Paradise of Infinity

Chapter 313: Daily Life Beyond: 3—The Note

Shoutout to Chrishenk, Prince Acheampong, MercerV12, Lawdan, DeoV, THE ONE ABOVE ALL THE LIVING TRIBUNAL, Steven Baldwin, Gkiller, and NSD for patron and subscribe star support!!

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"I don't get why I have to do it," Toph complains, equipped with a dirty rag, as she wipes the wooden door alongside Katara.

"Why not?" Katara smiles. "Everyone chips in for the cleaning. It's not like we have any servants." They can see Sokka mopping the floor in the distance. "And we can't expect Ty Sisters' servants to clean our manor, too."

"Oh, I get that," Toph frowns. "I'm not spouting bullshit like why I gotta clean stuff when it's going to end up dirty again. With that logic, I'd never bathe. But why do I have to use my hands? Can't I earthbend the dust away? It would be hard if I didn't have my eyes restored, but I don't have that problem anymore."

"Says the woman who never did Earthbend all the dust away, leading us to this point," Rena scoffs, wiping a nearby window pane.

"Back off," Toph snorts. "I have training, too. Gotta keep it up, or Nik will overtake me. Katara, you know the feeling, right?"

The waterbender deadpans. "He didn't overtake me. I'm still better in pure skills!"

"Sure, whatever you say," Toph smirks before sighing deeply. "I want to watch a movie. This is a waste of time."

"If you work more, we'll all be done a lot quicker," Sokka berates as he walks past the girls with his mop. "See? I'm already done with this hall."

"Mopping is easier," Rena retorts. "We're the ones stuck with wiping things more delicately."

Sokka smirks, but Katara cuts him off, "If you say something about how 'we're' supposed to be good at this kind of work, I'm going to waterbend wet mud on the floor for you to clean again!"

Rena giggles while Toph adds, "And we just gotta wipe things here. You have the entire floor to mop."

"Yeah," Sokka's shoulders slump as he leaves the area with a groan.

---

It's been some time since he cleaned his room. Nik's room is plain and decent if one ignores the two scroll paintings hanging from his wall. Michi's portrait was a naked one, while Ursa's was tastefully erotic. The two women didn't mind Nik possessing them. Michi gifted it to him while he found Ursa's likeness while scouring the hidden storage of the Fire Nation's Royal Palace. What Ursa did mind was him hanging it on a wall as one of his most prized possessions.

In Nik's defense—it IS one of his most prized possessions, along with the staff Aang gifted him. Heck, that metal staff was more durable than the wooden one, but Nik still wouldn't stain it with blood because it was a kind gesture from Aang.

No, that metal air glider rests near his bed.

So, with only these few things, Nik had an easy time cleaning his room. Then came the clothes.

He has an expansive wardrobe that sees little use in his personal space, given he is naked most of the time or in his training outfit and sparring with the girls. But he still has a load in need of cleaning ever since he left his homeworld.

"Like the usual," he chuckles, "Check the pockets and toss 'em out for washing."

It's Azula's and Zuko's duty for the clothes anyway.

"Maybe we should hire a maid," he mutters while going through his clothes, pulling snack wrappers from the pockets while tossing the load in a pile on the floor. The idea of hiring a maid floated around before from Mai's side. Unlike the true Royalty, Mai did live a comfortable life with many servants. Nik, Katara, and Suki played the part, too. But the idea of hiring someone from the developing village felt odd. It's not like they have a developed currency to pay others.

As awkward as it is, only barter exchange and the neighborhood's kindness sustain his personal space for now. They will have to do something about it. He wonders if he and Toph can metalbend the gold lying in their storage to generate the initial influx of currency before helping Yue and Sokka plan the price ranges of various products.

Anyway, things like inflation hardly mattered in the enclosed village.

His thoughts further wander to Roberta.

'She'd make a great maid,' he muses. 'Anyway, I'll have some time to convince her.' But is one maid enough? He didn't want to exhaust others. And he didn't think Revy would make a great maid in any capacity.

"Hmm?"

He uncovers something intriguing from his pockets.

"A letter?" he frowns. When did it get here? He doesn't even remember when he wore the pants or took them off, for that matter, for someone to sneak a letter.

He carefully unfolds the paper, glancing at the signed name at the bottom of the content.

—Mitsuko.

The content isn't lengthy enough, but glancing at the words freezes Nik's expression.

---

"Our tribe's tonic?" Katara tilts her head, confused as the rest of the girls at Nik's need to meet them all right away. Not that most of them mind, especially Azula, who's more than eager to leave as many loads of cloth to her dear Zuzu as possible.

"Are you okay?" Yue worriedly glances at Nik, who seems more dazed than necessary.

"I'm Nik," he mutters without giving much thought while glancing at everyone. His eyes stay on their abdomens for a lot longer.

"It works," Kya asserts, meeting the eyes of other mothers in the room. They seem to understand something at once before oddly staring at Nik.

"Nik," Michi licks her dry lips. "Did something happen?"

Nik glances at the woman before looking down at her stomach. The mother of two unconsciously covers it before shaking her head.

"R-Right," he gulps to parch his dry throat.

"He got someone pregnant!" Jin gasps in surprise.

"What?" Nik snaps at her. "How did you know?"

"You did?" Suki and others stare at Nik with wide eyes.

"Well," he avoids their gazes. "I think I may have ignored the possibility of your tonics not working because my stuff isn't normal."

"Something important to overlook, don't you think?" Mai narrows her eyes.

"Now that you mention it," Suki frowns. "I've been feeling a little weird."

"You are?" Nik's eyes widen as Toph scoffs. "Can you not panic? I thought you used Seismic Sense daily. She isn't pregnant. None of us are."

"Way to ruin a good prank," Suki deflates as Poppy claps her hands, "It's nothing to make fun of. It's a solemn situation, especially for Nik."

"So?" Katara prompts with a complicated look. "Who is she? Someone from the homeworld or those two women you slept with a few days ago?"

"Mitsuko," Nik lowers his head. "She wrote a letter and slipped it inside my pocket. It basically said she was on time with her medicines, but she found she was pregnant a few days before I was due to leave."

"Hmm," June crosses her arms. "I wouldn't worry about us getting pregnant. We've been at it for longer. If Katara's tonics didn't work, at least one of us would get pregnant by now."

"But it still speaks more about the situation," Katara frowns. "What if your next evolution makes the tonic pointless."

"Just jizz out," Toph shrugs. "We have a guzzler to clean our mess."

"I'm going to sear your tongue one of these days," Azula narrows her eyes.

"She didn't name anyone," Mai scoffs, stating with a bland stare. "You just assumed that role again."

"Girls," Ursula frowns before staring at Nik. "So? Did Mitsuko say something else?"

"Something about understanding if I don't want to see her again or take responsibility," Nik mutters while staring at the paper in his hands. He shakes his head before pocketing the letter. "I know I have enough time to work things out in my head. I just wanted to see you all as soon as possible and clear things out."

He looks at them, forcing a smile. "And I'll try and find some other things in the outside world to prevent any accidents."

"I don't think condoms would work with how much you dish out," Azula smirks.

"She is right," Yue jokes. "Your best option is abstinence.

"Let's not be hasty!" Jin yelps, earning herself stares from the rest as she shrinks back with a wry giggle.

"Maybe Mitsuko is the one who should practice that," Michi smirks weirdly. "She looks young enough to be her eldest daughter's sister and still got pregnant. I won't be surprised if she gave birth to another daughter."

"I'm calling the right to name the first baby!" Toph snaps at once.

"You can't call something like that!" Nik scoffs.

"I just did."

---

"There he is!"

Nik hears Sokka's cheer. Truthfully, he heard their steps before the Chieftain called out for him. He continues patting the curled Ignit, who croons and wisps of smoke bursting through her nostrils. Nyla is not far from the Dragon Lake, resting by some fragrant flowers and enjoying his power nap.

"We heard," Zuko prompts. "That's rough. I suppose you're as unfortunate in your homeworld as you are on the Islands."

"Shove it," Nik scoffs.

"He is right, Zuko." Sokka frowns. "This is a delicate situation. You can't treat Nik like a baby."

The two men break into cathartic snickers as Nik's expression falters.

"It's not the first time I've been a parent," Nik smiles maliciously. "Remember, my two talented kids?

Sokka and Zuko stop laughing until they release sighs of their own.

What a fucked situation to be in.

Are they fated to have Nik hold such leverage on them?

*Hnuffff*

Ignit lets out a steamy huff, prompting Nik to continue rubbing his hand on her scaled face,

"So?" Zuko questions as he walks near the lake to check the condition of his dragon egg. "Azula said you looked pretty bummed out."

"Yeah," Sokka nods. "We can't have you feeling down for any reason. I might sound cruel, but many lives depend on you. You need to be in the best mental condition possible. Knowing there are other monsters like 'Lava Head' doesn't make me sleep easy."

Understanding where he's coming from, Nik doesn't find Sokka's concerns cruel.

"I'll live through guys like Lava Head if push comes to the shove," Nik promises with a smile. Everyone in here will always be more important than anything out there.

"That's good," Sokka shares the grin before patting Ignit and hearing her snort.

"Well," Zuko returns, nodding, "we understand you would like some time alone to clear your head. Don't let us bother you any further."

"Thanks," Nik smiles as the duo leave.

He exhales only after ensuring the two men are out of earshot before huffing and hugging Ignit's head. "Haa! Mitsuko, you saved me from cleaning day."

A kid?

Is he going to be a father?

Swell.

Or no. Nik doesn't know what to feel about something that may take months for Mitsuko and years for him. But he is glad about the news. It got him out of the cleaning day. And he hopes his unborn child continues to be his lucky star from now on. Nik will need all the luck he can muster if he is to survive and return to meet Mitsuko.

'A father, huh.'

He closes his eyes, enjoying Ignit's warm scales. 'It's kind of scary. But I'll make a good parent with Mitsuko. Not that the bar was any high for me with Esta coaching me in the ways of life.'

***

Alternate Title: Nik's Canon Event—Baby With Mitsuko; Spring Cleaning; Toph May Be Onto Something; Hiring Maid?; Barter Economy; A Kind Hood; An Important Note; Sokka About To Dish The Most Disrespectful Joke Ever *Katara Pulling With The Spider 2099 OST*; Toph Wants To Netflix and Chill; Abstinence? *Jin Sweating Nervously*; Jin Seeing Through Most Things At Once; Sokka And Zuko Can Never Live It Down; Prized Possessions; Priorities; Sokka Being Chill and Calm; The Lucky Baby; Suki: This Feels Like The Best Moment To Prank Someone; Mitsuko Pumping Her Numbers Up; Nik's Butterscotch Is Something Else; Sneaking Out of Cleaning Duty; A Lucky Charm; Zuko: Damn, That's Rough

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