Mother
They were in the middle of a council meeting.
Beside the Jabari throne, sits the Princess and the Protector of Wakanda, the Black Panther.
The Black Panther's legacy lives in Shuri.
She was called upon to return to protect Wakanda's peace when they received intel that the Americans and France were about to take action. To destabilize Wakanda again. And she needs to be here. Wakanda needs the Black Panther's protection.
So, she had no choice but to come back, ensuring Nakia and Toussaint would be safe and watched over from Haiti, she had called upon Okoye to watch over them for her.
Hence, now she sat beside M'Baku, King of Wakanda, discussing and laying forces with the tribe leaders to deal with the impending invaders.
It was fucking cold here, Shuri kinda hates it.
And oh, along with the annoying glances that lingered on her since she arrived.
They were discussing their plans, along with Wakanda's only ally, Talokan.
Namor, or K'uk'ulkan of Talokan sat across among others.
Shuri bet he wasn't listening. He's going to kill every surface dweller that steps into his domain anyway.
"What do you think, Black Panther?" And Shuri is still… somewhat not used to bearing the title of the mantle.
It doesn't feel right.
"Aside from you suggesting we lock them with your monkeys and gorillas, I have no objections to your plan, my… king ."
M'Baku has been a good king. A king that Wakanda needed desperately at this moment. A better ruler than she is. He is doing extraordinarily well as King of Wakanda when she was away in Haiti for months.
But it doesn't feel right.
"Anything you want to add, K'uk'ulkan?" M'Baku asks Namor.
"No." He turns his gaze away briefly to look at the King of Wakanda to answer him.
And back to Shuri once and for all.
"Same as my previous request, once they step into our waters, no mercy."
"That is not going to happen," Shuri added, looking at Namor with determination.
"We'll see," he smirks.
"If that's all, I need to go feed my monkeys and gorillas! Dismiss!!" M'Baku dismissed everyone.
"Shuri, stay."
Shuri lowers her head, waiting by the side as everyone leaves, Namor looks at her one last time, before flying out of the throne room and Jabariland.
"What is it, my king ?"
But it doesn't feel right.
"Stop it, Shuri, cut the courtesy! So, how is the spy doing?" M'Baku munches on his carrot, asking how her stay in Haiti was. No one knows about Toussaint yet… for now.
"Nakia's doing fine, I…" Shuri answers him nonchalantly, and her mind wanders.
The Black Panther. King of Wakanda.
It doesn't feel right.
It didn't belong to her.
It didn't belong to M'Baku either, no offense though.
It belongs to T'Challa.
No matter how long she lost him.
"You are doing that face again, Shuri."
"What face?" She raises her eyebrows at M'Baku.
"The "I know I am worthy as the Black Panther but I'm not as worthy as the Black Panther like my brother once was" face."
Shuri was curious how M'Baku didn't bite his tongue saying all that.
"Your brother, T'Challa will be proud. So does your mother…"
Shuri lowers her gaze, her panther habit necklace hangs around her neck, reminding her how long she came. How much she lost.
"You've become more talkative and reasonable in a good way, my king." She teases him, "Looks like being king has changed you into a better man, M'Baku."
"Oh, please." M'Baku exasperated.
"And Shuri? Stop exchanging intense glances with the Fishman, your mother might rise from the grave."
Now she has to take them back. Shuri gasped at the accusation, "When did you become so observant and disgusting?" She did not do any of that, it was Namor!
"You two are just too obvious, even a blind can see it!" M'Baku waves his carrot around exaggeratedly.
"It's not whatever you think it is, M'Baku, I still want him dead, if I could…" Shuri sighs.
"But I swear to Hanuman that your heart doesn't lean that way anymore."
…Shuri hates it when he is right.
"Shuri, do not worry too much."
How could she not? This is Wakanda they are talking about, their home, their everything.
M'Baku gives her one final counsel for the day.
...
"We live up to their legacy, that's all we strive to do."
...
Her family's legacy, her father's, her mother's…
But all Shuri knows she could never live up to her brother's legacy with a broken heart.
"Princess, something has entered the dome—"
Impossible. Not so soon! There's no way the Americans could get into their defenses without alerting their security.
"GRIOT, aerial surveillance."
GRIOT displays every aerial surveillance—
Something- or someone, is falling through the skies— and disappeared. Their surveillance only caught a glimpse of the occurrence.
"Calculate the direction and range of that fall, lock down the area, keep it discreet, I'll handle it." Shuri gave out orders, examining the weird occurrence herself.
She found nothing in the area. As if it was a glitch in their security systems.
"Princess, this is not good. Just now, the whole lab had ceased operation for ten seconds, but upon inspection, there was no data loss—"
Shuri had a bad feeling.
"Activate the security protocols, we might have been breached. Report this to the King right away."
"Yes, princess." The Wakandan ended the call and was going to report her instructions, but he was struck down and rendered unconscious on his way out.
Two people sneaked into the lab and temporarily suppressed this information. Two people who could blend perfectly in the lab with their already white lab coats and kimoyo beads bracelets on their wrists.
"Oh my Bast, we are in deep trouble this time, Kinich! Mama's really going to kill us this time!!" The girl said to the boy beside her, where they quickly hid the passed-out Wakandan in a confined space.
"At ease, Zyanya. Instead of worrying about Mama and Baba scolding us, let's find the others first. Once we get into the system, we'll be able to locate them." Kinich, the boy, hacks into Wakanda's central system as easily as he was the one who created them and starts running calculations.
The girl, Zyanya can't help but grin from ear to ear during all this and proudly exclaims to her brother,
"I can't believe we've actually opened a portal to another world! Another alternate universe! What Mama and Baba had always talked about with the Avengers band!"
"We really did, sisi. I bet Mama and Baba are going to be so proud. Aside from being mad, of course. But the crucial thing is that in this world, Mama and Baba aren't together yet! I don't see any footage of their royal wedding anywhere in the database! And that's what concerns me!" Kinich rolls his eyes and gags every time Mama and Baba tend to show them the footage of their royal wedding.
It was grand. It was beautiful. It was his parents. Just that they are just wayyyyyy too much sometimes— Kinich is tired of watching that lovey-dovey cheesy wedding footage in their lab, their home and everywhere else where Mama and Baba did it on purpose to annoy the heck out of them! He 'hates' it as much as his elder brother and sister 'tired' of listening to their parent's love story over and over again for years—
"Why?" Zyanya was so confused. She knows the full story and understands that not all universes work the same, so it's totally fine if Mama and Baba are not together in this… even though she thinks Baba and Mama are fated with each other.
Kinich looks at her, sighs deeply, and voices out his worry…
"How do you think our mother here would react if she saw us?"
That she had children with someone she now couldn't love,
or could never be able to love with,
and all there was was only heartbreak, hatred and nothing else.
And not just two.
They were the first to land in Wakanda.
"Act cool, T'Amor! Act cool!" The young woman speaks to the young man beside her in hushed tones as they walk around the market in Birnin Zana.
"We are wearing cloaks and hoodies, Kiri, we look suspicious from head to toe, duh!" The young man who is called T'Amor holds hands with his sister as they stroll around as normal as they could be.
"It's not that I wanted us to dress like a Jedi! They are the only clothes I have in my backpack! We were going to attend the Wakanda Gala, remember?!" The young woman, Kiri, pinches her brother's arms hard.
"And got sucked into the portal that Kinich and Zyanya materialize from an ancient relic dug from the sea by Tadeas and Taavi, great— the night is going to be soooo great—" T'Amor sighs in defeat and looks around cautiously.
"At least no one recognizes us…" Kiri tried to be optimistic despite the mind-blowing situation.
"I don't think we even exist in this… timeline or universe, Kiri. Look…" T'Amor points at something high, and Kiri lifts her head to look at it.
It was a mural… of their late Uncle T'Challa.
It was still very new, not like theirs where it was still preserved well, but time has left its presence on it.
"For Bast's sake, T'Amor, so are we back in time, or we went to another alternate universe or world thing?"
"I don't know, Kiri, all I can worry about now is the other's whereabouts and safety. Baba and Mama are going to kill us—"
Their kimoyo beads suddenly buzz in sync.
"Wait! Wait! I got a signal! It is… it's Kinich! He's with Zyanya! They are at the lab and are locating us from everywhere…"
"Everywhere? Don't tell me—" T'Amor grunts and pulls Kiri behind a wall when guards are patrolling.
"Erh… if you're thinking what I'm thinking… yes." Kiri thinks this day couldn't get any worse.
"Kiri? T'Amor? You hear me?"
"Yes, we can! Are you both alright?" The eldest twins of the family check on their younger siblings immediately.
"We are fine, Zyanya and I. We were teleported right outside of the lab." Kinich's voice rings through their jade kimoyo beads earrings.
"Looks like the moment we were sucked into the portal and we were all separated in pairs, we are still looking for the little ones…" Zyanya's voice comes through.
"And we fell from the sky! Onto that beach!" The twins complained simultaneously. "And almost bumped into our mother! I mean not our Mama but our mother from here—"
"WHAT? DID YOU?!" Zyanya and Kinich gasped from the other side.
"No, of course! We flew out of her sight right after she reached where we landed! She didn't see us…" Kiri taps on his shoulder, signaling they should continue moving.
"Kinich, find the little ones as fast as you can, we will meet up and find a way to get back home." T'Amor squeezes Kiri's hand assuringly, she squeezes back, and they will get back to their world no matter what.
"Hmm… Suku'un… do you want to know where the other two are…?" Zyanya sheepishly utters.
T'Amor and Kiri looked at each other, Chaac… please protect those two.
"Let me guess, Tadeas and Taavi landed in Talokan?"
"T'aan."
Tadeas and Taavi looked at each other…
Chaac, they are so doomed…
The both of them had no idea what happened after being sucked into the portal with their siblings.
The moment they opened their eyes— they saw…
"...Baba—"
"Baba!"
...
Namor didn't know how to react...
Whether it was the sudden appearance of two children in his hut or them calling him 'Baba,' everything left him speechless.
The children were breathing without rebreathers, their skin didn't turn blue, and they weren't his people. Not Talokanil.
But they were like him.
The boy and the girl looked just like him, especially the boy. It was as if he was a mini replica of him…
Namor wondered, what in Chaac's name is going on????????
"Speak." He repeats.
Tadeas and Taavi gazed at each other, they were sure this man who looked just like their Baba was not their father the moment he opened his mouth…
Baba never talks to them like this! This imposter is so scary!
"What are your names?" Namor changed his tactics when he saw his tone had clearly frightened them…
The children look at him warily.
Tadeas and Taavi hold their hands tightly together… Nuh-uh! They finally remembered Mama and Baba's lesson on not telling strangers their real names!
"What did you two just call me?" Namor tilts his head at them, he asks softly this time.
"...Baba."
"Baba…"
The two children immediately relented.
"Am I?" Namor chuckles and smirks slyly at them, ridiculed by this whole situation.
"No, you are not our Baba… no father will ask the name of his own children." Tadeas was sure, he swore on his corn chocolates hidden under the bedrocks and in a jar of paint at the lab.
"Baba will never talk to us like how you talked to us… you were so… rude—" Taavi finally looked at this fake Baba openly, gazing right into his eyes without fear.
Fierce little thing, huh? Namor chuckles.
"So, how did you two end up here then?" Namor beckons them to sit with him by the pool, and they sit obediently, kicking their feet in the water.
"We got sucked into a por…" Tadeas squeezes Taavi's hand hard, telling her to shut up with his eyes, they can't be sure if this fake Baba is a friend or foe!
"We have no idea, we just want to go home…" Tadeas answered him calmly. They've been through too many shenanigans all their life, this? It's nothing!
"Where are you two from then?"
"Talokan."
"Talokan."
They both answered in sync.
"You are here , in Talokan." Namor teases.
"But this is not our home…" Taavi pursed her lips.
"Not the Talokan that we were born, nor grew up in." Tadeas shrugs.
"Hmm, quite clever for such a young age, I wonder where you two get that from?" Namor is impressed by how they went from frightened little kittens to a very calm demeanor in just a short period.
Looks like their father raised them well…
"Got it from our Mama—"
"You always said we look like you but act totally like Mama—"
And they slipped. Looked at him in disbelief. Namor smirks slightly. He had baited them successfully.
"So, one last question…"
Tadeas and Taavi swallowed slightly and felt a consistent buzz on their wrist. Their beads are buzzing crazily. It's their siblings calling.
"Who is your mother?"
…His wife, to be exact. Namor looks at them expectantly.
But Tadeas and Taavi looked at each other and lowered their gaze, not daring to look at their fake father anymore.
They grew up listening to their parent's stories, and the first thing they knew was that once upon a time, Mama and Baba had wanted to kill each other.
But as Namor scans them from head to toe, he notices the bracelets on their wrists, the necklaces around their necks, and the earrings on their little ears.
He had already… guessed his answer.
His ears twitched and his wings fluttered, this whole situation had gone out of his control.
And now he sees it. They resembled her too. The glint in their eyes.
He was skeptical… to even believe it. But here sat a boy and a girl that resembled him. Them.
And the fact that she could've loved him.
That Shuri of Wakanda fell in love with him.
Namor wonders… Did the other him not kill her mother?
But judging the children's reluctance to speak anymore, he guessed the other him most probably did, and just got lucky.
Luckier than him.
And maybe a lesser asshole.
The little ones, Namuri and Shukan rested on top of the Bashenga statue, catching their breaths and resting for a while. The last thing they remembered was falling into darkness. As they groggily woke up near their vibranium sun, they remembered their Mama had mentioned a party tonight and told them not to stay out too late. So, they swam back home, taking a brief rest on Bashenga before flying back to the palace.
Finally, just after they turned six years old, Baba and Mama gave them the free pass so that they could roam freely on their own!
They didn't need their brothers and sisters to accompany them everywhere anymore! They were so happy they finally grew up. So, they also heeded their parents' words all the time to avoid them taking them back.
"Shuku, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight?" Namuri asks.
"Five, Muri, Mama is waiting for us!" Shukan replies.
"Kulungile!" Okay! Namuri agrees.
Soon, after resting for five more minutes, they wiggled their ankles and once their wings didn't feel as sore, they continued flying back home.
And saw their big sis and big bro are… fighting with the Dora Milaje? Do they have training today???
T'Amor and Kiri ended up being interrogated because they just looked way too suspicious in the crowd.
"Take off your disguise, abantwana. We need to ensure you are one of our own." With the recent events, the Dora Milaje and guards had kept an eye out for every living being walking on the lands of Wakanda more strictly.
But T'Amor and Kiri couldn't take their cloaks off…
Their pointy ears and winged ankles would give them out immediately.
So they ran.
"Chase them!" And so, they quickly separated and started running swiftly in the Birnin Zana, the city they grew up in. They knew every road, every secret passage, and every path leading to their home with their eyes closed.
But they couldn't run any longer when their mother from this universe stood in front of them to block Kiri's way.
"So, Americans or France?" Shuri asks.
And the girl under the hoodie chuckles in response.
I'm so fucked up, Kiri thinks.
She steps into the sky immediately, flying straight towards the palace. And saw that T'Amor was fighting off three Doras on the landing pad.
Oh, he'll be fine~
Soon, numerous royal talon fighters surrounded her in the air. She doesn't want to hurt them, but she's going to try to render the fighter powerless and drag them to the river.
But an incoming fighter collided with them, and the two fighters were stuck together like magnets, and the next moment, the fighter that had weapons locked on her was deactivated and forced to land on the landing pads abruptly.
"Got your back, sisi!"
"One down, two to go!"
It was Kinich and Zyanya!
Kiri zooms past the other two fighters that were chasing her and gives them a soft kick, sending them spiraling to Kinich and Zyanya's aircraft to let them handle it.
She swiftly lands beside her brother and finally, Kiri and T'Amor stood back to back, fearless.
Kiri grabs her vibranium spear from her waist and it springs to life, ready to fight.
"What took you so long?" She bumps their winged ankles under their cloaks.
"You know I can't hurt them," T'Amor murmurs under his white hoodie, twirling his vibranium spear in his palm casually.
"Where did you get the vibranium!?" Dora Milaje interrogates them. It was Auntie Ayo, Auntie Nomble and Auntie Yama.
"You wouldn't believe us—"
The two cloaked figures refused to comply. And they fight.
The Dora Milaje was no match for the twins.
T'Amor and Kiri were all the people before them.
"Stand down." T'Amor holds down Auntie Nomble and Auntie Yama.
"Please." Kiri aimed her spear at Auntie Ayo's throat but moved away and reached out her hand to her instead, offering a truce.
"T'Amor, Kiri, WATCH OUT!"
"Ayo, NOW!"
Kiri's spear was instantly electrified, causing her to release it in pain, and she was instantly tackled by—
Shuri slams the cloaked figure onto the ground, her punch is halted abruptly just an inch away the moment their hooded face is revealed when she knocks them down…
It was a child.
"Kiri!" T'Amor reacted as fast as lightning, controlling his strength and strikes toward the arms of the Black Panther sideways, he was sure his strikes wouldn't hurt much, only enough to sway his mother from another universe away.
Shuri dodges immediately, reacting swiftly too and engaging in a fight with the other cloaked figure. Her mind racing in her discovery—
These two cloaked figures are children, well trained with vibranium spears— there's no way the Americans could produce them—
Shuri orders the fighter to shoot bullets at her as she absorbs it, slamming the kinetic energy on the ground to mess up the invader's insane footwork,
T'Amor immediately shoots up to the sky and suddenly reappears to land behind her back, sweeping Shuri off her feet but she flips away effortlessly.
She grunts behind her mask, this one can fucking fly too! There's no way they are spies from the Americans! They probably had superpowers too because they could take her punches. Also, Shuri had recognized something strange along the way.
They fight like Dora Milaje, there's no doubt about what she sees in them. And also—
"Duck! T'Amor!" Kiri lowers the intensity of her gauntlets from her bracelet and beams them at Shuri to render her motionless for a moment.
"Stand down, please! We mean no harm!" Kiri immediately stops when she sees the Black Panther— Shuri kneeling in pain on the ground, she had the lowest intensity on, there's no way Mother would be affected greatly—
"Kiri! Watch out!" In an instant, Shuri had flipped behind her and the next second Kiri was flipped hard and placed flat down on her back, her ankle being grabbed in the vibranium-clad palm.
"Bast, not this trick, urgh!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, calm down, Black Panther, no more fighting, okay!" T'Amor throws his spear away and surrenders, raising his hands as he walks close to them.
Then he was swept off his feet and placed flat down on his back as well, his ankle being grabbed as he lay beside his sister.
"Geez, I hate it when Mama does this trick—" T'Amor curses under his breath.
"It was all Baba's fault, I swear—" Kiri lays exhaustedly beside him, gazing up at the figure that loomed on top of them.
Their hoodies were being torn away the moment they got flipped and swept…
Hence, Shuri gazes at them in astonishment when she scans them cautiously…
The two children reminded her of someone. A very specific someone.
She asks straightaway,
"You two are Namor's secret children or something? Why did he hide you all this time?"
T'Amor and Kiri burst out in laughter at the attempt, which is true, just one thing she hasn't gotten right so, oooohhhhhhhhhhh, the drama of it when their mother from this universe finds out that—
"Princess, we located another two invaders, permission to bring them down—"
"Code Red, fire at all will—"
"Suku'un! Sisi! Mama!" Namuri and Shukan fly on top of them, calling out excitedly. They were watching them training with enthusiasm all the while!
"FIRING NOW—"
"WAIT—! TELL THEM TO CEASE FIRE AND STAND DOWN GRIOT—" Shuri shouts as she tries to deactivate the weapons with GRIOT immediately.
"Shukan! Namuri! Get down now!" Kiri yells at them when T'Amor immediately gets up and slides to get his spear, throwing it out immediately to damage the wing of the fighters, but it is too late, the missiles were fired— Kiri's spear was too far, and he couldn't deflect them without it. Nor they could run, the missiles would follow them and the innocents would die—
He zooms back to his sister who hold their youngest siblings in her arms as T'Amor and Kiri immediately calls out their suit to take the hit—
And they were being embraced by the shoulders and tucked into a pair of warm arms. Their mother from this universe, Shuri, had wrapped them under her arms, facing her back to the incoming missiles, wanting to take the hit too. They know she would be fine with her suit but—!!!!
This is their mother. They would die for her if need be.
"MAMA—!!" "MOTHER!!"
In an instant, several things happened. The fighter that fired at them was tossed by a fierce gust of wind, spiraling away like a loose kite.
A wall of water suddenly rose high between them, shielding them from the incoming missiles as they exploded on the water barrier.
Zyanya and Kinich managed to stabilize the out-of-control fighter, allowing for a safe landing. Then, they rushed out and ran towards their siblings.
"T'Amor! Kiri!" Mother!
"Namuri! Shukan!" Mama!
They run behind the water barrier—
And found all of them safe and sound…
"Thank Bast, thank Chaac, that was CLOSE!!"
"You guys are UNBELIEVABLE! WE MADE A SCENE AGAIN!"
Shuri looked at the suddenly formed sky-high towering wall of water in disbelief, then turned to glance at the four children she was shielding behind her.
They were safe. Including herself. She suspected instantly that one of them formed the water barrier out of nowhere to protect her— Wait, what did they say just now—
Shuri reached her hand toward the water wall, and it gently wrapped around her approaching palm, enclosing her within its watery embrace. Then, a gentle breeze encircled her, infinitely tender, like caressing a newly sprouted bud.
"Are you okay? Are you good?" Kinich almost bumped into Shuri while checking on her, but Zyanya tugged him just in time, looking at their mother from another universe worriedly. "Are you hurt? Bast, we are sorry for all this trouble…"
"No, I'm not hurt… I'm fine…" Shuri responded slowly… They let out a strangled breath and nodded at her.
She looked at the two children rushing towards the other four. Shuri suddenly was dumbfounded—
She stared and stared, now the six of them huddled together, Shuri was rendered speechless—
Among the six children, four of them looked incredibly similar to her…What on Bast's earth????????????
This included the two youngest who appeared strikingly like her but had wings on their ankles and cute pointy ears…
Shuri only remembered a certain someone who possessed those two one-of-a-kind characteristics…
Shuri shakes her head in denial—
—Bast, I refused to believe this.
This was the funniest joke she had ever witnessed in her entire life.
And the cruelest.
A loud thud landed behind her, behind the water barrier, and Shuri turned over to see what more cruel jokes the universe had for her—
Shuri was bumped into by two children, causing her to stagger backwards repeatedly, she planted herself on the ground, looking downwards to see—
"Mother, are you hurt?! We heard the explosions!!" Tadeas hugs her waist tightly.
"Mama, are you okay?! Where did you get hurt?! Let us take you to the med bay!!" Taavi buried her face in her mother's chest worriedly, gazing up after Mama did not reply to them.
"What?" Her voice never came.
Shuri couldn't respond to them… What they called out to her earlier…
She wasn't their mother, and she wasn't a mother.
Someone who couldn't even be a good daughter, a daughter who can't even save her own mother— how could she be a mother?
Shuri stared at them in silence…
Oh Bast, now she figures, four are like her… the other four… are like… him.
Tadeas and Taavi noticed one thing immediately when they looked up at their mother.
Mama has long braids, not short…
"...Wait, you arenot…ourmother, right?"
"...Teddy… I think we got the wrong Mama… again…"
Tadeas and Taavi sheepishly leave her embrace but hold onto her hands tightly.
What is going on?
Shuri wanted to bury herself into the water barrier and drown— but she saw him instead.
Namor stood on the other side of the water wall, the vibrant movement of the water reflecting the contours of his deep-set features.
Namor watched Shuri and the children in her arms silently, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. Yet, she also caught it, the slight hint of his unease and being caught off guard.
The children left her embrace and rushed towards their siblings.
"What is going on here!!!" Tadeas yells.
Shuri wants to know too.
"We called the wrong Baba!! And then bumped into the wrong Mama!! Twice!! It is embarrassing!!" Taavi howls.
Namor smirks slightly, indeed, it was…
And they all started chattering on their own, leaving Shuri and Namor to stare at each other, super awkward— when they probably DIDN'T KNOW WHERE THEY CAME FROM AND FOUND OUT THEY HAD EIGHT KIDS squealing behind her.
Something tugs on her sleeves, and Shuri turns her head—
The baby girl that looks like a clone of her but with winged ankles and pointy ears beckons her… Shuri kneels to meet her eye level.
And then, the baby boy even tugged Namor to their side, as he too, kneels to meet the child's gaze.
"You are not our Mama? Why? Then where is our Mama?" Namuri looks so sad at this fake Mama.
"No, I'm not…sorry…" Shuri tells her apologetically, softly patting her little face.
"Suku'un said you are not our Baba… But you look like our Baba…" Shukan gazes sadly at this fake Baba.
"Le chan paalo', have you ever heard in this big universe that has many worlds, there are as many different versions of us? Just like in another world, there's also a 'you,' maybe the same, maybe the different, like how I'm not your Baba in this world…"
Namor comforted gently, patting the child's head. This baby boy looked exactly like her but had his ears and wings— life truly is a marvel.
Shukan nodded casually, his gaze not that sad anymore… and so did Namuri.
"Okay… so where can we get our Baba and Mama back?" Namuri asks quietly, she misses them already.
"Can you help us find our Baba and Mama?" Shukan tugs at Namor's pinky finger, asking politely.
Both Shuri and Namor finally looked at each other, it was like lightning struck them—
They would do anything they asked.
"I'm sorry, the little ones just miss our father and mother all the time." T'Amor scoops Namuri up, letting her rest after conjuring that strong wind.
"Sorry, they always have a million questions to ask, guess it runs in the family." Kiri scoops her baby brother up, "Shukan, time to let go-" She holds him towards the water barrier, and the moment Shukan touches it, the water barrier falls, making everywhere wet.
So it was these two that sent the fighter spiraling away and conjuring a water barrier. It was… unbelievable…
"I'm sorry our arrival made a huge mess, I would like to apologize on behalf of my siblings…" Kinich goes through all the diplomatic protocols he is used to.
"We were fumbling in our lab and accidentally opened a portal and it led us here. May we ask for your permission to find a way to get back home with your labs?" Zyanya bows slightly to Shuri and Namor, hoping they understand.
"Yeah, sure… I can help on working the portal with you guys…" Shuri offers in kind.
"If you need help, Talokan is always welcome," Namor nodded at them.
"Thank you, K'uk'ulkan…" Kinich gratefully nodded, referring to their father formally.
"Thank you, Que-Princess Shuri…" Zyanya remembers their Mama here is still a princess.
Suddenly, the air crackled with a sound, Namor and Shuri abruptly turned around, instinctively pushing the children behind them. The space before their eyes twisted and tore open, revealing a strange, black elliptical object. Soon, voices emanated from inside.
"Is this the one?" T'Amor's eyes light up, it's Baba's voice!
"Haiti again? Why do we keep ending up in the same spot across different worlds?!" Kiri's eyes light up the same way, it's Mama's voice.
"Ha~ I think I might know~"
"Oh, shut up, you— Our children were sucked into nowhere and you're teasing me!"
"We'll find them, don't worry, Shuri."
"That's easy for you to say when I told you to let go of me! What world are we in now?"
"We can't go back anyway, so let's explore everywhere."
"And it's not like you just followed along, Namor! We agreed that one person goes and one person stays!"
"I couldn't let my wife get sucked into the portal while I just stood by."
"Urgh- Wait! The signal here has been beeping like crazy. They might be in this world!"
"Let's go outside and take a look, get behind me, Shuri—"
"And let you take a slime attack in the face, yeah, sure, why not?" She giggled when that happened, Namor took a hit in the face when it was meant for her as he pushed her behind him, it wasn't lethal at all, fortunately.
Two people stepped out of the portal.
"For Bast's sake, Earth-199999? Weren't we from there? Another 199999? Did we go back in time????" Shuri taps furiously on the hologram screen from her beads, checking it still showing the same numbers. It doesn't make sense!
Namor noticed the others the moment he stepped out. He calls for his wife who is busy murmuring to herself behind him.
"Um, Shuri? In yakunaj, I found them." Namor's floating heart finally found its resting place. As long as they found them, there was nothing more to worry about. Well, they can worry later about how they are going to return to their world when the moment they step out, the teleport closes and disappears behind them… oops.
Namor gazed at the six little ankles standing behind two figures, with two of them sporting wings— it was them. Their babies.
"What!" Shuri finally jumped out from behind him, meeting face-to-face with another pair of themselves…
Four identical people stared at each other.
"This is a bit awkward… Namor– say something—" Shuri nudges him sneakily, she doesn't want to end up saying something triggering when they don't know anything about this world! So Namor does all the talking—
"We're here to find our children. Have you seen eight kids who look like both of us?"
Shuri facepalms beside him. It is always a baaaad idea to let Namor talk first, Shuri never learns her lesson. And they are them, their children look like them too!
Shuri and Namor silently moved aside as they watched the family reunite.
And then, the children all rushed forward, shouting, "Mama! Baba!" in unison.
All eight children rushed into their arms, Namor and Shuri held them tightly, feeling truly overwhelmed this time.
"T'Amor, Kiri, Kinich, Zyanya, Tadeas, Taavi, Namuri, Shukan—" Namor named them one by one and Shuri checked to make sure they were all there, holding them tightly, her precious little ones.
Shuri clung to Namor and held their children close, no longer afraid even if they were stranded in a different world— they would endure the hardships together.
He looks at their little faces and chuckles helplessly, "All of you really scared your mother and me this time." Namor pouts slightly at them, using their own spells against them to protest.
"Do you all know when we received your distress signal and watched the lab playback? It was terrifying! We thought we might not find you all!" Shuri finally remembers to be angry! Her hands on her hips, the children all pout at her in unison. Great! Now they all looked like him! Shuri doesn't know whether she is charmed or angry at this point!
"Once we arrived, all we could think about was how to get back home." T'Amor whispers, as the eldest, that he needs to get them back home.
"We are sorry, Mama, Baba for making you worry… we were scared because we know you guys are going to be scared too," Kiri buries her face in Baba's neck.
"...Don't be scared, iintsana zam. You all should know that no matter where you are, your father and I will always come find you." Shuri comforts them in the end, she can't be totally angry at all because…
"Uxolo, Baba, Mama, we messed up again…" Kinich scratches his head sheepishly.
"And we dragged everyone into it…" Zyanya was saddened, as they wanted to be better like Baba and Mama, but they always messed up.
"Shuri~ Did our bebés create a multiverse portal?" Namor, their father, grins ear to ear at them.
"My children! Just as clever as me, huh?" Shuri proudly takes all the credit this time.
Kinich and Zyanya's downcast expressions immediately dispersed, replaced by shy yet joyful smiles. What could be prouder and more joyful than having their parents proud of them?
"Baba! Baba! You won't believe what happened, we embarrass ourselves! When we woke up at home, we called the other you 'Baba'!" Tadeas eagerly tugs at his father, wanting attention too!
"Then we came here without paying much attention and called the other you 'Mama' too! And we rushed into her arms! It was so embarrassing!!" Taavi buries her face in her mother's shaking embrace.
Namor and Shuri shake their heads in amusement, they look up to their… younger selves. Pretty sure the kids gave them a heart attack.
"Mama, Baba, I missed you…" Namuri hugs Baba's neck tightly, feeling safe and sound.
"Mama, Baba, we are so ki'imak," happy, "—you find us." Shukan hides at the other side of his neck, nuzzling his little face.
"Of course, your Baba and I will always find you no matter where you go, right?" Shuri kisses their little foreheads, soothing them softly.
"Now, come back here, T'Amor, Kiri, they are just doing their duty."
During their reunion, countless guards had surrounded them, awaiting the princess's judgment. Their eldest son and daughter guard them in the center, circling around their family like sharks, ready to protect and strike.
"Tell them to lay low before we make them." T'Amor never lets his guard down.
"We won't make the same mistake again, Mama." Kiri taps her spear on the ground nonchalantly, twirling casually.
"Ch'ah, deal with your kids!" Shuri thinks it's time to have a good talk with the versions of themselves here.
"I wouldn't dare to handle them, princess. I can't forget that, can I? Our stubbornness seems to have doubled in them," Namor teased.
"Why are you always right?" Shuri took his hand as they marched forward in unison, their fingers firmly entwined. Side by side, they walked towards their counterparts in this world.
"It's not that I'm always right; it's just that I'm rarely wrong." Namor banters… oh no, in the children's words, he flirts with their Mama all the time.
"Hmph… you show off~" Shuri looked at him and smiled smugly.
Baba Namor and Mama Shuri stood in front of their counterparts, with their children behind them. The curious little ones peeked out, glancing at them and then back at their parents.
Namor and Shuri continued to gaze in silence, numerous questions swirling in their minds.
Shuri glanced at her husband and Namor gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, then nodded firmly.
Shuri looked at the other him and… yes, he seemed to like this version of herself in this world too, she chuckled inwardly.
Shuri then looked at herself… and yes, she was still the heartbroken version of herself.
Countless emotions swirled in the eyes of the two, with the younger woman displaying a guarded and somewhat unclear mix of emotions. In contrast, the older woman gazed at her with clear and gentle eyes.
Shuri spoke firmly to the two of them and inquired,
"What do you know about the Multiverse?"