from beneath him, and his hand squeezing so tightly onto the woman's wrist he was surprised it hadn't shattered. John let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding, taking his time before attempting to push again. He almost didn't want to, the pain was so great and he was so, so afraid. He gazed up into the woman's eyes, silently begging for more encouragement to keep him going.

She gave him a sad smile and fulfilled his request, “ You’re doing so good John, you're so strong, you’re nearly there…”

John pushed his face into the lap of the pink haired lady. The kind words of the woman encouraged him to prepare for the second push.

The second was somehow worse than the first. Screams and cries spilled from John's mouth as his fangs gritted into a pained snarl. His hands leaving the woman's grasp just to claw at the nest beneath him. Tears were spilling from John's eyes now, mixing with his sweat and drenching the woman's coat, something that John mentally berated himself for doing. He could feel his child now, they were almost out of him, one more push and they would be here, he was sure of it.

Almost there. He told himself repeatedly in his head as his claws grasped at straw and dirt.

Almost there. He heaved and held in his breath to prepare for the oncoming pain.

Almost there. He glanced at the lady once more, she was hugging him now, rubbing circles into his back. It didn't do much to relieve the physical pain, but it did untold wonders when it came to his mental pain.

One more.

Almost there.

With a last strangling cry of pain, John pushed. The searing white pain flashing for a second, before John collapsed onto the ground.

There was a shuffling near his legs, before John heard a weak cry.

He tried to crane his neck to peer at the source, but he was too weak and exhausted to move.

The woman must have sensed this, as she shuffled towards John's legs to retrieve the newborn, bringing the wailing infant to John's chest.

The little child's cries died down as they snuggled into the warm bare chest of their father, connecting with him. John meanwhile stared at his new baby, taking in all of their features. She was a girl, and sported pale yellow skin, just like him, and pink hair, not unlike the lady who assisted him. It seemed the child had inherited some traits from John's corruption though, as she sported small claws, horns, and a tail. But he could care less about that now.

His heart swelled at the sight of his child, the pain nothing but a distant memory as he purred and rubbed his cheek against the new infant. The little one purred back in response, snuggling further into her papa. John pulled the little baby closer to him as he began licking her clean of any remaining fluids, instinct once again reigning in his corroded mind. Once he was finished, John turned his attention back to the woman who had assisted in his labor. In the post birth haze, the pain dulling down, John could feel a shred of clarity swelling in his mind.

His eyes widened when he realized who this was.

Jane.

His wife. His partner for all eternity. Somehow fate had brought her just in time to witness her daughter be born into the world.

Jane noticed the gaze John had given her, one that was different from before. His eyes were wide with recognition, and for the first time in a long time, Jane could see the old John peaking through.

“ John? Are you..?”

She tried to reach a hand out, but it was already too late. The recognition had dulled already, the moment was gone, and John's eyes returned to their usual dead state as he settled down with his daughter curled in his arms.

Now that the labor was over, John had no need for this stranger.

He raised his back and snarled, his instincts telling him to scare off the danger that could potentially take his daughter away from him. His tail lashed from side to side as a warning.

Jane said nothing, her face completely neutral as she quietly stood up and walked away from the nest, glancing back one more time with tears in her eyes, before disappearing for good.

John huffed and his back lowered once she was gone. He turned his attention back to his child, who was now whining in frustration and biting and pulling at his flesh. She must be hungry.

John turned over on his side to expose more of his uncovered chest, pulling his daughter closer to allow her to feed. The babe crawled up closer before latching onto John's breast and suckling greedily, tiny claws kneading at the flesh.

John sighed as he laid down and watched his daughter drink from him. Soon he would have to go out, and leave his child to hunt again, if he wants to ensure a steady milk supply. He was afraid of leaving her alone, but the relief and love John felt now, as he watched his daughter who was safe, healthy, and feeding well, washed out his anxieties.

Soon his child was finished with her meal, yawning sleepily as she snuggled up to seek John's warmth. He was tired too, and John himself gently curled around his daughter, kneading happily into the nest as the two drifted off to sleep.

 

John knew something was wrong before he even opened his eyes. As his mind settled back from a dreamless slumber, he could feel coarse, wet dirt beneath him instead of the warm straw of the nest. His eyes snapped open as he looked toward his side expectantly, only to find nothing. His child was gone.

John Doe immediately sprang onto two feet, something he hadn't done in so long, and began to limp and stumble across the seemingly endless dark expanse. He let out a few animalistic calls, praying that she was near enough to answer them, but only silence greeted him in response. John must have been limping around for a good few minutes, continuously calling out to the empty darkness, when he finally heard another voice.

Unfortunately, it wasn't the voice he wanted to hear.

“ Don’t bother with your search any longer, it isn't here.”

John turned around to meet the source of the raspy, distorted voice, meeting face to face with his torturer and captor, the Spectre.

It was a formless thing- a black shadowy silhouette with eyes that held no light or life within them, just endless black orbs. Its form resembled that of a person with an extremely tall hat and tailored suit.

“ I didn't think that thing would ever come out of you, now we can go back to-”

It didn't even have a chance to finish before John Doe roared and launched himself at the thing. The thing that had taken his baby from him. Was she alive? Dead? Left alone to be eaten by predators in the nest? All those thoughts propelled John further into wanting to take out his frustration on the figure in front of him.

Unfortunately, John fell face first into the dirt behind the formless being, phasing completely through the thing. The spectre itself let out an echoing chuckle as it watched John get up from the dirt and shake off the debris.

“ Don't even bother, you can't do a thing to me~”

John whipped around and snarled at it, trying to bite, scratch, and claw at the thing. But all his swipes just cut through without any sort of damage.

“ It seems your strength and drive have returned at least, now…”

The spectre slowly lifted up a hand and snapped the strange appendages that supposedly resembled fingers.

As soon as the sound left its fingertips, John felt a searing pain in his skull. He yelped and crumpled to the ground as the corruption covering his body pulsed. His body felt too tight, his breathing raspy as he glanced up at the shadowy figure with tears pricking at his good eye.

“ Don’t you worry little thing,” It said just as the pain spiked, causing John to yowl and collapse further into the ground. His vision slowly went dark as the figure hovered closer to him, gently caressing his cheek mockingly.

“ Soon you won’t even remember you ever had a child.”

 

–

 

1x1x1x1 sat upon a log bench near an almost dying fire. He had prepared it earlier in order to cook some fish for Coolkid, the younger red demon. The child was an annoyance when it came to food, refusing to eat anything raw.

“ Papa says raw meat can make you sick!”

It was irritating, and meant 1x1x1x1 would have to do more work than necessary, but nonetheless she did it. Now the child was asleep somewhere off in a dug up den, and 1x1x1x1 was sharpening his blades by the dwindling flame.

His work was interrupted however by a sound coming through the thick woods and shrubbery. Narrowing her eyes, 1x1x1x1 armed herself with the twin blades and hunched over into a fighting stance. Her position quickly relaxed though once she saw who came out of the thicket. His large corrupted arm and yellow vest are unmistakably recognizable.

“ John?” 1x croaked out.

The corrupted older man said nothing, his eyes looked even deader than usual as he trudged forward, presumably making his way to the cabin. 1x1x1x1 looked John up and down, he was quite different from the last time they had faced each other.

His vest and trousers were even more ragged and dirty, his skin sported several bite and scratch marks presumably from other animals, but the most worrying part for 1x was his stomach. John was no longer pregnant.

Before John could take a step further, 1x sheathed her blades and grabbed him by the shoulder, “ John? John, what happened? Where's the kid?”

John simply stood and stared at 1x, his breathing still as steady and ragged as ever.

1x1x1x1 tried her best to look concerned, “ Your baby, John, were they born? Are they okay?”

John continued to stare, cocking his head to the side not dissimilar to the way a dog would. Eyes still dull and without life. He shook 1x’s grip off and lumbered his way back to the cabin, leaving her with more questions than she had before.

Chapter Text

Jane often heard from many about how fortunate she was. And to those on the outside looking in, they were right. Jane had a wonderful husband, was close with many admins, and lived in a beautiful cottage surrounded by nature. But Jane never felt fortunate, or as if she deserved these things. All she felt was just very very lucky, because things could have gone wrong so so easily.

She remembers the day she was born, March 18th. The same day John Doe was born as well. But she and John weren't born into the world small and helpless, covered in fluids and crying their lungs out. Instead they were made, fully grown and capable almost immediately.

Jane remembers when she opened her eyes for the first time, face to face with who she would come to know as Builderman, the creator of Robloxia. He had given her a warm smile, but not the kind that held warmth for another living being, but instead bore just the satisfaction of a creator whose machine had just whirred to life.

“ Hello there,” he had greeted her, almost giddy, “ You're name is Jane Doe, your husband is John Doe, you both are here to help me out with a couple things.”

And just like that, her fate was sealed. If Jane wanted to object, or didn't even want to be married, it wouldn't have mattered. She was created to be the wife of John Doe, just as he was created to be the husband of Jane Doe. It was a good thing then, that the two got along so well. Jane loved John, even if she didn't know him at all before this day, but the way he spoke, his quiet demeanor, large soft and warm body, gave him an almost teddy bear like appearance. And with Jane, John had loved her boldness, always willing to give 110% to the tasks Builderman or the other admins would assign them to.

The two lived a simple, monotonous, life in the beginning. They came to realize their purpose was to assist Builderman and his friends in the creation of Robloxia, the two acting as testers. Why they needed two of them to complete such a task was beyond Jane, but she did not object. By day she and John were busy making sure the experiences were bug free, or rifling through papers, or testing new items to ensure their quality. By night, the two were allowed their moment of solace, given their own suite in the newly constructed Roblox HQ. The happy couple would cuddle under the sheets, watching different sappy romance movies, learning how to live as husband and wife.

When Robloxia had finally opened to the public, Jane was excited. She was excited to see the result of all of her and John's hard work, even if the admins barely regarded them more as artificial assistants. Truthfully, she was happy for everyone involved!

She remembered being invited to their launch party, more of a formality, as the celebration was being held in the HQ, their own home after all. The room was flooded with excited chatters, congratulations, and talks of future updates. No ‘thank you’s were spared for her and John's work in testing the admins work, which irked Jane. In fact, no one had even bothered to speak to them aside from Builderman. It was as if they weren't even there.

It wasn't until the winged admin Telamon had dragged Builder over to where John and Jane were standing, clearly having drunk far past his limit. Telamon was the first employee Builderman had hired in the creation of Robloxia, which meant aside from Builder himself, Telamon was the one John and Jane had known the longest. It was nice at first, the two talking about the huge success of Builderman's project, until Telamon dropped the bombshell.

“ Sooo Buildsyyy,” the winged god slurred out, throwing his arm across Builderman's shoulders, “ Now that Robloxia is basically done, I guess you have no need for these two, eh?”

Buildermans smile dropped as he gazed at the Does, “ Oh, yeah I s’pose not…”

“ Guess that means they’ll be recycled then?” Telamon hicced, taking another swig from his glass.

“ Yes, I s’pose so…”

Jane was horrified. After all this time, they were being thrown away, as if they were nothing? Sure, they were not technically people in the natural sense, but they still bled and felt just the same as any other! But, she kept her mouth shut. Deep down she knew this was the most likely outcome when their purpose was no longer required. She just had hoped that maybe things would have been different. That she would have been lucky.

Their recycling was scheduled for March 18th. How ironic that their birthday and anniversary was now going to be their death date as well. Jane continued the last days of her life miserably, she wanted to run away so badly, but she knew no matter where she went the admins would follow. And then there was John.

He was always closer with Builderman than Jane was. Jane simply considered him a creator, nothing more, but to John he was like a father. He was the only one John ever spent time with whenever he wasn't spending it with Jane. Builderman would throw birthday parties, meant for the both of them, but Jane knew they were mostly for John. John had even gotten him a fathers day present, making Builder weep like a baby when he had opened it.

When Builderman had said the two would be scheduled for recycling, John said nothing. Not a hint of emotion could be spotted on his face, just a subtle frown upon hearing his fathers words. John Doe was always loyal to a fault, and Jane knew it would take a lot to convince him to even think about betraying the admins and running off.

So she stayed. She loved John too much to run away without him. To live without John Doe would be to not live at all for her. So they lived, as best as they could. Preparing for the day the two would die.

It wasn't until the night before, the evening of March 17th when the dam had broken for both of them. Jane was already in bed, knowing she wouldn't be able to sleep well, she microwaved a heating pack for herself and John, as well as brewing some herbal tea for his nightstand. John was taking a lot longer in the bathroom than usual, but eventually he opened and closed the door with a click, and sunk into bed with Jane. Facing away from his side, Jane didn't notice that John hadn't even closed his eyes when he suddenly spoke up.

“ Jane?” he murmured.

Jane blinked her eyes open before responding, “ Yes, hun?”

“ I love you.”

Jane smiled, still as warm as ever, “ I know, I love you too.”

“ I don't want to die.”

Jane's expression dropped, as she turned over in bed to face him. John was staring right back at her, a deep frown on his face, and eyes threatening to spill over with tears. All this time, Jane thought that John had made peace with their impending doom, but he was struggling just as much as she was.

They really were made for each other.

“ I-,” John swallowed, a nervous habit of his, “ There's still so many things I want to do with you! I want to take you on a date, a real one! I want to do that thing couples do after they get married- where they travel somewhere nice!”

“ A honeymoon?” Jane supplied.

John's gaze softened, “ Yes! Yes, that! I wanna do that with you, and so much more.”

Jane gave him a broken smile, her hand reaching out to cup John's cheek, “ I want to do it all with you too…”

They stayed like that for a while, hushed whispers about all the things they wished to experience, alone or with the other, knowing that when tomorrow came none of it would matter. They laughed, they cried, eventually falling asleep embraced in each other's arms.

They never did die on March 18th though. The morning of Builderman had called them, excitement laced in his voice. He had told them that Robloxia was becoming a lot bigger than anticipated, that they needed to hire a lot more workers than expected, offering both John and Jane senior positions.

Of course, they were both ecstatic at the news, even if a little annoyed at the last minute change. Builderman had offered John a coding position, while Jane was offered a moderation one. It was quite different from what they used to do, simply being glorified assistants for the admins, but it was a welcome change. Builderman himself even constructed a secluded cottage in the woods for them, believing it was high time the Does received their own home outside of Roblox HQ.

The night they moved in, John had popped open a fancy bottle he had bought with his sign on bonus, fulfilling his promise to Jane to finally have a proper date. He had made a simple pasta with tomato sauce and a side of sweet potato. Simple and warm, just like John.

Later on they explored the perimeter of their new property, discussing all the things they could add to it, like a garden, a chicken coop, a bee nest. The world was their oyster now, and John and Jane did not want to pass up this opportunity of theirs to live life to their fullest.

John loved his new job as a coder, picking up on the craft quite quickly and efficiently. Jane, not so much. While she was grateful for the position, she felt it wasn't as fulfilling for her. She had spent her whole existence knowing nothing but admins, coding, and the headquarters, and she wanted to see what more the world had to offer.

She ended up quitting her position at Roblox HQ, instead opting to spend her days volunteering at multiple organizations in Robloxia. Finally, Jane felt she had found where she belonged, and she thrived in her work in helping the elderly, the poor, and the ownerless animals. Life seemed to be looking up for the Does, but of course it didn't last long.

When the rumors first started, they were small, and easily dismissable. For a while, both Jane and John find them quite amusing. Tales of two unnatural robloxians named John and Jane Doe, created by Builderman and went rogue after learning they were to be executed, now the two would haunt all of Robloxia and hack poor defenseless robloxians on March 18th of every year. At first, they found it quite funny, until it began to affect their day to day.

John would get cans thrown at him whenever he simply went grocery shopping, Jane would often see children run from her when she was simply walking down the street, and more than once the two were denied service in a restaurant or other eatery. Builderman then had to put out multiple announcements that the rumors were nothing but hoaxes, and should not be taken seriously. The announcements ended up doing the trick, and Jane and John found themselves able to breathe and be at peace once more.

John however was very different. The situation seemed to affect him much deeper than Jane knew, and whenever she tried to talk to her husband about it, he would simply brush her off, saying he was just thinking about some things. John and Jane Doe were very much not normal robloxians, and Jane wouldn't be surprised if this incident had made John even more self conscious about that fact. He would often bring up just how lonely it was for them, having practically no one else like them, not even any family outside of the admins. Jane herself understood his plight, and even felt it a bit herself, but nothing could have prepared her for the solution John would come up with.

It was a normal day like any other, Jane was sipping on her morning coffee, reading the paper, and John himself was preparing a breakfast of pancakes and sausage. While John was usually the one who cooked for the two of them, he never made something so elaborate unless he wanted something out of Jane. So she decided to humor him, pretending she didn't know what he was doing, until he had just put away the last dish to be washed, and went to join his wife at the table.

The next words out of his mouth would change everything.

“ Let's have a baby.”

At first, Jane wasn't sure if he heard him correctly, blinking a few times before asking him to repeat himself.

“ Let's have a baby together, Jane.”

Jane was left dumbfounded, “ A baby? Are you sure John, what- what even spurred this?”

John took a bite out of his pancake before answering, “ I think it would be perfect! We both have stable careers, we both own our home, we have plenty of space for a little one, it would be perfect!”

John's logic made perfect sense, but Jane was still worried, if their existence alone could cause such destructive rumors, then she couldn't imagine a child having to navigate through that as well.

“ But John- are you sure WE are ready for a kid? I mean, we’ve barely even existed in this world for that long, we were never even children ourselves! What if we mess up?”

“ We can buy baby books! Plus, you volunteer over at the orphanage a lot, I was actually thinking of joining you on a couple trips there to learn a thing or two,” John responded with a grin.

Jane would end up closing her eyes in deep thought, considering John's words very carefully. In all honesty, she wanted a child too, but she was so worried about its possible future, she almost didn't want to consider it. Then she opened them and stared into John's eyes. His deep dark grey eyes full of hope, wide and tempting Jane to say yes. Jane knew then what her answer was. No matter how much she feared the future, she knew as long as John was there, it wouldn't matter.

“ Yes,” She answered, and she swore John's grin somehow got even bigger, “ I want a kid too.”

The next few months were spent tirelessly preparing and training for raising a kid. John visited the orphanage Jane volunteered at, and while the children were a bit scared by his large appearance, they warmed up to him pretty quickly. Jane glowed while watching John give piggyback rides to the kids, her heart soaring at the notion that soon, it would be their kid receiving those too. They would spend hours at the library reading through books about babies, children, everything! They wanted to be absolutely prepared for every possible issue that could present themself. And when John first became pregnant, the two were practically jumping for joy.

Their happiness did not last long though, as in the second month, John would miscarry. He had been complaining about some aches and pains he had felt, but brushed them off. It wasn't until he went to the bathroom in the evening and came out did he tell Jane the news. Jane, understandably, was distraught, immediately going to comfort her husband. However he didn't seem too phased by the event, opting to comfort and soothe Jane instead.

“ It’s alright dear,” He whispered to her, “ The books said things like this could happen, we’ll just try again next time, okay?”

Even when the worst happened to him, John still made sure that Jane was taken care of. She smiled up at him in response, “ Of course, next time for sure.”

And that's what they told each other by the second miscarriage. Then the third. Then the fourth. John and Jane's resolve became weaker, and each time Jane would urge her husband to take a break, that they should look into other options, he would refuse. He still kept up his sunny and hopeful demeanor around Jane, but she knew better. She would catch him right before bed, when he thought she was asleep, crying to himself, clutching his stomach and mumbling about how much of a failure he was.

The first time, Jane hoped John would bring it up to her the next day. The second time she revealed herself to him, and they would sit down on the floor of the bathroom, mourning their children who never came to term.

As time went on, the both of them decided to take a break from their baby fever. They never stopped trying completely per say, but their expectations were dampened for sure. So when John began to feel ill and nauseous continuously, the two didn't even pay it a second mind. Apathetic was the word that best described it, Jane still offered her assistance, but the two never even bothered going to a doctor or confirming the pregnancy in any way.

She should have. God how she wished she should have.

Soon enough, John became even more secretive. Often staying late at work with little reason. Hiding himself in the bedroom or bathroom for hours. Taking a lot more pain relief medication than before. Jane choked it up to the possible pregnancy, offering herself a shoulder to cry on for John whenever he would need it. However, he was uncharacteristically avoidant of Jane, dodging her attempts for intimacy and touch. Even the admins were seemingly nervous around her, as whenever she tried to inquire about John's whereabouts, they would dance around the subject, or urge her it was nothing to worry about.

Cheating was the first thing her friends had brought up when she would vent out her grievances. She knew John would never cheat though. They had been through too much together, and Jane is sure she never fell short when it came to providing for their relationship. But as time went on, and John's behavior persisted, Jane began to grow more and more worried about the posibility. That specific worry was quickly extinguished when the memory loss began though.

John would sometimes walk into a room and not remember why he walked into it in the first place. He would get lost on the way home, often needing an admin to guide him back. Sometimes he would go outside and just wander in the woods absentmindedly, just to get his bearings back and return to his and Jane's cottage. Jane was extremely concerned for her husband's well being, but he kept refusing any trips to the doctors or psychiatrist, insisting he was fine. Jane would get her answer however, and much sooner than she expected.

It was early in the morning, around 6 am, and Jane had woken up. Once again, her husband was not in bed, another new behavior that was unlike him. Usually John would sleep in, needing Jane to wake him up. But now he had left, leaving his side cold and untouched, the only clue of his whereabouts being the light spilling in from the cracks of their shared bathroom. Before all this, John never closed the bathroom door except for showers. Jane sat up from bed and stretched, needing to use the bathroom herself. In her drowsy state, she didn't even process John's worried ‘don't come in!’ before she swung the door open.

There John stood, hunched over on the tile floor, shirtless and clutching his right arm. His right arm that now possessed a black, dripping, and spreading infection up to his elbow. His eyes were red and puffy with dark bags, indicating he had not slept the entire night.

“ I TOLD you not to come in!” He initially snarled, before catching himself and sobbing out an apology.

Jane did not need to be told twice before she rushed to her husband's aid, embracing him and soothing him. Through tears and sobs, John explained as best as he could the reason for his sudden change in behavior. He had noticed the corruption one day at work, and decided to let the admins know first. They were the ones who advised him not to tell Jane, something that made her anger bubble, but she stayed quiet in order to listen to John. Afterwards, John would stay behind at work in order to get treated by the admins, but nothing seemed to be working. Then, one of the older admins, Shedletsky, disappeared, and the others switched their priority.

The following days, Jane vowed to herself to not leave John's side. She knew now that doctors and admins would provide no help, so Jane tried as best as she could to understand and hopefully cure John's condition. She had him on bedrest, cooked meals for him to the best of her ability, and would embrace him at night while whispering sweet nothings and soothing words. Despite her efforts though, the corruption continued to spread. John had told her to call one of the moderators, that he needed to be contained before something terrible happened, but Jane refused. She couldn't. The possibility of only seeing John behind bars already hurt her so badly, but the possibility of him being terminated? That was out of the question.

She tried so hard. She really did. But maybe Jane just didn't try hard enough.

One night she would wake up once again to an empty bed, assuming that John had gone to use the bathroom. However, her gaze landed on the small piece of paper that sat atop John's pillow. Curious, Jane stood up and gave it a read. She hadn't even made it past the first sentence before she sprang out of bed, and ran to their front door. Wide open, the wind blowing in and creating a chill in what was supposed to be a warm and safe home. Jane ran outside as fast as her legs could carry, ignoring the fact she was still barefoot. She kept running until she made it in the woods surrounding their home, the night sky causing them to loom over her, almost tauntingly. She cried out John's name into the darkness until her voice became hoarse. And finally, she collapsed against a tree stump, and cried her eyes out until she couldn't anymore.

John was gone, he left because he believed he would end up hurting her, and wanted Jane to be safe. But how could he not have known his absence would end up hurting her even more?

Her life had lost all its meaning, all its color. By day she would search for John endlessly, and by night she would rot in what was supposed to be their shared home alone. She barely even flinched when the rumors of her and John hacking roblox on March 18th resurfaced, now with a new addition of there being a large beast in the woods, covered in a black parasite and leaking ones and zeroes. She didn't even bother looking into the grainy and blurry photos and what appeared to be John shown on the news. Another hoax or kid in cosplay, she’d tell herself.

 

The rumors could not be painfully more true.

Now here she was, in a game of life and death, forced to die and respawn over and over. Faced against masked killers and emaciated demons.

And of course, John.

Now more of an animal than man, the corruption had nearly overtaken half his body. Now he possessed sharp claws and fangs, taloned feet, and a spiked tail. The sunny cuddly man she once knew, who would never hurt a fly, was gone. In its place was a lobotomized shell acting on instinct.

She tried everything to get him to see reason, to see if he could break through, but it was all for nought. All she could do was wait, along with her other companions in this purgatory. No one was quite sure what exactly they were waiting for, not even Jane. But eventually, the universe did give her a sign.

She had been cleaning up the dishes after supper, when the pizza boy Elliot and Guest soldier came running in. Immediately Elliot's mouth ran a mile a minute about what they had found, something Jane didn't pay any mind to until her ears perked up at the mention of John. Guest tried to shush the younger man up, especially when he caught Jane's shocked stare, but he continued. He continued on about how they had found John in an animal nest, looking worn and tired, and most importantly, pregnant.

Jane almost dropped the glass she was wiping.

She kept her composure, trying her best to remain indifferent at this new information, but inside she was panicking. John was out there, alone and pregnant, probably in pain, and no one to assist him when labor inevitably arrives. Jane's mind that night was filled with images of John, post birth and bleeding out to death, images of her child possibly getting stuck, causing both of them to perish. This fueled her decision to go and meet him.

Guest 1337 had tried to stop her at first, telling her that John was especially vulnerable and savage right now, he wouldn't see her as his wife, but rather a threat to the baby. She knew he was right, but still said she needed to be there for him, and eventually Guest let her go.

Fate continued to be kind to her, it led her right to where John was, it brought her just in time for the labor, it allowed her to hold her newborn in her arms for the first time, and allowed both John and the baby to live. Her luck did not last though, just as Guest predicted, once John had come down from the pain and delirium, he immediately forced Jane to leave.

She hoped that maybe she could get through to him.

She hoped.

She wasn't sure what to feel now. She couldn't even see her baby if she wanted to, but Jane knew John would take care of him, he wouldn't let anything hurt her. Jane looked up at the starless sky, seeing the moon shine down, providing the only light for miles. She glanced back to the woods where John and her new baby were. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to go back one more time? She so desperately wanted to see the little one again. She had barely gotten to before, but she could still visualize her tiny horns and stubby tail.

Making up her mind, Jane went back. One more visit, and then she would go back to the other survivors. If she was lucky, John would be asleep, so she could enter and leave without trouble. As she got closer and closer to the nest though, she didn't hear any telltale snores or heavy breathing to indicate John's presence. Before she had first ran through here, she was able to hear Johns breathing well away from the nest.

It was funny, John would always insist that he didn't snore, even when Jane would record him asleep and, of course, snoring. Sometimes it would drive her crazy and keep her up at night. But now she would give anything to be kept up at night by that heavy breathing, by those rumbling snores.

When she finally made it to the nest, there was still no noise to indicate John's presence, but that didn't mean it was quiet. Faintly, Jane could hear soft crying and whimpering from within the den. Carefully she stepped in and was met with two entities within. One was her daughter, just as beautiful as she was hours before, but the other wasn't. There was a small fuzzy fox, sniffing curiously and nipping at the child. The newborn couldn't do anything against the unwanted intruder, her eyes still screwed shut as she cried and attempted to drag herself away from the hunter with her small arms.

Any other day Jane would have found the fox to be adorable, but not today.

Immediately she rushed into the nest, “ GO! Get OUTTA HERE!,” she exclaimed, kicking dirt and leaves at the animal. It hissed, but quickly scurried out of the nest, the newborn immediately calming down once the creature was gone. Jane knelt down near her baby, she was still so small, trembling like a leaf.

“ It’s okay it’s okay, mamas here little one,” she cooed as she gathered the infant into her arms.

Her whimpers and tears began to fade out, as she snuggled into the warm arms of Jane, who let out a sigh of relief that her baby was safe. As she stepped out of the nest into the open air of the forest, Jane couldn't help but feel confused. Why was John not in the nest? She knew he realistically would go out during rounds and to get food, but would he really leave his baby all alone in the nest? And so soon after being born?

A strange movement caught Jane's eye as she snapped her head upward, staring up at the moon, and she swore for a second there had been a reddish black glaring eye in its place instead.

Jane frowned, of course, the Spectre must have had something to do with it. Of course it possibly took John away from his child, and was probably hoping the infant would die to the elements or a predator. It must not have foreseen Jane returning to the nest.

Mumbling a curse under her breath, Jane's focus shifted back to her daughter. Her only choice was to bring the baby back to the cabin. She could already imagine the protests and hesitation from the others. She knew it was already difficult to survive, but to raise a baby as well would be punishing. They would understand with time though, they needed to. She can't abandon her baby girl that she and John worked so hard to bring into this world.

Her little face was now tilted upwards to meet Janes, and slowly she blinked her eyes open for the first time. Grey orbs met Janes, the same grey that John had before he corrupted, and the same grey that Jane possessed as well. Jane felt herself tear up as she brought a finger to the baby's face, who responded by gripping it with her little clawed fingers.

“ It’s ok little one, i’ll take care of you for now,” She whispered to the infant, who gurgled happily as Jane leaned down to plant a kiss on her forehead.

“ You're safe now, my little Joan.”

Chapter Text

Taking care of a newborn is already a massive undertaking, but taking care of a newborn who seemed to be more animal than human, who had early claws and fangs coming in and a sour attitude was definitely more than Jane expected.

When she first brought Joan home the reaction was pretty much as expected. Most of the survivors seemed hesitant, mumbling about food shortage and medical supplies. And while Jane didn't reveal who the father was, it was pretty easy to spot by Joan's little horns and spikes. Jane wasn't exactly the most respected of the survivors. She did her part the best she could to help them during rounds, but she could tell the rumor of her and her husband being hackers weighed heavy in their minds, even if she tried her best to despell them as nonsense. But how could they believe her? After all, it was her husband who was murdering them during rounds, using the code he was infected with to tear their own apart. She was sure if Builderman weren't here, she would be treated almost as badly as the ex-hacker 007n7.

Jane clutched the infant closer to her chest, hoping that she could at least muffle the distrustful whispers and sneers from the others from the baby's ears. They don't know what this baby meant to her and John, all the suffering they had gone through just to bring her into the world. They didn't understand that there wouldn't be another chance after this. Even if John somehow got his memories back and they escaped, his body and mind would still be too damaged to carry another child. The survivors' harsh glares and mutterings of hesitation continued as Jane hung her head low, as she couldn't bear to meet their eyes for any longer. For a second, Jane was afraid that the others would agree on not allowing the infant in the survivors cabin. She almost wanted to threaten to leave the camp if that was their unanimous decision, though deep down she knew no one would stop her, or even worse they would be more pleased with her absence.

However, Jane's gaze snapped upwards when she heard Guest 1337 clear his throat to speak.

While Shedletsky and Builderman often considered themselves the leader of the group, it was an unspoken truth of who they really respected as the beacon of the survivors. Guest 1337 was kind, gave his all in protecting the group, had no biases against anyone, not even the ex-hacker 007n7. He held a familiarity and warmth that the admins just couldn't replicate. Due to that, Jane was eternally thankful when Guest stood up, saying that they shouldn't be throwing a helpless child out in the woods. If they began to pick and choose who was a liability and who wasn't, where would it stop? Would they also abandon one of their survivors if they became handicapped and needed extra care or food?

Jane watched as the rest of the survivors' stern expressions softened at Guests' words. He always was well spoken and always stood up for others. His argument worked, as the survivors agreed to allow Jane's daughter to stay. Guests 1337 had found Jane after the meeting, along with Elliot and 007n7, the three offering their assistance with raising the little infant. Jane almost cried at the support she was given to help her little Joan, and for the first time since John had left, she didn't feel as alone as before.

Joan was relatively well behaved for the first few days. Drifting in and out of sleep, the poor child was exhausted from their traumatic birth and first night alive in the world. While most parents would savor these fleeting moments of peace, Jane was anything but calm. She spent the entire first day worrying about where the baby would sleep, how to baby proof her solitary cabin (A cabin that Guest 1337 had graciously offered to her to allow her and the baby some privacy), coming up with babysitting schedules for when she was forced into rounds, and much much more.

Guest and Builderman had tried to calm her down a few times, telling her to relax and spend time with her daughter, to step back and allow them to do all the preparation and scheduling, but she refused. This was her child, she was already burdening the survivors with an infant in this hell, so it was up to her to alleviate as much responsibility as she could.

Despite Builders' offers to construct a makeshift crib, Jane opted to use a pulled out dresser drawer instead, lining it with whatever loose sheets and pillows she could find. She had placed it near the foot of the bed, it had taken nearly three days of self taught construction to make it balanced and splinter free enough for the baby, but finally she laid Joan down into the bare sheet, and collapsed into bed herself.

 

It couldn't have been more than 2 hours when Jane heard the sounds of disgruntled whimpering. It was quiet, easy to ignore, but Jane knew soon enough it would lead to crying, so might as well get it over with.

Jane groaned as she rolled out of bed and trudged over to Joan's makeshift bed. Jane flicked on a dim light, the infant's small figure now more clear. She was shifting and twitching in the sheets, her eyes squinted shut as she made small grunts of clear dissatisfaction.

“ It’s okay baby, I'm here,” Jane cooed, picking Joan up in her arms and rocking her, hoping to get her to sleep peacefully soon.

Joan snorted and buried her face into her mothers arms, breathing beginning to even out as her expression relaxed back into a peaceful slumber.

Jane sighed in relief and placed her daughter back into bed, before dimming the lights and sinking back into her own. However, she barely closed her eyes for 10 or so minutes before the sounds of discontent erupted from the foot of the bed once more, this time louder than the prior ones.

Jane groaned as she slipped away from the alluring sheets to pick up and soothe her daughter once more, and just like before, as soon as Joan was in her mothers arms, she began to immediately calm down. Jane decided to stay like that for a good half hour, waiting to see if Joan would fuss again. When she continued to sleep peacefully, Jane believed she had fully calmed down now, and placed her once more into the bed.

This time, Jane didn't even have the chance to get under the covers before Joan's fussing cries emitted in the room once more.

She ended up getting no sleep that night, despite how much she desperately craved it. Every time she tried to get Joan out of her arms and into bed, she would immediately begin to fuss. Jane tried everything, tried rocking her, tried singing to her, hell she even let Joan sleep in her bed with Jane resting on the floor to see if it would help, but the attempt was fruitless. It seemed Joan was insistent on staying in her mothers arms for sleep, but Jane couldn't figure out why.

She hadn't even noticed it was morning until she heard a knock at the door, pulling her from her daze.

“ Come in,” she groggily answered.

The door creaked open, the blue button up shirt and burger hat making it clear her visitor was 007n7. In his hands was a plate of sizzled mushrooms and an omelet. His expression completely contrasted Jane's exhausted look, his eyes for once bright with joy as his eyes landed on the sleeping figure of Joan.

“ Hey! You missed breakfast this morning, so I thought I’d come in to check up on you,” He answered, his brow furrowing when he took in Jane's ragged appearance, “ You okay?”

“ No,” Jane answered bluntly, swapping out Joan with 007n7 for the plate of food.

She quickly scarfed the meal down, watching 007n7 rock Joan gently and cooing at the infant. Jane couldn't help but feel the resentment growing, she didn't want to resent her daughter for Christ's sake, but she was just so exhausted she didn't care what she thought right now.

007n7s gaze grew concerned when he noticed Jane's dark expression, “ What’s wrong?”

“ Joan wouldn't let me get a wink of sleep last night,” Jane sighed, “ Everytime I tried to put her to bed she’d fuss until I came over and held her.”

The ex hacker raised a brow before stepping toward Joan's sleeping spot, “ Is this her bed?”

Jane nodded, “ I used an old shelf drawer from one of the big dressers, I’m sure it's big enough for her to sleep comfortably in.”

“ Well, good news for you, I know why Joan doesn't like sleeping in it,” He chuckled out,
“ There’s not enough pillows and blankets in there!”

Jane stared at 007n7, confused, “ What do you mean not enough?”

“ You need more than that for a baby like yours, enough to circle her with, yknow?”

Jane immediately perked upright, “ What- but isn't that dangerous? I mean all the baby books John and I read said that you shouldn't surround a baby with lots of pillows and sheets, they could suffocate!”

007n7 couldn't help the small laugh that escaped his lips, “ For normal babies that might be true, but for a baby like yours they’ll want lots of furnishings to resemble a makeshift nest.”

He offered Joan back to Jane, who took her daughter in her arms, concern still etched on her face.

007n7 took notice of that, “ Trust me, I went through the same thing with Coolkid, the little demon would absolutely refuse to sleep anywhere where he couldn't bury himself with pillows and blankets, drove me crazy with worry, but trust me, I’m sure this is why Joan was fussing.”

Jane sat in thought, her mind drifting back to the shelter she had found John and Joan in. It was shaped like a nest too, surrounded with as many soft materials as John could find. For a normal baby, definitely dangerous, but maybe this is what Joan needed.

“ Okay, i’ll try, thank you 007n7,” Jane replied, receiving a thumbs up from the ex hacker as he took Jane's empty plate and exited the cabin.

That night, she took 007n7’s advice, and found multiple cushions and blankets to fill Joan's bed. Finally she placed the infant into the nest, crouching beside it to wait for Joan to fuss again. However, the little baby instead rustled in the new furnishings, burying herself into the softness provided and kneading the pillows with her tiny claws. She let out a wide yawn before slipping into a peaceful slumber.

Jane was sure this was too good to be true, and stayed awake near the makeshift crib to wait for the inevitable noises of discomfort to begin.

When 007n7 visited the cabin the next morning, he found Jane snoring softly, collapsed on the floor, and in the bed, Joan was still sleeping peacefully away, not a hint of discomfort etched on her face.

—

Food was already a huge worry for the survivors in the Forsaken realm.

Their only guaranteed supply was Elliot's slices of pizza or Shedletsky’s chicken, but their stock was limited, only being refreshed after a successful round.

Due to such circumstances, it was up to the survivors to put in their fair share of the work when it came to finding food in the area surrounding their cabin. These excursions usually turned up with wild foraged fruits and vegetables, wild game, or caught fish. If they were especially lucky, they'd stumble across an abandoned shack that held goods that were difficult to find in the wild, such as spices, flour, salts, and most importantly, milk.

Dairy was already an exceptionally rare source to find, any foraged cheese or milk typically being the most guarded and rationed out, and now with a baby living with them who couldn't eat solid food, it was even more of a coveted supply.

The first time Jane made her makeshift formula, she hadn't even bothered to ask. Surely an infant baby would be given priority of the milk when she couldn't consume anything else, right? So she didn't think twice when she used the last bit of milk, mixing it up with some animal fat and vegetable oils, before heating it up and feeding it to Joan with a bottle graciously donated by 007n7.

She was sure she hadn't done anything wrong, but couldn't help but notice the wary and longing gazes glanced her way when the survivors saw the last of their milk being drunk by the newest addition to the cabin. Even if they didn't say anything directly to her, their brief expressions were enough to make Jane feel sick and small.

Since that day, Jane vowed to not use any milk from the communal fridge, deciding it would be better for her to go on her own solo trips to find the supply she needed for her baby.

Unfortunately, that was easier said than done. With finding a babysitter to watch over Joan, still needing to participate in rounds herself, and making sure Joan went to bed safe and sound, she didn't have a lot of free time to go solo exploring. And as the days stretched on, it was only inevitable that Joan would end up getting hungry very soon.

She was a tough girl, thankfully, not even making a fuss her first two days without a proper meal, but by the third she had begun whimpering without cause, and then by the fourth she stopped sleeping through the night completely.

It broke Jane's heart hearing her little girl wail and cry out of hunger, keeping not only Jane awake at night but her neighboring cabinmates as well. As if she didn't already feel guilty enough using the last of their milk, now she had to avert her gaze from the eyebags and tired expressions of the others.

Right before Jane would leave to try her hand at finding more milk however, she’d end up receiving a supply from an unexpected source.

She had just wrapped Joan up in a small sheet. It was rough, scratchy, and Joan hated the texture, but her mother had to make do with the limited resources they had. 007n7 had offered to sew a softer blanket for her, but it would be a while until it was finished.

Walking towards the door of her cabin, Jane prepared herself to enter the communal lodge and ask for someone to watch over Joan so she could go out searching again. If she was lucky, Guest or 007n7 would be out of a round, and the two fathers were always willing to watch over the little one.

She nearly dropped Joan out of shock when her door was thrown open, standing in the archway being none other than the admin Shedletsky.

“ OH- crap sorry! I probably should have knocked first-”

Jane let out a huff as she balanced herself, “ You’re alright, you just scared me is all, but watch your language around Joan!”

Shedletsky scoffed at the new mothers demand, “ C’mon Mrs. Doe, she’s not gonna remember any of this, she’s barely conscious anyway!”

Just to make a point of it, Shedletsky leaned forward and waved a hand in front of Joan's face,
“ Helloooooooo, anyone in there? Earth to little lizard baby.”

Joan simply stared back with wide eyes, sucking on her own fist.

Shedletsky straightened back up with an amused grin, “ See, what’d I tell ya? Nobody's home there.”

Jane glared daggers at the chicken admin, clearly unamused by his immature behavior. “ Still,” she huffed out, “ Better to wean yourself off the habit earlier rather than later.”

Shedletsky hummed back an agreement, not wanting to irritate the new mother any longer,
“ Anyyywayyy, I came here because the others- well mostly guest, and I have a surprise for you!”

Jane raised a brow at the admin, glancing at his right arm which had remained behind his back since he had opened the door, “ What is it?”

Shedletsky's grin grew even wider as he revealed the contents hidden behind him, “ Ta daaaaa!” he exclaimed, emphasizing the moment with jazz hands.

Clutched in his right fist was a small crate with half a dozen glass bottles of milk, eyes widening at the miraculous sight Jane thought she would have wept right then and there.

“ But- but how-?” Jane sputtered.

Shedletsky chuckled, “ Well that’d ruin the magic now, wouldn't it?” He lightly pushed the crate against Jane's free arm, urging her to take it already.

Jane frowned as she graciously accepted the crate in her hand, “ Thank you, I… don't know what to say.”

Shedletsky’s smile faltered once he noticed Jane's wary expression. He thought for sure Jane would be delighted to receive more nourishment for her kid, but she just looked… guilty for some reason.

He cocked his head to the side as his brows furrowed, “ Is something wrong with the milk?”

Jane shook her head quickly, “ No no, it looks perfect, it's just, I’m sure the rest of you would appreciate some of this more…”

Shedletsky chuckled, “ I dunno if you noticed, but we’re all big boys who can eat solid food, your baby will appreciate this a loooot more than the rest of us.”

Jane still looked nervous, “ But I’m sure you folks put in a lot of hard work gathering this- I mean next time I can help out too.”

“ Jane listen,” Shedletsky began with a sigh, “ You don’t have to do everything on your own yaknow? I mean you already have to deal with the rounds and everything, taking care of a baby on top of that- well I can’t even begin to imagine it, I dunno if I could handle it!”

Shedletsky’s gaze softened, “ But I know how important she is to you- and well even if the rest of us don’t fully get it or understand, you know we’re all still willing to help you out, right? You don’t have to feel like you’re alone out here.”

Jane stared at the admin, unsure of what to say. She never took Shedletsky as one to speak so eloquently, but she supposed stranger things could happen.

She returned Shedletsky’s gaze with a relieved smile, “ Thank you Mr. Shedletsky, for the uh- milk and your kind words.”

Shedletsky reached out to pat Jane's shoulder, “ Of course kid, I’m sure John would be proud of you.”

And just like that, the dam broke. If Jane thought she was about to cry before receiving such a thoughtful gift, she was full on bawling now. She craned her neck downward to try and muffle the sobs into Joan's blanket, who responded with little grunt of discontent at the new sensation.

Meanwhile, Shedelsky wasn't sure how to react at the display in front of him. This wasn't at all the reaction he was expecting, and he stood around awkwardly for a few moments before offering a shaky hand on Jane's shoulder.

“ Hey uh,” Shedletsky swallowed nervously, “ If you need any more help, like with preparing the formula, I can uh lend a hand.”

Jane sniffled as she lifted her head to meet the admins gaze, his mouth for one clamped shut in a tight frown.

She gently placed the crate of milk to the ground as she wiped her eyes with her sleeve, “ Yeah… yeah I’d like that.”

 

“ Seriously?? You put vegetable oil in this??” Shedletsky exclaimed as he mixed together the components in a heated pot.

Jane stood in the corner of the raggedy kitchen, feeding her daughter while watching Shedletsky prepare the formula, “ Yes, it’s one of the key components in baby formula.”

Shedletsky gagged, “ But that's disgusting!"

Jane chuckled as she focused her attention on Joan, “ Well she doesn't seem to think so, isn't that right sweetheart?”

Contrasting Shedletsky’s disgust, Joan was having the time of her life with the homemade formula, gripping onto the bottle with her claws as if it could disappear at any moment and her spiked tail wagging behind her furiously.

“ WELL,” Shedletsky scoffed, “ Clearly that babies' taste buds haven't developed properly.”

Rolling her eyes with amusement, Jane's gaze shifted back to her child, who had finished her bottle and yawned, struggling to keep her eyes open. Now that her belly was full, hopefully she’d be able to get a proper night's sleep. Shedletsky peered over to the mother and daughter, noticing not only Joan's fatigue but the exhaustion that weighed heavy on Jane's expression as well.

“ Yknow,” Shedletsky began, “ You can take the kid back to your cabin and catch up on some sleep, I can finish up here.”

Jane turned to the admin, gazing at the boiling pot and empty glass bottles waiting to be filled. Once they were poured to the brim, the pot and mixing spoons would have to be cleaned, the ingredients put away, and the stove and countertops wiped down. It would be a lot of work for one person.

“ I can go put Joan to bed, but I should probably come back to help you out with the clean up-,” Jane tried to insist, but was quickly shushed by Shedletsky.

“ No offense to you ma’m, but you look like absolute shit, no one's gonna crucify you for skimpin out on one night of cleaning duty,” He grinned at her, “ Relax, I got it this time.”

Jane frowned at the insult, but if she was honest, a full night of sleep sounded really good right about now, “ Alright fine, but let me know how I can make it up to you later.”

Shedletsky laughed as he beamed at his own mini victory, “ Just be sure to have my back during the rounds later, and we’ll be even!”

Jane couldn't help the smile that crept up on her weary face, relieved that she had someone else in this cabin to rely on other than Guest 1337 or 007n7. As she walked out into the eternally black sky, Jane stared down at the bundle of joy in her arms. Joan was fast asleep now, snuggling against her mothers arms.

Jane bent down to place a kiss on her forehead as she murmured, “ See munchkin? I knew they would warm up to you eventually.”

—

Jane knew her baby was not quite average as compared to other newborns. And to be frank, she wished she had read up on different kinds of lizards when she and John obsessively ran through every ‘How to care for baby’ books that the libraries could offer. But how could Jane predict the inhuman nature of her own child?

She still loved her, of course, no amount of claws or spikes or horns could change that, but sometimes there would be… incidents.

Jane let out a breath of relief as she appeared at the survivors winner table. It was quite the calmer round, against that strange masked killer with a glowing star. He had managed to take down Noob and Chance, but then spent the rest of the round running circles around 007n7 for some reason.

Well, a winning round is a winning round, who was she to complain about an easy victory? But just before she could sit up to go check in with Guest 1337, who had graciously offered to sit for Joan while she was in the round, Guest ended up rounding the corner with her instead.

Before Jane could utter a greeting, her eyes trailed over Guest, noticing the blood splattered on his vest and face.

Her expression paled immediately as she ran up to Guest, “ What happened?? Are you okay? Why is there blood on you??”

The spectre always ensured that any survivor injuries maintained in rounds were healed upon spawning back in the cabin. It was impossible for any blood to persist unless it came from a wild animal, or you injured yourself outside of the round.

Jane braced for Guest's answer fearing the worst, but he didn't seem at all worried, more so annoyed and a little confused.

“ Don’t worry Jane, it’s not my blood-” before he could finish, Jane let out a strangled gasp as her eyes immediately changed their focus from Guest to Joan, looking over her for any injuries.

“ WHAT happened?? Did she get hurt? Was there a wild animal or something?” more and more questions spilled from the worried mothers mouth, her eyes facing towards Guests, pleading for an answer. However, Guest did not match Jane's worry, his expression shifting to more of an amused look, almost making the mother want to snap at him for not taking this seriously.

“ No no- she’s not hurt, but uh, it's prolly better if I show you?”

Carefully, Guest shifted Joan to face away from him, one of his hands coming up from behind and, without Joan noticing, pinched the tip of her tail. Before Jane could even begin to scold Guest, Joan whipped around faster than lighting, squeezing her eyes shut, shooting a stream of blood from the sockets onto Guest's cheek, which he attempted to shield himself from.

Jane stood, slack jawed for a moment as she tried to process what her precious little baby just did. No amount of childrens books or childsitting could have forewarned this.

Joan, on the other hand, looked fairly unharmed. Her expression immediately calming down after finishing her unnatural display of discontent, she was now wriggling in the soldiers arms with her clawed hands outstretched to try and reach her mother.

Still speechless, Jane carefully took her child, covered her ears, and whisper-yelled to Guest,
“ Excuse my language, but, what the FUCK was that?”

Guest shrugged as he pulled a tissue from his pocket to wipe the blood, “ Don't know for sure, all I know is she did it every time I made her mad or upset.”

Jane frowned as she stared at her baby, still just as blissfully unaware of the worry she was causing her mother as she was before. Though she looked slightly annoyed she wasn't getting Jane's immediate attention, snorting in discontentment and bumping her head against Jane's arm to try and grab her focus.

“ None of the baby books prepared me for this,” Jane muttered, almost defeatedly.

“ Well,” announced Guest, throwing away the tissues in a nearby wastebin, “ I suppose you two can find out together then?”

Jane's gaze softened for the first time since she returned from the round, “ Yeah, yeah we’ll find out together, won’t we?”

She turned and stroked her daughter's cheek, who responded by gripping her finger with her claws and letting out a cheerful giggle. Perhaps this wouldn't be as bad as Jane thought. Sure, her baby is somehow shooting blood out of her eyes, but she can figure that one out can’t she?

Oh how wrong she was.

Because soon after that frightening revelation, another feature of Joan's inhuman nature began to show. Mainly, her fangs.

Jane knew it was way, WAY, too early for a baby's teeth to grow in, but Guest was right, this baby was different. On the bright side, teeth growing in meant Joan could wean off the makeshift formula and begin solid food much earlier than she thought. The bad news is, Joan seemed to be going through a teething phase on steroids. Anything within Joan's line of sight wasn't safe.

Table legs? Clawed and chewed like a bone.

Cushions and pillows? Bitten through so much that feathers and stuffing littered the ground.

Elliots pizzaboxes or Shedletskys chicken bucket? Practically made unusable.

Jane tried her hardest to steer Joan away from chewing on things in the main cabin, offering her sticks or logs from the outside. And while they worked for a little bit, quickly Joan would become bored, and search for something new to sink her hungry fangs into.

It became especially bad when Joan discovered her new favorite texture to gnaw on, skin. She would wail until someone came over to pick up and comfort her, not realizing it was a trap. For as soon as Joan was in the arms of the unaware victim, she would grip onto their hand and shove it in her mouth.

Thankfully, she was just a baby, so getting your fingers chewed on just meant some small indents and lots and lots of drool. But Jane knew she needed to stop this habit earlier rather than later, before her teething would cause real punctures on skin.

Right now Jane was testing another chew toy for Joan, a lone plushie they had managed to scavenge from the C00lCarnival.

Jane waved the toy in front of Joan, “ Heyyy look what I got! A toy just for you, okay?”

Joan seemed enamoured with the thing, reaching out her chubby hands to try and nab it.

Smiling, Jane handed the plush over, “ Yeah yeah that's it, this looks soo much better to bite on than people's fingers, right?”

Joan squeezed the plushie in her claws, cooing at the new gift. She then immediately went to gnaw on the thing.

Joan seemed to also have behavior similar to a dog or shark, often using her mouth to explore new unfamiliar things instead of her hands. It was especially worrying for Jane whenever she took her baby outside, constantly needing to supervise her so she wouldn't chew on something sharp or poisonous.

Joan sucked on the plush toy for a moment, before pausing, her face scrunching into disgust. She spat the doll out of her mouth and made a displeased hiss. Jane sighed, looks like fabric toys were a no go as well. Making a mental note to herself, Jane didn't notice Joan had already crawled towards her till she felt a familiar nibble on her fingers. She looked down to see Joan had already chosen her next victim for her growing canines.

Jane just let out an exhausted breath and scratched Joan behind her horns, “ You’re lucky you’re so cute, y'know?" she cooed at the infant, “ Otherwise I’d teach you a lesson or two about using your own mother as a chew toy.”

Joan was clearly unaffected by Jane's empty threat, simply staring at her with her big wet gray eyes, as if telling her silently that she knew Jane couldn't say no to her baby.

After sitting like that for a few minutes, Jane getting some rest and Joan continuing to work at her mothers fingers, the two were interrupted by a shaky knock at the door.

Jane didn't feel like getting up and disturbing her daughter, so she called out, “ It's unlocked! Come in!”

Gently nudging the door open, Jane was shocked to see the source of the knocking was none other than the youngest of the survivors, Noob.

“ H-hey Mrs. Doe, uhm, am I disturbing you?” They shakily called out, flashing a nervous smile.

Jane kept a steady eye. Though she had no quarrels with Noob themself, she also knew they were one of the firm believers of her and her husband being hackers. The day Jane had arrived in the cabin, Noob had let out a scream of fear, and wouldn't even look Jane in the eye for days after that. Their relationship was more steady now, but Noob still seemed deadset on believing a silly rumour over Jane's word.

“ W-well uhm, I guess you guys aren’t hackers anymore then?” Noob had said a while back, after Jane felt she had explained the umpteenth time that the rumors were false.

“ No- we were never hackers to BEGIN with,” Jane groaned.

“ But, wasn't there photo evidence, it was all over th-the news!”

Jane ran a hand down her face in frustration, “ All those photos were either fake or were of John while he was sick with the corruption!”

Needless to say, Jane wouldn't really call herself Noobs friend.

“ No no, you're fine, was there something you needed?” Jane assured the young robloxian. Noob was also one of the few survivors who was heavily against taking Joan in. Not because they thought it would be too much work or a burden, but simply because Noob was afraid of Joan.

Jane knew that her baby did share some resemblances with her bloodthirsty father. Her claws, her spiked back and tail, but Jane found it completely illogical for Noob to be afraid of her. She was a baby for Christ's sake!

Noob didn't seem to notice Jane's distaste, brightening up and skipping over to sit down next to Jane and Joan. They didn't seem nervous at all now, even looking quite happy as they watched Joan chew on her mothers fingers like her life depended on it.

“ S-so howve you b been?” Noob asked.

“ Fine,” Jane answered bluntly, “ Is there something you needed or?”

Noobs grin seemed to get even wider as they fished for something in their pockets, “ Well, I h-have a gift for the baby!”

Jane paused, startled that this is what Noob had come here for. She thought they would arrive with either more grievances about Joan, more questions about whether she was actually a hacker or not, or something. She would never expect Noob to switch up so quickly, now offering a gift for the same baby they were afraid of prior.

“ Oh? What is it?” Jane asked curiously.

Noobs hands flew away from their pockets, clutching a small red plastic container. Jane raised her brow at it, before Noob opened it to reveal a small baby blue pacifier.

Jane's mouth dropped. Of course! A pacifier, she knew that babies tended to use those to deal with early discomforts of teething, but she thought for sure she wouldn't find one in their purgatory.

“ Where did you get this?” Jane quickly asked. If Noob found a pacifier, could that mean there were other essential baby supplies hiding somewhere?

Noob nervously scratched the back of their head, “ Oh its, uh, i-its mine.”

Jane was confused, “ Like, from when you were a baby?” Then why were they still carrying it around?

“ No it's uhm,” Noob looked down at the floor anxiously, “ Uh I use it sometimes when I get s-sad, or scared.”

Jane immediately understood and nodded, Noob is an age regressor. She always had a feeling that was the case, but didn't want to assume. Though now she felt bad taking away one of their comfort objects.

“ Are you sure you want to give this to me?” she questioned, “ I mean, don’t you still use it?”

“ W-well yeah but, I just th-thought she needed it more than me?” Noob responded, gesturing to Joan.

She had stopped chewing on Jane's fingers a while ago, and was now trying to look up as far as she could to see what her mother was holding in her hands. Jane still felt crummy taking away Noobs pacifier, but they were right. Joan really needed it right now.

Jane plucked the pacifier from its sterile container, hovering it in front of Joan's face. The little infant's eyes stared wide at the new object in front of her, before lunging and capturing the pacifier into her mouth. Jane's breath hitched as she awaited the possibility of Joan's pickiness to decide she didn't actually like the pacifier, but that never happened. Instead, her breathing evened out as she suckled gently on Noobs gift, eventually calming down and curling up on the floor.

“ Jesus it's a miracle,” Jane laughed, “ You have no idea how many chew toys and teething sticks she rejected before this.”

“ Hehe, m-my parents said I was the same way,” Noob added, “ Said the only thing I’d even bother touching was pacifiers and ice packs.”

Jane hummed in response, she never thought of ice packs before now, maybe she’ll swap out the pacifier sometimes with them to allow Noob to use their enrichment object from time to time.

She glanced over to Noob, still observing Joan go at the pacifier, “ Do you… want to hold her?”

Noob seemed shocked at the question, but quickly nodded, the excitement evident. They shifted to sit cross-legged, and prepared their arms to cradle the infant. Huffing, Jane lifted Joan up by the armpits. She had gotten quite heavy since arriving at the survivors cabin. Jane remembers her being so small and frail, she could practically hold her in one hand if she wanted to. Now thanks to the formula, she had put on some much needed weight.

“ Careful, she's a little heavy,” Jane warned as she carefully set her daughter into Noobs waiting arms.

Noob's smile grew as Joan shifted a little in the strange arms, before relaxing and staring up at her carrier with wide eyes. The infant reached out with her little claws and gripped onto strands of Noobs sunny hair, kicking her feet.

“ She’s adorable,” Noob cooed, bringing a finger to stroke Joan's cheek.

“ You say that now,” Jane let out an amused chuckle, “ But I'm sure once she’s older she’ll be causing all kinds of trouble, I can tell.”

She was surprised with herself. Usually Jane would try to avoid Noob, or at the very least keep conversation to a minimum. She was surprised to find herself so relaxed around the yellow skinned robloxian, but she supposes that her friends were correct. Raising a baby had indeed made her more soft and forgiving. And as she watched the young survivor gently cradling her daughter with such gentleness and love, she decided that maybe that wasn't such a bad thing.

—

It had officially been a whole six months since Joan was accepted into the survivors side of the woods.

Any survivors who held qualms about the child living with them had quickly overcome their anxieties. The little infant spread too much joy and love to keep their reservations up.

She still relied on the self made formula that the survivors provided, but she had begun expressing interest in their solid food, with Jane feeding her a couple morsels of bread, meat, or cheese whenever it was feeding time.

Of course, Jane let her guard down. Of course, she thought she had managed everything well. And of course, she would be proven wrong, struck by the Spectre right when she and her daughter were vulnerable.

It had started off as a normal day, or night, in the lodge. Jane suspected she was going to be chosen for the rounds today, and had already scheduled with 007n7 and Noob to watch over the baby.

Her intuition was proven correct, as Jane blinked away the strange dizziness to find herself in a damp grassy field with trees and orange canyons in the distance.

What she didn't expect was a familiar weight bundled in her arms.

Jane's blood froze as she glanced down to find Joan staring right up at her. The baby giggled at her mothers horrified expression, reaching out to her with little claws.

“ Holy shit- no no no you can’t BE here!” Jane whisper-shouted at Joan, who was clueless to her mothers worry, looking around her new environment curiously.

Suddenly, Jane could hear from the distance the sound of a gun firing, and a loud roar. A familiar roar.

John. He was here.

Jane hadn't realized until then, but she hadn't encountered John in rounds since he gave birth. She had been so busy with worrying over and taking care of Joan, she never thought of why that was the case. But now it was clear. The Spectre was starving for a good show, and what better performance than pitting John's own exhausted wife and new daughter in the unforgiving round?

The sound of a strangled cry drew Jane from her thoughts, John claiming another victim in his delirious sickened state.

She didn't have time to think or wonder why Joan was thrust into rounds now, she just needed to HIDE. Jane felt a little bad leaving the rest to deal with her husband. Usually she’d at least stick around on standby in case a survivor needed her assistance, but now all she could focus on was protecting Joan.

She was quiet now, visible fear and anxiety in the infant's face as another shriek of agony erupted from the distance. She whimpered and buried herself into her mothers chest, clearly overwhelmed by the situation.

Eventually Jane settles on hiding behind an abandoned graveyard, hoping that the jutted walls and spikes would deter John long enough for the round to end. Emotion swelled within her as Jane thought back to him, wondering what had transpired between the birth of Joan and now. He seemed a lot more agitated now, even if she hadn't seen him in person yet. But the way the screams and wails emerged from across the terrain, it was clear John was feeling merciless this round.

Right on cue, A final strangled sound of death emitted from the distance, before Jane suddenly felt very alone, and very very scared.

She was the only one left.

Well, her and Joan were.

Jane's heart thudded rapidly in her chest, looking around frantically to search for some way to escape. But she knew it was all in vain. Screwing her eyes shut, Jane pulled Joan closer to her chest while curling into a ball, hoping to use herself to shield her daughter from any blows. The sound of John's clawed feet thudding against the earth grew closer and closer until his laboured breaths and the stench of decay wafted in Jane's nose.

Jane didn't even have time to process Joan wriggling and eventually squirming out of her arms, letting out small yelps and babbles. Jane's eyes flew open, immediately trying to grab Joan but pausing when in front of her, just several feet away, stood her husband, John.

She almost wanted to throw up on the spot.

He looks awful, even more so than before. He had lost so much weight, his skin somehow even paler and sickly than before. His shirt was dirty, covered in sweat and grime, and hung loosely on his emaciated frame. His breasts were sagging, and Jane winced as she thought about how uncomfortable it must have been to have been producing milk but have no child to produce it for. His uniform had a lot of holes, showing scars, stretch marks, and other bruises littering his skin. The worst part was his face, his eyes. His normal smile looked strange, empty, cracking at the seams, and his eyes were devoid of any light, with heavy eyebags indicative of lack of sleep, or perhaps too much of it?

Joan didn't seem deterred at all, as while her mother stood shell shocked she squealed upon seeing her papa again, clumsily crawling toward him without a single worry in the world. She eventually stumbled near John's feet staring up at him, squealing with joy. John paused, seemingly enamoured with the presence of the infant, cocking his head to the side as he stared at it curiously.

Jane's breath hitched as John lowered onto one knee, and for a moment, Jane felt hopeful. John must have recognized his own offspring, and Jane decided to keep to herself so as to not ruin their moment.

Joan's tail wagged furiously as she clawed at John's pants, clearly wanting to be picked up by him. John's clawed hand wrapped around the child's abdomen, large enough to be able to encircle her with just one hand. He lifted her up, taking a closer look at the baby.

Before tightening his grip, squeezing the life out of Joan.

One last yelp of pain, and the crunch of bone could be heard before Joan sagged in John's grip, limp and lifeless.

The world lost all its sound, Jane's ears ringing as she couldn't even muster the energy to scream or wail. She barely noticed John trembling while gripping Joan's body, before huffing and tossing it to the side, his gaze refocusing on his final target.

No movement transpired for a few moments. The only clear sound being the weak wind shuddering through the undergrowth.

Once John began to step toward her, Jane snapped.

She sprinted toward John with speed that not even the killer could foresee, flinching at the sudden outburst and stumbling backward. It seems John's malnutrition had worked against him, as he tripped and fell to his back, Jane pouncing on top of him and immediately beginning to strike him again and again without stopping.

John roared in anger and pain as he attempted to shove Jane off, but she had found new strength and stayed stubbornly still, crying and shouting expletives at her lover as she continued to beat him.

John fought back, he really did. His own corruption was making Jane wince and hiss in pain, but her resolve never let up. John tried to puncture her with his corrupted arm, but he was too weak to lift the heavy thing, only his lesser corrupted hand offering some assistance for the ill man. Sometimes he would scratch at her with it, but it was never enough to fully incapacitate the grieving mother.

The rest of the round trickled on as John and Jane continued to wrestle each other on the ground. The two who used to be so close and felt only the other could truly understand them were now trying to kill each other. Expletives and shouts and growls and roars replaced the soft conversation and loving words the two once shared.

And in the distance, in the deep dark sky, the Spectre sat and watched its toys perform, pleased with the entertainment it received.

 

Her entire head hurt. Her arms felt weak and useless, and she couldn't get the ringing gone from her ears. Her eyes were also raw, itchy, and swollen, probably from all the crying she had done earlier.

As Jane blinked open her eyes, she let out a breath when she realized she was on the couch in the main communal lodge, the fireplace crackling with life and warming her freezing body. Jane shut her eyes again, exhausted and wishing to sleep, only for them to blow wide open when her brain processed the sound of wailing in the air.

Joan.

She immediately threw herself off the couch, her body aching and protesting at the sudden movement, begging her to lay down once more. But she couldn't, she had to see if her baby was okay. Stumbling through the cabin, ignoring the worried glances and protests from the other survivors that she didn't even bother getting a good look of, she spotted 007n7 and her little baby seated at one of the booths. The ex hacker looked worried, while Joan herself was shrieking and crying, not even 007n7’s rocking and hushed whispers enough to comfort her.

As soon as Jane stepped forward, 007n7 spoke up, “ She’s uninjured, thank god, but I think she’s still experiencing the phantom pains, it’ll be a while before she calms down.”

Jane could hardly process his attempt at comfort though, her mind swelling with grief and joy that her baby was still alive, and not gone forever. And for a brief foolish moment, Jane uttered a thanks to the Spectre for allowing Joan to live.

007n7 offered Joan to her overwhelmed mother, who gratefully accepted. As soon as Joan was placed into her mothers arms her cries quieted down, but she still sniffled and wailed, burying herself into the crook of Jane's neck. Tears began to freely spill from Jane's eyes, falling onto Joan who twitched at the cold sensation.

Eventually, Joan calmed down enough to the point she passed out from the stress and exhaustion, her mother following her example soon after.

The following day, Jane hoped that she could return to normalcy, just with the added knowledge that Joan would be joining the other survivors in rounds. However, ever since that round with John, Joan had changed drastically.

She grew quite distant from everyone, including her own mom. She slept a lot more than usual, and stopped playing too. She had even begun to refuse eating, a change that made Jane extremely worried.

It reminded Jane of when she first arrived in the Spectres realm, after her first round with John. At first, she was elated to find her husband once again, only to quickly meet her end at his claws. After that round, she too grew distant and demotivated, barely eating and simply wasting away in her bed. Jane didn't think that infants could become depressed, but now she was proven wrong.

But now she doesn't know what to do. Back then she would have to receive reassurances from Builderman or Guest, encouraging her to stay strong. But how was she supposed to soothe a baby? Especially after being killed by her own father.

“ Cmon baby- just eat, just a little,” Jane muttered quietly, trying to see if Joan would eat some solid food instead of milk.

They were thrust into another round together, the others assuring Jane they would distract the killer long enough for her and her daughter to find a corner to hide. Elliot had given her a slice of pizza to see if Joan would get convinced enough to eat a bit, but so far Jane was having no luck.

Joan sniffled before turning her head away from the food, shutting her eyes. She slept a lot more nowadays. Completely silent too, not even crying or whining for attention like she usually did before bed. Jane knew this wasn't healthy, but she had tried seemingly everything that she could offer. Joan was taking John's rejection very poorly, and she would surely die of malnutrition soon enough.

“ Please,” Jane begged pitifully, “ Just one bite, please.”

Before she could continue her plea, Jane snapped her head at the sound of a twig breaking nearby. Nervously, she stood up, abandoning the pizza slice on the ground, clearly the stubborn infant wasn't going to eat it.

Before Jane could call out to see who was there, the round mercifully ended.

Usually, relief would wash over Jane at the prospect of another successful round, but her troubles travelled in and out of the rounds. Now she had to try and get Joan to drink something before she fell asleep again. Another night of waking up constantly just to check if Joan was still breathing. Another day of dreading the morning, believing she’ll wake up to Joan's corpse, finally succumbing to her grief and starvation.

Of course, Joan didn't eat anything, but she did lap up just a bit of water. Small victories. Just like the other nights, she immediately fell asleep upon being placed in the makeshift bed. Not even digging in the blankets, or spinning around before laying down. She just immediately closed her eyes the second her body met the sheets.

Jane stood by her sleeping daughter for a bit, watching her peaceful and even breathing. It was a little strained, a little slow, just a little, but it was enough to make her heart break all over again. She had thanked every lucky star in her life that Joan had respawned during that round, but she would have never foreseen such drastic consequences of it. Joan may have lived, but she was practically on her way to become a walking corpse.

Reluctantly, Jane got under her own covers. She needed rest too, staying up all night to worry over her baby was not going to do her any good, especially in future rounds. Letting out an exhausted sigh, Jane's eyes closed, hoping that another miracle would await her when the sun rose.

—

1x1x1x1 very much did not care for the other killers sharing the camp with him, at least that's what he hopes the others believe.

He was an immortal being, a god unworthy of being on the same pedestal as the weak mortals he was trapped with, but nevertheless he had found himself growing soft as time went on.

He would allow Coolkid and his friends to ‘play pretend’ with him, would assist the slasher in making meals that weren't just raw meat, or offer an ear to Azure whenever he needed to spat his grievances about a certain cultist on the survivors side of the woods. Even Noli, who would annoy and prod 1x1x1x1 to no end, 1x would still put his grievances away to comfort the man who was actively rotting away.

But the one killer he held no mercy for was John Doe.

He hated the man. Even before having met him, he hated him. Back then, centuries prior, it was the name 1x1x1x1 who would send shivers down the spine of anyone who heard it. It was him that was the boogeyman, the monster under the bed, the one who would snap up unsuspecting children who wandered into the woods at night. He was feared for centuries, and he loved it.

And then he was imprisoned in the banlands.

As years turned to decades turned to centuries, 1x1x1x1’s reputation faded into obscurity, with some even questioning if he was real at all, or just a myth. And then, a new name began to surface. A new hacker that rivaled 1x’s own power. John Doe.

Immediately, the resentment bubbled beneath his pitch dark skin. How dare another take his title? And when he met him, it was even worse.

It was during one of his many escapes, that 1x found herself face to face with the ‘famous hacker’ John Doe. He was very different from how he was in the Spectres realm, his corruption still hadn't progressed enough to affect him too badly.

Only his right arm and eye held the rot of the corruption. But it wasn't his appearance that would make 1x1x1x1 grit his teeth in rage, but his attitude. John Doe switched between a cackling, cocky hacker, to a scared whimpering mess, crying about where his wife was, and how to get rid of the code that was infecting him. The lack of consistency frustrated 1x to no end, especially with how quickly John had usurped her own title of the secret monster of roblox, even though the man was barely aware of it.

So when 1x was forsakened, and saw how much the corruption had progressed onto John, practically lobotomizing him into a brainless beast, he laughed. He sneered, and taunted the man, the so-called grand hacker of Robloxia. He would grow even more ecstatic when John would have brief moments of clarity, the panic and visible fear on his face was enough to make 1x1x1x1 smile. He even fought with the man, much to the spectre's disappointment, growling and spatting at each other like animals, but John was always sloppy in his animalistic state. 1x took heavy pride in being the victor of most quarrels with John Doe. And that continued for the foreseeable future.

And then, John was pregnant.

It was a great shock to all the killers. The children did not seem to understand the gravity of the situation, simply excited at the idea of a new friend joining them, but the adults did. They were already struggling enough, and chose to ignore John, already deciding that either John would for sure miscarry, or the baby would die soon after being born. And for a moment, 1x1x1x1 thought she would do the same, if it weren't for one person.

Jane Doe. John's wife.

She visited the banlands quite frequently, hoping that perhaps John would be there. 1x would overhear how she would always look for him, ignoring the warnings others would tell her. Sometimes, when Jane got especially close to 1x1x1x1’s cage, he would try to turn her against John. Telling her about all the awful things he had done, how he hardly remembers who she is anymore, how there’s no point looking for someone who doesn't want to be found. He even told her he had found someone else. But still, despite 1x’s taunts, Jane took his words with surprising grace. Not immediately refusing to believe them, but also not letting them wither her resolve.

“ He’s sick,” Jane would whisper outside of 1x’s cell, “ What kind of wife would I be if I turned back on our vows?”

1x1x1x1 was impressed with her dedication, as she continued visiting the banlands frequently in search for any sign of John, but also to communicate with 1x. She had become 1x’s only and most frequent visitor, and she… appreciated that. Even though she knew of all the horrible things 1x had done, Jane didn't give up on her, unlike a certain winged pathetic excuse of a father. For the first time in centuries, 1x felt hope, and when Jane went missing, her visits ceasing, 1x felt grief for the first time since he had corrupted.

Even if 1x had his grievances with John, he still respected Jane. So, why not assist John during his pregnancy? The baby was at least 50% Janes, so it wouldn't entirely be helping just John Doe, correct?

Pleased with his own logic, 1x began assisting John Doe with the pregnancy, just a little. Finding him scraps of food to eat, making a comfortable bed for him to sleep on, rubbing his back whenever the vomiting got too much. If he could pay Jane back just a little for her unending sympathy, that would be enough for the ancient hacker.

And then, John attacked Coolkid, and 1x had to choose between him and the children. They were under his protection now, under his care. They had even started calling him ‘Auntie’. The decision was clear, and 1x chased John Doe out of the camp.

He let himself lose interest in the man afterward, until months later, John had staggered back into the camp, looking like death himself had visited.

He became even more of an irritable presence afterward, and 1x allowed his old rivalry with the hacker to resurface even more. Sure, he questioned what had happened to the child at first, but assumed that it was either stillborn, dead, or possibly eaten by John.

Until one fateful round John had, where he returned looking even worse somehow. 1x didn't bother with it, he knew there was no way for sure to know what happened, since John didn't speak after all. However, he would get her answer a couple days later.

It started off as a normal round, the blue haired soldier and cocky gambler distracting him, as usual. And as usual, he quickly made work of the two, their now headless corpses invigorating him.

Ripping out her eye, she noticed in the far distance two figures, but one of them seemed… smaller? Confused, 1x stalked closer, not wanting to alert them immediately, he was immediately curious, thinking it was a new survivor in the round. Well, he was partially right.

“ Cmon, baby- just eat, just a little,” He heard the exhausted voice of Jane croak out.

Peering just over the shrubbery, he could finally see the small figure with her.

Pale yellow skin, pink hair, small horns spikes and a tail. It was definitely John's child. So she wasn't dead after all, and Jane had found her it seemed. Deep within 1x’s chest, the remains of his heart swelled upon seeing the infant. It almost reminded her of herself… when she was younger… happier.

But speaking of happiness, the baby looked anything but what a joyful young infant should be. And all of a sudden, it clicked together in 1x’s mind. The child was in a round, clearly the spectre had decided to make her a survivor. That round with John, days before, his child must have been in it. The infant must have noticed, and was either killed, or rejected in some way.

1x’s wings dropped, remembering his own childhood. How he had received a similar rejection. She remembers the nights she wouldn't be fed, no matter how hard she cried and wailed. Her own immortality refused to allow her to die from starvation, but unable to relieve the pain of hunger. However, this time, it seemed the baby was starving itself out of frustration. The old 1x would have sneered at this thought, disappointed at the infant's lack of self preservation, and would simply have allowed it to die, survival of the fittest after all? But, it truly seemed that this realm had changed her in more ways than one.

Once the round ended, 1x knew what he needed to do. Ignoring Nolis jeers of another unsuccessful round, he marched up to Slasher, one of the strongest of the killers.

“ You,” 1x commanded, immediately grabbing the masked killer's attention, “ Are you busy right now?”

Slasher pauses before shaking his head.

“ Good, I need your help with something.”

The bacon haired soldier cocked his head to the side, silently asking “ With what?”

1x’s feathers bristled, “ I need you to help me take John Doe's shirt off.”

—

Jane awoke suddenly to the sound of knocking at her door. She groaned and slowly sat up in the bed, “ Who is it?”

Silence.

Jane frowned, she really did not want to deal with this today. Slowly sliding out of bed, she glanced over to where Joan was resting. She let out a sigh at relief upon seeing her daughter still breathing, before focusing her attention back at the door.

She thrust the door open, about to snap at whoever decided to bother her so early, but was surprised to find no one there. She frowned, and was about to make her way to the communal cabin to see who thought it was so funny to prank her at 4 in the morning, but paused when she noticed a parcel on her doorstep.

It was haphazardly wrapped in what looked like old missing posters and newspapers, tied around with a shoddy piece of twine. Jane's brows furrowed at the sight, it seemed like a gift, but who had given it to her? Usually if one of the survivors wanted to hand her something, they’d do so in person, not anonymously at such an early hour. Maybe someone wanted to surprise her?

Jane looked to her left, and then her right, no immediate evidence to be seen of who had left the parcel behind. Disappointed with the lack of a clear answer, she bent down to unwrap the present. There ought to be something useful in there, if someone took the time and energy to keep it hidden till now.

She ripped away at the packaging, grimacing for a moment when she recognized a missing poster for her husband shortly after he had run away. His visage in the piece of paper being a stark contrast to how he was now. Before he had entered the spectres realm. Before he began hacking. Before he was ill.

Before he killed their daughter.

Jane shook her head and continued unwrapping the gift, before eventually the content inside was revealed.

At first, she thought it was a joke, a dirty old yellow sweater vest. But after taking a closer look, she realized whose vest this was. The R symbol on it was unmistakable. This was John's shirt.

Jane looked around once more. The only ones who would be able to get their hands on such a piece were the other killers, and then to walk all the way to the survivors side to deliver it by hand. Jane frowned as she thought back to her and the survivors' tormenters, she couldn't think of a single one who would go out of their way to do this. Perhaps it was to torment her? She’s unsure what exactly they expect her to do with her husband's dirty old vest.

A shuffling from behind her caught Jane's attention. She turned to see Joan, now wide awake, staring at her mama in the doorway. This was the first time Joan had willingly woke up in the middle of the night, the sight making Jane smile.

“ Hey munchkin, couldn't sleep?” She cooed, “ Me neither, maybe we can try the bottle again, huh? I’m sure that’ll make you feel better.”

Joan tilted her head up, closing her eyes as she began sniffing at the air. Opening them she immediately began to attempt to jump over the bed.

Vest still in hand, Jane rushed to prevent her daughter from further hurting herself, “ Woah woah woah slow down there-”

Joan ignored her words, as she shoved her face into John's vest, inhaling the scent, and letting out small whimpers.

Suddenly, it hit Jane all at once, this sweater wasn’t for her. It was for Joan. It still smelled like John, and for Joan, that was enough.

Jane watched in awe as Joan grabbed at the vest with her teeth, dragging it with her into the sheets. Jane thought back to the few animal documentaries she had watched. How orphaned cubs or chicks would often get a replacement parent, usually a plush one, to assist them in their growth. Maybe that was what Joan needed.

For the rest of the night, Jane's cabin remained alight. The mother spent the early hours preparing the most important gift for her daughter, one that would drag her out of the new depression she had found herself in. One that would help her flourish once more.

By the time morning had arrived, Jane hadn't shown up for breakfast. This wasn't unusual for her, she was quite reserved compared to the other survivors, even before acquiring Joan, but still Elliot wanted to be sure Jane was eating well.

Having Joan around had put Elliot in a good mood. Even if he witnessed John's horrible state shortly before she was born. Even if it meant spending a lot more time with 007n7 than he’d like, considering he was one of the few people here who knew how to raise a non-human child. Despite all that, Elliot loved having Joan around. It reminded him of when he was younger, and taking care of his own baby sister.

Handling a plate of simple eggs and stir fried mushrooms, Elliot knocked at Jane's door. Shuffling and groaning could be heard from the other side, and Elliot chuckled when he realized that Jane must have slept in again.

“ Come in,” her voice called from within the cabin.

Pushing the door open, Elliot was taken aback and nearly dropped his plate of food when he saw what was in front of him.

Jane was in her bed, as usual, but what was unusual was that Joan was on the floor instead of her makeshift crib, and was cuddling up with something. It looked to be a large pillow, easily thrice as big as the child, and instead of a pillow sheet, a dirty yellow sweater vest was wrapped around it instead. On the ‘front’ of the cushion was a piece of paper with a haphazardly drawn John Doe face.

Jane noticed Elliot's bewildered expression, “ I know I know, it looks strange, but I thought it would be beneficial to Joan, and I was right!”
True to her word, Joan did seem happy, happier than Elliot had seen from the past few days. She was wagging her tail, albeit weakly because of her starvation, and her eyes were wide and bright.

“ Well, if you say so, I don’t know much about this kind of thing anyway,” Elliot forced out a nervous laugh, placing the breakfast tray on the nightstand of Jane's bed.

She uttered a quick thank you to Elliot before he left, clutching the plate of food while crouching down next to Joan and her pillow parent, “ Alright lets try this again, shall we?”

The cushion and vest continued to work its miracles, as Joan obediently gulped down her entire bottle, and even ate some scraps of eggs and mushroom from Jane's plate. After eating her fill, Joan snuggled up and kneaded against her pillow papa, sleep overcoming her.

Jane was so happy her daughter was eating again, all thanks to the vest. She wondered just who had delivered it, she would need to thank them profusely later. But deep down, Jane knew this was only a temporary solution. Eventually, Joan would figure out this wasn't really her papa, and she would have to overcome the fact she was killed by him.

Jane scooched herself closer to her baby, clutching her and holding her close, “ I promise, we are going to get him back,” she whispered as Joan shifted and grunted in her grip, “ You will see your papa again, and I will be reunited with my John…”

Chapter Text

Sunlight streaked through the window, disturbing a certain sleeping figure in the sheets.

Jane groaned as she felt the heat from the sun catching onto her face. Weird, she was sure the sun didn't rise in this realm, at least according to Builder and the other admins. In fact, her sheets felt a lot more soft and inviting then the rough rags of her cabin bed, and the room smelt of vanilla and warmth.

Jane cracked her eyes open as realization sunk in her mind. She wasn't in the forsaken realm anymore, she, along with the other survivors, had been out for a good several years now. The years did little to settle her own inner peace though, as she was still convinced she’d wake up right back in her old dusty cabin, with nothing but the survivors and her child to keep her company.

Speaking of, Jane should really wake her up now that she was up.

Straightening herself out of bed, Jane glanced over at her alarm clock. The red letters of 8:00 answered back to her.

It’s been difficult for Jane ever since escaping the forsaken realm, and it was shown in her sleeping habits. She’d often find herself sleeping in much later than she was supposed to, or sleeping in the middle of the day when normally she was able to get through just fine in the past. Just another sign of her age, she presumed. She was already pretty old when she was forsakened, and the stress from the realm did little to help with that fact. When she stared in the mirror she could already tell that small wrinkles were forming, and she already sported faint grey streaks in her hair.

Because of that, Jane took it as a good sign she woke up early instead.

Jane slipped out of bed and headed towards the door, still in her pj’s. It was the weekend, and she didn't feel like changing out of her night clothes right now. Besides, if she woke up early today that’d probably mean she would start getting tired around noon or one-ish.

As Jane made her way to the kitchen, she could already hear chattering voices. Joan no doubt was already awake. She had boundless energy at this age, being around 8 years old. As soon as the sun was up, Joan was up too.

As Jane entered the cooking area, she saw Joan sitting on the dining table, several papers and crayons scattered about her.

Jane smiled as she watched her daughter draw, her grin only growing wider when she saw who was next to her.

Scrunched up in the seat that was clearly too small for the man, John Doe sat, attempting to mimic Joan's drawings using his left hand.

If her time in the forsaken realm left Jane in a worse state than before, then John was unrecognizable.

She remembers when they first escaped, Joan was only about 2 years old, just learnt to walk and babble. She remembers being so thankful that Joan wouldn't have to spend anymore of her formative years trapped in hell and running for her life. She knows already being killed over and over would no doubt have an effect on her psyche in the future, but at least she would hardly remember it.

John was not so lucky.

Finally free from the Spectres grasp, his memories had returned to him… somewhat. His brain had still been damaged severely due to the virus corroding the rest of his body, leaving him with very few memories from before he was forsakened. He could vaguely recall knowing Jane and Builderman, but at the very least he remembered his child.

John could barely contain his own excitement when his gaze landed on Joan, now 2 years older than when he had seen her last. He was shaking all over and wagging his tail furiously when the two reunited. Joan had babbled and squealed excitedly, letting out broken ‘dadas’ and other adorable little sounds.

But escaping the Spectre was just one step in the long process for recovery.

As much as she wanted to, Jane knew she wasn't equipped to take care of John herself. While his memories returned, the virus was still actively eating him alive. He required a special facility, with professionals and doctors to care for him. So as much as it pained Jane, she returned home with herself and her daughter only.

She visited, of course, but the visits were always hard. The doctors had to amputate his right arm and remove his right eye to prevent the further spread of corruption, but the damage to his mind had already cemented itself. He still acted like a wild animal, now even more agitated and withdrawn ever since he was locked in a facility with strangers, unable to leave and see his family.

He would usually lay, curled up in the corner of his room facing the wall whenever Jane visited. His room was quite nice at least. The walls were a pastel pink, with many toys and other objects for John's enrichment. He used to have a bed, but the doctors came to realize he much preferred sleeping on the floor like a dog, so they opted to just fill the room with many pillows and blankets for him to nestle in.

Builderman visited the most. Unfortunately, it seemed that out of all the significant figures of John's life, he remembered Builder the least. It pained the man to visit his own creation, just to see no glint of recognition in his eyes. He persisted still, even if John refused to open up. Even if he preferred to wallow in misery and stay in his little corner, Builder would be there. Usually offering a hand of comfort on his back, or trying to urge him to eat or drink.

He fared a lot better when it was Jane and Joan visiting. He would immediately leave his corner of misery, switching up upon seeing the two. John and Joan would then proceed to spend most of the visit playing with each other, catching up on the years they spent forcibly separated. But Joan wasn't just there to play, she was also there for a very special reason.

Jane had suspected it before, considering Joan would always be relatively unharmed whenever she bumped into John's spikes or accidentally stepped in one of his dark puddles of corruption. Joan was seemingly immune to the corruption infecting John, which was actually great news for the doctors.

After amputating John's arms and eye, they were able to steadily shed the rest of the corruption by providing blood transfusion taken from Joan into John. The little child, only around 4 then, was afraid of all the needles and dripping, but she put on a brave face when told how much it would help her dad.

Jane was glad the facility was helping John, but she still felt so guilty for leaving John there. The guilt was especially raw whenever she and Joan had to leave, leaving John howling in despair, trying to scratch at his door to escape and get his daughter back. It had gotten so bad that at some point they provided John with a small stuffed doll as a stand in for Joan. It worked sometimes, even if John eventually figured out why his new baby wasn't crying or moving or nursing. Sometimes nothing could be done, and John would have to be sedated to prevent him from hurting staff or himself. It broke Jane having to hear the reports from the doctors during her visits.

But this was for the best.

Besides, Jane had her own problems to deal with.

Therapy was of course the first thing she signed up for, paid for generously by Builderman and the other admins. She still held some resentment for John for killing Joan in that one specific round, even if she knew deep down it wasn't his fault. Still though, sometimes she would be tempted to not bring Joan to visit, fearing for her safety, or hovering close whenever John and Joan were playing, convincing herself that John would snap and crush Joan again.

It wasn't just Jane who needed assistance, because now that Joan was out of the Spectres realm she needed to learn how to be a normal kid.

She was very fussy during her first doctor's visit of her life, but eventually Joan calmed down enough to be properly examined. It felt pretty awkward for Jane to have both a doctor and a zoologist in the room examining Joan, after all she wasn't entirely normal. That visit ended up providing some much needed insight on Joan. They figured out she needed glasses, that her horns needed filing monthly, and other things. It was a beneficial visit for Jane, now knowing more on how to properly care for her daughter.

Socialization was another issue though. Not many kids were too keen on hanging out with a toddler who had horns and fangs. Thankfully, the connections Jane had made with the survivors helped.

Sometimes Guest and his wife would bring over their daughter for playdates.

Sometimes Elliot would bring his younger sister over.

And if they had the time, 118o8 would come over with Bluudud, Pr3tty, and Coolkid.

They all loved her, of course, who wouldn't? Jane's baby was just the most perfect little angel in the world, no matter what some mean kids have to say about it. No matter if Jane bit and growled whenever her mother had to file down her horns and claws before they got too long. No matter if she still had the habit of biting her mothers hands when she needed something, even after learning how to speak. No matter if she had to take extra lessons to learn how to hold a utensil with clawed fingers.

Yes, no matter what, Jane's baby was just so precious, and she would never shame Joan for her shortcomings.

But it was just so hard to extend that understanding to John.

How could she? He killed their daughter after all, HER daughter. So after a few years, when doctors called Jane to discuss John's discharge, she wasn't sure what to say. Was she happy John had recovered enough to leave the hospital? Absolutely, but she also wasn't sure if she wanted John to move back in.

Not only would it not be fair to herself, but it wouldn't be fair to John either. She knows it would be cruel to allow him to move in with someone who held such resentment for him.

So while John stayed with his creator Builderman, Jane went to the only person she felt could understand her situation.

1x1x1x1.

She vaguely remembered the old virus from when she used to visit the banlands. Back in the old days when John was still missing, she hadn't been forsakened yet, and she still held onto hope that she could save her missing husband.

She remembered stories about the corrupted hacker, mainly from the admins, about back in ancient times where it had appeared in Telamon's old abandoned battle grounds, brimming with hatred and violence. Then he was imprisoned by Shedletsky, it was a common tale told around the headquarters.

The creation of hatred kept up its reputation in the Spectres realm, violently mowing down survivors without discrimination, being especially agitated by Shedletsky's presence.

For a while Jane, as well as the other survivors, had assumed it was because the winged admin had been the one to lock her up in the badlands, bruising her pride. So when the survivors had discovered that Shedletsky and Telamon were one and the same, and that 1x1x1x1 had been the swordsman's creation, abused, neglected, and imprisoned, suddenly the virus's hatred and rage became understandable.

It was especially bad for Jane, disgusted with herself that she had allowed someone like that around her daughter, holding her, playing with her. All the while he had a daughter himself that he had scorned and abandoned.

She didn't let him hold Joan anymore after that.

But what did surprise Jane, and everyone else to an extent, is when after being freed from the Spectres realm, 1x had agreed to live with Shedletsky and Bright eyes to heal.

It confused her, 1x hated Shedletsky, rightfully so, so how could she stand to live under the same roof as him?

Maybe, the answer could help Jane with her dilemma from John.

She decided to meet 1x1x1x1 at a cafe, a small treat on her part to thank him after learning of his assistance provided for John during the pregnancy. When 1x has arrived and taken her seat, Jane was taken aback by the former killer's appearance.

Before, back when Jane had constantly visited the banlands to see if John had been taken into custody, she would come across 1x behind bars. The creature always seemed to be on the verge of snapping, visibly tense and brimming with strength and energy. He was always painfully thin, to the point Jane mistook her for being an entire skeleton, with no skin or flesh to speak of. His hair was always long, unkempt and tangled, and his wings were hardly preened, always dirty and rugged. Her eyes always glowed a brilliant shade of blood red, and the only other color that graced her form was a sickly green, indicative of a lethal poison.

The virus sitting across from her now was different, in a good way. She had finally put some weight on her, arms and legs no longer resembling sticks. Her hair had received a much needed haircut, and was organized into a dainty braid with a few ribbons tied in. His wings also received a similar treatment, free of dirt and debris and neatly preened. No longer did his translucent chest glow an eerie green, the color changing to a soft fuchsia instead. His crown and cape were long discarded, now sporting soft clothed layers, handknitted scarf, and a makeshift paper crown that rested upon her scalp. Her posture was relaxed, almost tired in a way, as if she didn't know what to do with herself now that her life long goal of destroying her creator was no more.

Their conversation was pleasant, speaking at first of how the other had been, but eventually Jane had to bring up the reason for their visit.

John.

Surprisingly, it was 1x who had asked about him first.

“ Your husband, Mr. Doe was it? How is he?” 1x1x1x1 asked, lightly sipping on her tea.

“ He is… fine, just recently been allowed to discharge from the hospital,” Jane Doe mumbled, not meeting the creation of hatred's gaze.

“ Must be good news for you then?”

Jane didn't respond.

“ It is good news, isn't it?” 1x asked curiously.

“ I’m not sure how to feel about it,” Jane admitted.

“ On one hand, I’m glad he has been able to recover, but on the other hand,” Jane sighed, “ I’m not sure if I want him home…”

“ Oh?” 1x leaned toward the table, her once disinterested and tired gaze now urging Jane to continue.

“ It’s just, every time I try to think about the good times we had, to try and convince myself that I love him, my mind always goes back to that night,” Jane swallowed.

“ That night he killed Joan.”

1x nodded solemnly.

“ That’s why I asked you here,” Jane said, grabbing onto the swordsman's hand, “ Please, how do I exist with someone who I also hate?”

1x’s expression changed to shock, never in his life would he hear from Jane Doe that she hated her husband. Especially after spending so many nights searching through cold cells to find him. After so many treks through the woods calling his name out. Or her unwavering loyalty when forsakened in the Spectres realm.

To be quite honest, 1x wasn't sure how to answer Jane's plea. What was he supposed to do, talk about how much he sulked like a moody teenager in Shedletsky and Bright Eyes house until he was eventually used to them? That kind of knowledge was practically useless for the woman.

A while ago, the old 1x would have tried to make things worse. Try to feed into and stir up more hatred and distrust within Jane, and then revel in the chaos afterward. But he was supposed to be changed now, redeemed, and as much as he wanted to say ‘I don't know’ and leave, the desperate and pleading look in Jane's eyes didn't let him.

She needed to try at least, for both of them.

“ It’s- it was very difficult,” 1x1x1x1 sputtered, “ I mean, I wasn't even sure if I wanted to move on, or make peace with him or anyone at all. But Ironically, my time in the Spectres realm changed my mind.”

“ The spectre wasn't just my warden to me, it was also a vision, a vision of where I was heading,” 1x continued, “ A future that I did not want.”

“ Plus… I have to admit the other souls trapped with me made me soft, especially the children,” 1x smiled fondly at the memory of meeting them, how he tried so desperately to make himself seem scary to the kids, only to have them giggle at his poor attempts, “ And John… he was one of those souls.”

Jane perked up at the mention of her lover, “ He was?”

1x nodded, “ He always needed constant care, the virus took away most of his ability to upkeep himself, such as bathing, hunting, and much more. And unless we wanted an irritable, dirty, and hungry beast tormenting us in our rare resting hours, someone needed to be in charge of his health.”

“ I took it upon myself to bathe him, assisted his hunting, and made sure his bloodsoaked clothes were washed. At first I told myself I was simply doing it out of necessity, or some sort of selfish desire, but the more time passed, the more I found myself enjoying the act of caring for another, more than the act of taking a life.”

1x closed his eyes as he thought carefully about her next words, “ To take care and be taken care of, it was all I ever wanted. But I couldn't continue on my own, I needed help. Shedletsky, while I did, and still hate him, he provided that help.”

“ I realized that I couldn't heal the raw wound that Telamon left, without confronting the piece he left behind. I couldn't avoid Shedletsky forever, even if I wanted to. I may never forgive him, but if I truly wanted the peace I was looking for, I needed to confront him one way or another.”

1x reopened his eyes to meet Jane's grey orbs, now fully focused as she took in the creation of hatreds words, “ I know it will not matter much, but John was permanently broken since that round with your child. He would barely eat, barely sleep, constantly testing the limits of the woods to try and find a way to her. It goes without saying he feels guilty.”

“ Your fear, your hatred is more than understandable, but I believe it will do both of you good to be together again. That way, you can both find peace, together. Some days will be harder than others, but John, he is a good man. A better man than Shedletsky will ever be.”

“ And if I was able to find peace with that gluttonous and piss poor excuse of a father, then I more than believe you can find that peace with John.”

The words settled over Jane like a thick blanket. The confession of 1x’s continued hatred for his creator surprised her, but it did make sense. She couldn't avoid John forever, if she wanted to get past these ugly thoughts, she needed to see him again.

Besides, Joan deserved to grow up with her father.

Joan was excited the whole day when she heard her father was finally coming home. She had even drawn several welcome home cards for him.

John also shared in his daughters happiness when he stepped foot through the door of his home for the first time in nearly a decade.

He hobbled in with a cane, clutched tightly in his left hand. It seemed that John had gotten so used to walking on all floors that his legs had atrophied and could no longer support his weight at the moment. He had gone from crawling, to a walker, to crutches, and now a cane.

While Builderman and Jane moved in John's things, the man took the time to explore the home. There were many gaps in his memory, which was evident by his lack of recognition upon entering the house. He would sometimes walk over to certain paintings, pictures, and objects, eyes squinted in thought as though he was trying to make himself remember, only to give up with a small huff and turn away.

At one point he was focusing on a framed photo. Not just any photo, but a picture taken from John and Jane's wedding. His brows were furrowed in deep thought, meanwhile Joan had taken onto latching herself on John's leg like a little koala as Jane walked up behind her husband.

Eventually, John tapped a finger against the bride in the photo, “ You,” he said quietly as he glanced towards Jane.

She smiled in response, “ Yes that's right dear, it is me.”

John cracked a small smile at the praise, before turning back to the photo and tapping against the face of the groom, “ Me?”

“ Yes dear, that’s you.”

One of the many things John struggled with was image recognition. It resulted in him hissing at his own reflection and growling whenever a television had any animals on it. Joan would always giggle whenever the two walked by a hallway mirror, just for John to stop and proceed to have a hissing contest with the reflection. Joan would laugh and say, “ No dada that's you!” But John wouldn't listen. So it was good he was starting to recognize himself in photos again.

Johns frowned returned as he leaned to get a better look at the photo. He doesn't remember it being taken, nor the day's events at all. But he was in the photo, so he has to remember, right? However as much as he wracked his exhausted mind to try and recall even a slice of a memory, nothing came up.

He huffed in defeat before turning away from the image.

John was still having trouble getting used to sleeping on a bed instead of the floor, so Jane opted to reconfigure the guest room into John's own bedroom, for now. She did miss being able to nestle with John in her own bed, but the one night she did allow John in he took all the blankets and pillows to himself to create a nest, began digging into the mattress like a dog at 3 am, and eventually dragged the remaining cushions and sheets onto the floor where he curled up for the rest of the night.

For the sake of her own sleep schedule, they had to rest separately.

Nights were also very difficult for John. During the day, he functioned relatively well despite his traumatic experiences, but it was at night when the old him would return.

Briefly, he would have rare moments of waking up in the middle of the night, remembering all the horrific things he had done thanks to the virus, screaming and crying about hurting his wife and daughter. Jane would do her best to comfort him during these moments, and John would return to his usual amnesia-ridden state by morning.

When the sun rose, Joan would usually pester John into waking up to play with her. Then she would drag her father over to the living room where she would play while John practiced some exercises recommended by the doctor. Usually these exercises consisted of practicing writing and drawing with his left hand, of which Joan was more than happy to participate in.

He still struggled with language, and oftentimes misspelled written words. His speech was thankfully better, but he was still a very quiet and soft spoken man. He seemed to prefer using as few words as possible to get his point across. And of course, there were times when he regressed, shifting back into hissing and growling to get his point across, especially if he grew frustrated.

At one point, Joan was helping John with his writing practices. He was given a packet by the doctor to complete before the next visit, filled with relatively simple words to write and finish.

John was improving on his writing, there was just one tricky thing he just couldn't grasp. Curves.

Letters that had curves, like u, b, r, etc were difficult for John, as he couldn't keep his hand steady enough, usually resulting in sharp angles instead or very shaky and light results.

Jane, who was cleaning dishes nearby, could hear John audibly struggling, huffing with effort. At one point she heard Joan giggle once the girl peered over to check her fathers progress.

“ No dada,” she said, “ That’s supposed to be a u not a v!”

John squinted at what he had written down before huffing, “ It is.”

“ No it’s not, it's a u!” Joan replied with another giggle.

John frowned, “ It is a ‘u’”

“ Well it looks like a ‘v’,” Joan said.

Jane was about to speak up, to try and get Joan to back down and comfort John that he was doing just fine in his writing, but was interrupted by John letting out a low growl while arching his back. Jane had already set down her dishes to try and calm him down, but Joan had already began growling back at her father, also arching her back and her tail lashing. It eventually morphed into the two hissing and spatting at each other before Jane could convince John to return to the guest room to rest, which did eventually work in calming him down.

Once he was taken care of, Jane had to talk with her daughter.

“ Dada is so mean!” she huffed, “ Why is he like that?”

“ He’s struggling, you know that,” Jane said, “ Just be patient with him, okay?”

But Joan still didn't seem to grasp just how broken her father was, she was still young of course, and didn't fully understand what happened in the spectres realm, or just how extensive the damage to John's mind and body had been. She had only known John for the entirety of when he was sick, unlike the other adults in her life who knew him before, and had to watch his drastic decline in real time.

“ But it’s so easy! It’s just a ‘u’! Why can't he figure it out?” Joan complained.

“ And he will figure it out, these things just take time,” Jane soothed, “ Remember when you had to write with your claws? And those classes you took to help with that?”

Joan was quiet, still clearly frustrated but she nodded.

“ Well, your fathers going through something like that too,” she continued, “ But his claws aren't here.”

She tapped Joan's digits for emphasis, before tapping the side of her skull.

“ They're up there instead.”

Joan stood as the words sunk into her mind before nodding solemnly, “ okay… I understand.”

Jane smiled, “ Good, and you know he and I still love you right?”

Joan nodded.

“ I know this is a lot for you, it’s a lot for me too, and we’re all making mistakes, but as long as we learn from them, we’ll be okay.”
Joan looked toward her feet as she tapped her claws together, “ Can you tell him I'm sorry?”

Jane thought for a moment, before scooping her daughter up who let out a surprised squeak,
“ Better yet, why don't we both tell him that?”

The rest of the night was spent with the three watching movies in the living room, staying up far past Joan's bed time, but the parents didn't care at that moment.

That was a good day.

It was a really good day.

A few days after that, John and Joan had approached Jane when she returned from work. Both were looking very giddy, with Joan holding something behind her back.

“ Mama mama! Look!” Joan squealed as she revealed the mysterious content, a small piece of paper.

On the paper was a crayon drawn scene of the garden with Jane, John, and their daughter. It was obviously drawn by Joan, but what wasn't made by Joan was the writing at the top, a shaky but legible ‘Thank you Jane.”

“ Dada wrote the top allll by himself! He even made the ‘u’!” Joan said excitedly.

Jane only half listened to her, still in shock at the thoughtful gift. She hadn't realized it, but tears had already begun to form.

John took notice first, whining in confusion as he took her hand to try and comfort her.

Joan's face fell, “ Mama are you okay?”

Jane sniffled but immediately went for reassurances, “ Yes yes, i’m okay, god i’m more than okay, i’m just, uhm…”

John cocked his head to the side as he rasped, “ Happy tears?”

Wiping her eyes with her sleeve Jane smiled, “ Yeah… happy tears.”

There were a lot of moments where Jane knew she had made the right decision in taking John back, but that one right there, was one of the big ones.

Things may not be how they once were, but Jane's present wasn't so bad. And as time passed, John aged with her. He was still missing an eye and arm, despite Builderman offering prosthetics, John refused. Something about having had enough of being in and out of hospitals. He preferred wearing oversized sweaters to hide old scars inflicted either by the corruption or from silver cased bullets and sweeping blades and daggers. He had gained some gray hairs like Jane did, though it was only really visible on his beard considering he kept his head shaved.

Despite the changes, Jane still loved him. She loved all of him.

Jane took a seat in between Joan and John, leaning over to observe her daughter's activity.

“ Whatcha drawin’ there, honey?”

“ I’m drawing Mr. Coolkid,” Joan replied, too immersed in her task to look up.

Even after their time in the forsaken realm, Jane never forgot about the help she received from her fellow survivors while raising Joan. 007n7 especially, considering he himself had a not-so-human son. Those bonds did not wither after their escape, and Joan especially loved visiting her ‘big brother’ Coolkid.

“ It’s been a while since we visited Coolkid and his father,” Jane hummed, “ How about we go visit them, and you can show him your drawings?”

Joan's eyes widened as she looked up from her paper, “ Really??”

“ Yes really.”

“ YES YES YES!!” Joan giggled excitedly, bouncing her chair.

“ But-,” Jane interrupted, “ You need to get yourself dressed.”

Joan froze as she stared down at her pajamas. She frowned at her mothers words but still didn't protest as she quickly got out of her seat and dashed for her bedroom.

Jane perked up as she felt a soft hand brushing against hers, turning to see John with a small smile on his face.

Jane smirked as she pointed at John's nightwear, “ That means you too mister.”

The man wasn't deterred as he leaned his chin against Jane's shoulder, “ mm, ok.”

Jane hummed in agreement as she leaned her head against his own, rubbing his hand with her thumb. She could feel his heartbeat. Beating, low but alive, not tainted by corruption. As the moment lingered, Jane could both hear and feel faint purring emitting from John.

“ Did you sleep well, hun?”

“ Mm, yes, then crow got too loud,” John rumbled.

Jane giggled at her husbands annoyed tone, “ If you want, I can get you some earmuffs for sleeping.”

The man closed his eyes and nodded, now slightly kneading the table.

If she was honest with herself, Jane wouldn't mind if this moment lasted forever. Feeling the purring and gentle heartbeat of her husband, the sun shining through the window, the subtle noises of her daughter dressing herself from her room, peacefully quiet until…

“ MAMA! DADA! My claws got stuck in my clothes again!!” The young girl's cries erupted from the bedroom door.

Jane huffed a small laugh before turning to a now alert John, “ Do you wanna go to her, or me?”

John thought for a moment, before standing up and pulling Jane with him, “ Together. Let’s… both.”

The woman's smile widened further, “ Yeah, together.”

And upon that agreement, the couple made their way to assist their daughter.