Star and Sky did grudgingly agree that trying to become ‘normal’ again was a tiny fraction better than being hunted down and murdered. So once again, they found themselves back at the experimental house that they had already lived at from the time they were fourteen to sixteen; prior to the year of sexual slavery on pain of torture that actually made them long for those two years again.

Brie insisted on once again having to work with Connor simply for the sake of making sure that Star and Sky were treated as humanely as possible. She was still adamantly opposed to them giving up their powers, and doubtful it would even work. But she felt even more strongly about making sure that the two wouldn’t be subjected to anything like the year Sky had recounted for them earlier.

Star and Sky sat somberly on the couch waiting on the only parents they had ever known to begin running their battery of tests for this phase of the experiment that was their lives. Neither were overly happy about this so-called cure, but they were at a loss for what else they could even do at this point. But as they waited, Star tensed up as she had an incredibly dark thought about the possible outcome of the situation.

Always keenly aware of Star’s body language and mood, Sky looked over at her with his own worry, “yes?”

Star took a breath as she tried to decide if she should even voice her fears, considering it was unlikely to help the situation. But once she glanced over at Sky and their eyes met, she had to tell him what she was the most scared of right then. “Brie said we got our powers from this weird DNA they used to make us, right?”

“I seem to recall her saying something like that” Sky replied with some attempt at using sarcasm to lighten the mood, not that that was remotely possible.

“But she also said that this weird DNA was why we’ve always been drawn to each other, even when we thought being together was the most horrible thing we could do” Star continued.

“Yes...and?” Sky returned, eyes narrowed.

Star took a deep breath, nervously looking at the door where Brie and Connor would eventually reappear. Forcing her voice to work, she dared to share the biggest fear in her mind right then, “what if suppressing these special genes...what if that not only stops our powers but also...” a shaky breath, “but also stops the way we’re drawn together; the way we feel for each other?...What if it makes us stop loving each other?” Star sniffled. It was more than obvious that she would never be able to survive in a world without the love she had always felt for Sky. And now there was a possibility of that becoming her dark new reality.

Sky paled a moment at that thought himself. But he tried to press past it, “DNA doesn’t determine who you love. Come on, Star” he told her as he gently covered her hand with his.

“But she said it. She said it was the reason we were drawn together!” she repeated as a few tears broke through to the surface, “what if ours does?”

Sky moved closer to place an arm around her as she moved to cry against his shoulder. He took a deep breath of his own, trying to find something that would calm her, “do you honestly think you and I could ever stop loving each other? I mean, think about all the shit we’ve already endured. And we still love each other more than anything else in this whole fucked up world. Do you honestly think anything could ever change that? Really?”

After a few more long moments of Star’s tears as Sky tried to hold her and comfort her, Star finally spoke again, “well if it does change the way we feel about each other...then both these plans will end with us dead anyway. Because I won’t live in a world where you and I aren’t in love. I can’t.”

Before either of them could keep imagining any more of that worst case scenario, Brie and Connor did return to the ‘house’ portion of the building with an update on their progress. Connor was the first to speak as Brie just looked on with continued discomfort over the entire plan, “well, we’ve managed to make two new baby rats with regular rat DNA and the same ‘special’ ingredient we used to make each of you” he then glanced at Brie before continuing, “since she convinced me that we needed to start fresh and mimic your own life cycles before being able to truly determine if the gene suppression would even work on the two of you at this point.”

“And that means, what? For us?” Sky clarified.

Brie sighed before speaking, “we were able to make rats who seem like any other normal members of their species. Just like you two seem like any other normal...humans” she managed. “And, just like the two of you, they appear to be completely drawn to one another already” she continued as Star seemed to bite back more worry as she listened. Brie then moved on, “but we will have to wait until the two rats hit puberty before we can fully mimic the...changes you two have undergone since hitting it yourselves.”

Sky scoffed slightly, “so now we have to wait on your lab rats to become teenagers?”

Sadly, Star spoke up, “and how long will that take?”

Brie was the one to give a reply as Connor seemed more interested in his phone right then, as he always did when it came to speaking with his children, even before they knew they were actually his test subjects all along. Shaking her head at Connor, she answered, “rats generally hit puberty in six weeks.”

Sky and Star let out the same sigh of disapproval before Sky spoke again, “so, again, we’re just stuck in this fucking house full of cameras for another six weeks. But now it’s just to wait on rats to get old enough to screw?” he shook his head, wishing he had another cigarette right then.

“You have somewhere else to be?” Connor mumbled as he continued checking his messages.

“Trust me...” Brie began, only to see them both glare at her in response to those words, before she moved on, “doing this with the rats first, to see if it even can be done with the two of you; it’s the safest way to try it at all. It’s much better to have some idea of the results before we try doing anything directly to either of your own genes.”

“So, we just sit here and wait for another six weeks” Sky repeated with another shake of his head.

That was when Star interrupted with the same sadness permeating her tone, “since the rats are your experiment for now, not us; at this point anyway” she had to add, “can you at least turn off the cameras in whatever room the two of us will be staying in?”

That did do well to bring Connor’s attention up from the phone, “that’s seriously all you two ever think about, isn’t it?”

That remark received a glare from both of them then, and as usual, Sky spoke first, “actually in the four fucking months since we killed all your torture happy, pedo pervert friends, we’ve had sex with each other exactly once; and that was just earlier tonight cause we had to try to fry all your little bugs. So, kindly, go fuck yourself” Sky bit out.

Brie tried to hide what was almost a smile at the last portion of Sky’s statement, but quickly hid it as she answered, “yes, Star we can turn off the cameras in one of the bedrooms while we wait on the rats to mature” she agreed, causing Connor to simply scoff as he returned his attention to his phone yet again.

“Apparently they aren’t just ‘always on,’ huh mom?” Sky called her on that.

Brie simply sighed and looked away, not sure how apologizing for yet another lie was likely to help this time either. She then turned her attention back to Connor, “so we’re done for the night, right?”

“I suppose” Connor returned with disinterest, finally putting his phone away.

“Well. I can check in on the rats this week and you can go back to, whatever else you’re doing at the main lab; and we’ll see you in six weeks then?” Brie told him pointedly.

“Gee, Brie, are you trying to get rid of me?” Connor smirked.

“Well, if I wanted to deal with you during non-lab hours, we’d still be married, wouldn’t we?” she returned smartly.

“So funny” Connor retorted, then continued, “and let me just remind you; this is my experiment. You didn’t even wanna be part of it til they agreed. And I’m the one letting you even assist at all, considering you’re no longer on the payroll” he reminded her with an insincere smile, “so I’m pretty sure I’ll be coming and going as I please. Kay, thanks” he added smartly before moving to gather up his briefcase from the stand nearby. “Have a nice night kids” he told them as he took a step toward the main door, then added, “see you soon” and with that, he made his way out of the building into the hot summer night once more.

After another frustrated sigh, Brie moved to retrieve her own purse, only to be stopped as Star stood and moved to reach for her arm, “did you have another question, Star?” Brie asked quietly.

Star took a breath, “actually, yes.”

“If it’s about the cameras, don’t worry, I promise to turn them off in your room on the way out” Brie assured.

“Not just that” Star replied, eyes down again.

“Then what?” Brie asked, concerned.

“What you said, about our special DNA being the reason we were drawn together...” she began, as Sky looked down at that worry being mentioned again.

“What about it?” Brie returned softly.

“So, will suppressing it... Will that make me and Sky stop loving each other too?” she forced those words out again as tears began welling up at the thought once more.

Brie seemed more than a little caught by that question, it obviously not being as foremost in her mind as it had been in theirs; a sure sign that she herself never appeared to have known the kind of love these two had always had for one another. Most people never did.

“Um” Brie began, definitely thrown by the question. She tried to quickly think of any response she could, but decided that honesty had to be the only course; especially after seventeen years of dishonesty and what it had all led to. “Star, honey...” a slight breath, “I honestly don’t know” she gave the sad answer, rather than making an educated guess about the outcome, as that surely wouldn’t be the answer that the two of them wanted to hear right then either.

“So it could?” Star returned with more tears.

Seeing her sadness and worry, Brie tried her best to turn on parent-mode again, as horrible as she and Connor had always been at that, “that’s the problem with doing something that’s never been done before; like we did when we made you. All we can do is guess at any outcome. Nothing we did with you has ever been done before, so we can’t just look at previous cases to determine what could happen. There are no previous cases” she answered sadly.

“So it really could make us stop loving each other” Star repeated as she turned away to wipe at more tears.

“And it’s not like you can determine that with your little rats, can you?” Sky finally added, his voice breaking as he bit back his own tears once she confirmed that there was an actual possibility of Star’s fears not being as unfounded as he had hoped they were.

“Documenting human emotion in rats---” Brie began.

“That was sarcasm,” Sky interrupted as he stood to pull Star into his arms as she continued crying against his chest.

Brie averted her eyes as though she was almost feeling their sadness then too. After a few more moments of Sky and Star continuing to try and comfort each other, futile as it may have been, Brie spoke again, “The two of you don’t have to go through with trying this suppression thing, you know. There’s always the other option.”

Sky scoffed, “The option where we just run until they kill us?”

“I know neither is really a good option,” Brie conceded sadly. “I don’t like either myself. But this one might at least keep you alive. That’s one thing Connor was truthful about.”

That was when Sky spoke again, “And a life without the love of the one person who was literally made to be your soul-mate? How is that a life?”