Clemens' Email had brought a lot of relief to Molly and I. The fact that we would have to wait a month was disappointing in the sense that we'd have to wait, but we would have had to wait even if he hadn't told us. The relief was in the knowledge that Molly's pregnancy could be confirmed, and looking at some of what Clemens had sent, our instincts could be trusted. And since Molly's instincts felt that we had been successful in mating, there was only one logical conclusion to that. Molly was pregnant.
"So, I'd guess we were successful," I said with a soft smile and nuzzled Molly as I moved toward the stairs to change into something more comfortable then my uniform.
"Yes," Molly nuzzled me back, "We're going to have a family... I'm so happy!"
I slowly nodded. I felt very much the same way. Since my transformation I had had moments when I'd envisioned Molly and I raising twin cubs, and a good part of me had wanted to have that. Our cubs would never be human, but they would still be able to function in what was still a largely human society. Questions on how long that would last occasionally ran through my mind. Because the Animatrix Serum attached to all organs, hormones, and various bodily fluids it gained a function that was very much like sexually transmitted diseases. Mating between an Animal-Person and a Human would result in a new Animal Person.
In my case it wasn't a problem. A surprise, but not a problem. And after the various talks I had had with either Marcella or Amos, I had realized that even if it was revealed that the Animatrix Serum could be transmitted through sexual relations before Molly's and my wedding... I might very well have given up my humanity anyway to try and make Molly happy. And I'd guessed from Clemens' Email that a lot of those decisions were being made. One partner has the desire... and becomes an Animal Person and the other, out of love for his partner, either orders the appropriate dose for themselves or mates with their transformed partner. That all depended on the gender of the person who'd ordered the serum first and what species of animal chosen. If a man became an Elephant, either Asian or African, and his wife still wanted to have sex with him, she would need to become a female Elephant before such activity would be physically possible.
And for the moment,that potential issue remained one of the main issues related to the Animatrix Serum. As the present Animal People married, mated and had families, they would have children that would carry the Serum to people who weren't exposed to it earlier. It had the potential for the Human race to go extinct as they all become some species of animal. That would take a long time though, and I was sure Leon was working on some way to remove that "threat". And as I dressed, I hoped he would be successful.
Molly had returned to getting our dinner prepared when I made my way back downstairs, but as I reached the bottom of the stairs, there was a knock at the door.
"I got it!" I said to Molly and opened the door to find Dave and Veronica standing there, "Hey Dave... and little Veronica. What brings you here?"
"To see if you're okay," Veronica spoke from where she was, wrapped up in a very fluffy looking jacket, "we heard lots of noises."
I sighed as I heard Molly coming out from the kitchen. The Choir family didn't live too far away from Molly and I. We had tried to be as quiet as possible during our mating season, but we weren't entirely silent. Most of Columbia Falls was far enough away that our roars probably wouldn't be heard, or at least wouldn't be a problem. But some of the ranches and rural homes between our cabin and the town were close enough to get an earful. The Choir family's home was probably close enough for them to hear.
"We didn't scare you, did we?" I asked as I stepped aside to let Dave and his daughter in.
"Made lots of noises," Veronica repeated the last statement she'd made.
I sighed and glanced to Dave, who was quiet for the moment. It was unlikely that a first grader understood what sex was, and I didn't want to tell her, breaking her innocence.
"George and I were working on a very important project," Molly said to Veronica as she approached, "We're sorry if we scared you."
"What project?" Veronica wondered, now sounding curious.
"George and I were working to start a family," Molly told her, "we were talking to the stork to see about what sort of cub we'd like."
"Cub?"
"Baby tiger," Molly informed her.
"You're gonna have a baby?" Veronica asked.
"Yes..." Molly said.
"Can I see them?" Veronica wondered.
"They aren't here yet," Molly answered, "even George and I will have to wait until the summer to see them."
Veronica came forward and hugged one of Molly's legs.
"Tell the stork to hurry," she urged.
Molly chuckled and rubbed the top of Veronica's head. I meanwhile turned to Dave. I was sure that he and Tabby could guess at what Molly and I were doing and wasn't worried about our health.
"I trust you haven't come here to wonder if we were okay," I said to him.
"Tabby and I understand," Dave nodded with a half chuckle, "believe me. My "mission" was to see if you and Molly would be interested in coming up for a bit of a New Year's Eve party. We'll have some meat set aside for you and we can watch the ball drop... and we have a series of board games and other things to play... if you don't mind kids games."
"I don't mind," Molly spoke first, "I deal with a lot of kid's board games already... I'm sure you remember Veronica."
"Tiger Lady's the best!" Veronica said with a smile, still hugging Molly's leg.
"And even if we did, we'd probably have to learn to love kids games," I added, "we wouldn't mind. Though you may have to wait a little while... I am still scheduled to work on New Year's Eve. My shift will end before it gets close to midnight, but I'll still need time to change and get cleaned up."
"The party wouldn't inconvenience you?" Dave asked.
"No, it wouldn't," I told him, "we can manage it. We aren't required to go in on New Years Day, though we are on call... if something happens, we have to respond as quickly as possible."
That peaked Dave's curiosity on something.
"So how would you handle issues of drunk driving or things like that?" he wondered.
"Officer Howard will pick one or two officers out of a hat to run patrols in town during the day in terms of basic law enforcement," I managed a shrug, "so far, I've been lucky this year."
"So you're not the one assigned to work on New Years Day?" Dave asked to make sure.
"Not unless something big happens," I told him, "your party shouldn't be in the way of anything. Don't worry."
"Okay then," Dave nodded and collected Veronica's hand, "We'll see you in a couple of days, then."
"We'll be looking forward to the party," Molly said to Dave.
"And Tabby will be looking forward to giving you her congratulations," Dave said with a smile.
Molly and I then waived as they made their way out. As they got into their car and then continued on into town for something, Molly and I shut the door.
"Don't get yourself snookered at this party, George," Molly advised, her voice having a slight teasing edge to it.
"Me... snookered... perish the thought!" I teased back.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The next couple of days proceeded quietly with little real "criminal" activity. Which was a good thing as there were plenty of things that were going on in the back of my mind. They didn't relate to the New Years Party Dave had invited Molly and I to, but to some of the various things that would have to be done in relation to Molly's pregnancy. We would have to figure out who would be Molly's doctor for the pregnancy. Would we take a risk on the main medical clinic, as they would have the equipment, that we knew of, to handle a pregnancy, and would also have the knowledge of how to birth a hominid. While Molly and I weren't human, our form was still human like.
Or would we stick with Doc Stimson, the local vet who had given me my shots when I was first transformed. He would have the best knowledge of what hormones to test for to confirm that Molly was pregnant, and because his career had been to treat animals, he wouldn't have the potential "prejudice" about treating Molly and I as having to step beyond what he had studied in college and medical school. I was due in a couple of days to go in for my booster shots, I figured I could has him what he thought about that then.
As I made my way into the station early in the morning on December 31, I pondered over these things. So much so that I practically jumped when Officer Jenkins good morning from her spot at the station's desk.
"Jumpy today, eh, George?" Officer Barnes wondered as I clocked in for the day.
"Sorry... just thinking over things," I managed to shrug, "Like where would work the best to make sure that Molly is getting medical coverage for her pregnancy. You know... seeing someone at the clinic or going to Doc Stimson."
Officer Barnes nodded, probably remembering the emergency room physician at the clinic who had probably been a R.A.M. member.
"If this counts for anything, George," Officer Jenkins spoke up, "we've taken Megan in for her various check ups and so forth, and the pediatrician at the clinic was very friendly... her various vaccinations ultimately came from the Vet's offices, but the pediatrician did still see Megan and was very friendly with her..."
"It counts for a lot," I nodded, "though a lot of my pondering isn't limited to that ER guy that saw Megan after the Mountain Lion attack and her subsequent transformation."
Officer Jenkins slowly nodded.
"I'm not sure if our clinic here deals with pregnancies," Officer Barnes commented, "You might have to go to Kalispell. I don't know."
I slowly nodded. That was an additional concern, but one that I supposed I could confirm with Doc Stimson. Officer Barnes and I were about to head out when Officer Howard appeared in the doorway that lead to rest of the station from the front desk area.
"Officer Barnes, Officer Wayne, if I may have a moment before you head out, this morning," Officer Howard spoke calmly.
Officer Barnes and I acknowledged him and followed him into his office. He was quick to come to the point of the meeting.
"Before anyone gets nervous, nothing is wrong," Officer Howard spoke, "This is mostly an update on your situation with the DARE program."
"Have you found a permanent replacement, sir?" Officer Barnes wondered.
"Not yet," Officer Howard answered, "As I've said before, I can't actually begin looking until tomorrow at the earliest with the start of the new calendar year. A couple of candidates have applied, but it will be a little while longer at best before you would return to permanently to patrol work. The schools will come back from Christmas Break on the third... and the first interview isn't until fifth. So for the moment, you'll continue to work as the DARE officers until I can get through the interviews. If one of them is good enough, I'll let you know and the two of you will finish out that week."
"And the next week the new DARE officer would take over," I commented. It sounded like a question, but it was a statement on my part.
"Yes," Officer Howard nodded, "This is your official heads up on the matter."
"Thank you for letting us know, sir," Officer Barnes told him.
Officer Howard only nodded for the moment.
"That is all I have," Officer Howard then finished, "I believe the two of you have your shift to take care of... and have a Happy New Year."
We nodded and made our way out. That was fairly good news, as Officer Barnes and I both preferred the patrol duty then the DARE office. And with that update on things, Officer Barnes and I went about our day's duties.