Rebirth Pt. 01

********

The next morning, as everyone gathered around for breakfast, Rhea stirred her oatmeal unenthusiastically.

Ashley raised an eyebrow. "Mom? Are you okay?"

"Hm?" Rhea looked up at her distractedly. "Oh, yes. I'm fine, dear."

She didn't look convinced, but she didn't say anything. The rest of the meal passed in silence. After they were finished, Zach quickly excused himself to return to the farm.

Ashley stayed. "Mom... Did you read something in that book? Is there bad news?"

Rhea hesitated. "No. At least... Nothing to worry about."

Ashly folded her arms. "Okay, so what's bothering you? You hardly ate your food, and you've been distracted all morning. I haven't seen you like this since we were kids."

Rhea shifted uncomfortably. "It's not appropriate to discuss... Especially with my daughter."

Ashly scoffed. "What's that supposed to mean? Look, are you going to tell me or do I have to figure it out for myself?"

That was no empty threat. She really would figure it out. Rhea sighed. "It's just... Here. Let me show you."

She retrieved the Dweller's Handbook and opened it up to the page. "This says that I took an oath to save the human race."

"Okay... So what's the problem? You're doing great so far."

Rhea winced. "It says that if we have the resources, we must repopulate the Earth."

"Uh-huh."

Rhea waited for the light to click on, but it never came. "We technically DO have the resources."

Ashely stared at her blankly. "We do? Alright, then we repopulate. I'm still not seeing the issue."

Rhea blinked. "What?"

Ashley tilted her head. "What, you don't want to get pregnant again? Is that the problem?" She snorted. "That's kind of lame of you, not going to lie."

Rhea stared at her daughter, aghast, until it dawned on her. "Ashley, how do you think human's reproduce?"

Ashely frowned. "Certain women become pregnant and give birth."

"Do you know how they became pregnant?"

Ashley tilted her head. "They take birth control pills. Right?" She narrowed her eyes. "Am I missing something?"

Rhea buried her face in her hands. Of course she wouldn't know. The Event had occurred before they were old enough for the Talk. Afterwards, they had kept so busy and they were both so capable that she just figured that they had figured it out. In hindsight, that was rather stupid.

No matter how intelligent her daughter was, there simply wasn't any material that would have said anything about sex! She couldn't be expected to figure it out!

Rhea sighed. "It's... a bit more complicated than that."

Ash settled into her Mom's lap and snuggled up against her chest. "Then tell me. You have never really talked about it."

"Well, first of all, it requires a man."

Ash processed that quickly. "Does Zach count? I guess so because you said we have everything we need. Still not seeing a problem."

Rhea wrapped her arms around Ash. "Not just any man. A lover. Like a husband."

Ash nodded. "Ah, I see the problem. But we don't have any of those."

Rhea remained silent as it slowly dawned on Ashley. "Wait, you mean that you'd have Zach as a lover?"

Rhea winced. "I'm getting too old for children. And that's exactly the problem. I can't just have my children..." She trailed off, uncertain of how to continue. "Anyway, I refuse to fulfill my oath. That's that.

Ashley pondered on that. "You don't seem very at peace with that conclusion."

Rhea shrugged. "I'll get over it."

Ashely raised an eyebrow. "It took four years for you to get over not getting Zach a pokemon card for his sixth birthday. Like it or not, Mom, you hate broken promises."

"This is different!" Rhea exclaimed, exasperated. "I didn't know what I was agreeing to!"

Ashley climbed off. "Keep telling yourself that. Maybe one day it will work." She kissed her mom's cheek. "Good luck. I'm headed off to the library."

Rhea grimaced and rested her chin in her hands as Ashley left. She would find a way to get over this.

She had to.

***************

Ashely frowned. Mom had gone to bed early, complaining of a headache, but Ash knew the truth. She was still stressing over breaking a promise - even a promise as stupid as that one.

She glanced at her brother, who was eating his hotdog across the table. "Hey, Zach. Have you noticed that something's up with Mom?"

He looked up at her. "I guess so. I figured you guys had a fight or something."

Ash rolled her eyes. "Not exactly. She discovered that she's breaking a promise."

Zach tilted his head. "What? What promise?"

She folded her hands and rested her chin on them. "She said she needs us to reproduce."

Zach choked on his hotdog. "Excuse me, what?"

Ashley shrugged. "Apparently she took an oath that she would do whatever it takes to repopulate the planet. And since she's getting too old, she needs me to have a kid."

Zach frowned, brushing the crumbs off of his uniform. "So what do you need me for?"

Ashley hesitated. "Apparently men are needed for women to become pregnant. She didn't go into detail, which is strange, but she did make one thing clear." She leaned over the table suddenly to put her face right in front of his. "She said we needed to be lovers for it to work."

Zach's eyes widened and he gulped. "L-lovers? Seriously? I thought that siblings couldn't be boyfriend and girlfriend!"

Ashley sighed and sat back down. "Apparently, they can, even if it's kind of weird. Look, I hate the idea as much as you do, but I hate to see Mom like this. It's been weeks now. If we don't even give it a shot, I think it's going to haunt her for the rest of her life."

Zach grimaced. "It only has to be for a little while, right?"

"From what I understand, probably. Couples do get divorced."

He thought on that for a moment. "Fine. If that's what it takes to get Mom back... I'm in."

She smirked. "Just don't expect me to get all cuddly-duddly with you."

Zach scoffed. "As if."

They sat there in silence, contemplating what they just agreed to. Finally, Zach spoke. "So... What do we have to do?"

"I guess we ask Mom."

*************

Rhea laid in her bed, one arm over her eyes. If only Grina had made it in time. They weren't the best of friends, but right now she'd be grateful for ANYONE -- she had a niece and nephew, Rhea was pretty sure. If either of them was here, the answers would be easy.

Maybe they hadn't taken incest into account? Deep down, she doubted it. They had made it pretty clear that aside from outright homicide, they wanted the plant to continue.

With her promise aside, would it be worth it? All of humanity's future rested on her shoulders. They were, she was feeling more and more confident, the last humans alive. Could she really let humanity die because she was squeamish about her children?

Maybe they could just wait until the door opened. Then they'd be sure there was no one else, no other alternative.

But wasn't that just rationalizing, delaying the inevitable? The moment that door opened, they wouldn't be safe anymore. If either of them got hurt or died, that could end everything right there. No, if she was going to force them to procreate, it would have to be before then.

But could she go through with it? She wasn't sure. The very idea made her want to throw up. Their tear-stained faces, the look of betrayal as she pushed them into something unnatural... She shuddered at the thought.

A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts. "Yes?"

Ashley pushed the door open. "Hey, Mom? You're still bugged about that promise thing, aren't you?"

Rhea pushed herself to a sitting position and smiled sadly. "Yes, dear. Is there something I can help you with?"

Zach followed his sister into the room. "We were thinking-" he began, but his sister cut him off. "This needs to stop. We talked it over, and we think we can do it."

Rhea froze. "What did you say?"

"We can become lovers to reproduce, at least for a little while. But, uh," Ashley glanced away, "We don't really know what to do. Do we just have to say that we've lovers, or..."

Rhea shook her head slowly. "You don't know what you're saying..."

Zach set his jaw. "We don't care. You made a promise. Besides, we aren't going to live forever. We know that we're probably the last survivors. And..." He sighed. "We really want our mother back."

Rhea stared at them for a long moment. All thoughts of their crying faces and betrayal faded. She hadn't given them enough credit. They were old enough to make their own decisions, now. She should have realized that they could handle this.

But... there was still so much they didn't know. Would they still agree if they knew? She didn't know.

Rhea smiled at them. "If that's what you want, we'll start tomorrow."

They glanced nervously at each other. "Don't worry too much. Either of you can back out whenever you want, alright? I'm not going to force you to do anything you don't want to." Just saying that eased the tightness in her stomach. "Okay?"

Zach seemed visibly relieved. "Thanks, Mom."

Ash narrowed her eyes. "How long is this going to take?"

Rhea sighed. "That depends on a lot of things. For now, get some rest. We'll talk in the morning."

Ashley hesitated before nodding. "Okay. Goodnight, Mom!"

"Goodnight, darling."

When they left, Rhea fell back onto her pillow.

What had she just agreed to?

**************

Breakfast the next morning passed in tense silence. Ash and Zach exchanged nervous looks the whole time, which only served to amplify Rhea's anxiety. The kids dismissed themselves quickly to go off to their separate chores.

As Rhea did the dishes, her doubts quickly ramped up. She couldn't do this. It was obvious that they weren't completely comfortable with it, and even if they were, that didn't make it right. She was their mother for pity's sake. She was supposed to protect them from such things!

She took a deep breath. No. As their mother, she needed to respect their decision. This wasn't just a casual thing, after all. They were discussing the fate of the world. She hadn't even asked them to do it. They had volunteered.

She turned her mind to how she was going to give the Talk. It would be awkward for sure. She didn't have any convenient textbooks or models -- after all, if there were any in the library, Ash wouldn't have been confused.

The last thing she wanted was for them to be uncomfortable. Sleeping with your sibling would be cause for alarm by itself. Add to that that it was their first time, and it became a nightmare. Not even knowing what sex was before you started? They would be scarred for life.

She ran out of time to plan. She had only constructed a rough draft by the time dinner arrived. As she cooked up the quesadillas, she attempted to finish organizing it, to little avail.

Dinner was no better than breakfast. If anything, the silence was almost suffocating. Rhea took some deep breaths to calm the nerves in her stomach. "I guess we won't be eating much tonight, right?"

Zach gave a pained smile at her joke, but Ash didn't even look up. Rhea sighed. This was going to be difficult.

Suddenly, Zach stood. "I'm not hungry. I'm ready." Despite his apparent nervousness, he managed to sound confident. "Are you ready, Ash?"

She didn't answer for several seconds. "Fine. Let's get this over with." Ash stood and looked to Rhea. "Where are we going?"

Rhea nodded. "Let's go to the living room." They all trudged to the well-decorated room.

A large couch sat in the middle of the room, facing a useless TV. No movies had been stored here, and they hadn't brought any. It was for the best, Rhea supposed. No distractions.

They all sat on the couch, a foot or two apart. Ash bit her lip. "So... How do we start?"

"Well..." Rhea began, but her voice caught in her throat. Their expectant faces seemed scared. Her old fears started creeping on her again.

"Let's start with... hugging!" She threw her plans out the window. "It's been a while since the two of you have hugged, right?"

They glanced at each other. "I guess..." Ash said slowly.

Zach opened his arms awkwardly. Ashely scooted over and slowly leaned in, wrapping her arms around him. Zach let out a deep breath as he took her into his arms.

Ash's slim frame fit perfectly into Zach's tall, built one. She nearly disappeared beneath his strong arms as they held each other. As Rhea watched, their embrace went from tentative to relaxed in a manner of seconds.

She smiled as the tension evaporated. She couldn't remember the last time that they had touched at all, much less hugged each other. She had been a bit confused about Ash's love languages, but watching them, she was pretty sure it was the same as her brother.

Zach's eyes closed as he savored a hug from his sister. They slowly started rocking back and forth as Ash buried her face into Zach's neck.

After a few minutes, Zach pulled away. "That was nice."

Ashley yawned and stretched. "Yeah, that wasn't too bad. Geez, mom, you had us so worried."

Rhea winced. "Oh, we're not done. That was just the beginning."

Ash gave an exaggerated sigh. "Fine. What do we have to do next?"

Rhea hesitated. "Well... Now you have to kiss."

Zach flinched while Ash groaned. "Seriously? I was hoping that was optional!"

Well, it technically was. Actually, she wasn't sure why she was having them do that. Maybe it would ease them into later steps?

"If you're not comfortable with that, you can always step out."

Ash pursed her lips, thinking.

Zach took the opportunity to chime in. "Chicken," he muttered under his breath.

Ash turned her head to look at him. "Excuse me?"

Zach shrugged. "Are you doing this or not? This is the kind of thing I was braced for, but if you are having second thoughts..."

Ash darted forward and took his lips with hers in a quick peck before turning away. "There, we kissed."

Rhea shook her head. "Longer than that, dear." She couldn't believe she was having this conversation. She shifted, ignoring the building heat in her core. "You know that doesn't count."

Ash scowled but turned around. Scrunching up, she touched her lips to his. They sat there, stiffly kissing each other, for a few seconds before Zach pulled up. "Like that?"

Rhea rolled her eyes. "No. Here..." Her heart was racing. "Let me show you. That will probably be easier."

She stood and crossed the couch to sit beside her son. She wasn't doing this. No. This was crossing a line. Rhea ignored her brain and leaned forward.

Zach tensed as her lips touched his. Gosh how I've missed kissing. She kissed him tenderly, softly. It's okay, dearest. You don't have to be afraid.

Slowly, he began to relax. She moved a hand up to cup his face and pressed in, intensifying the kiss.

He grunted in surprise and started responding. Rhea shivered when his lips met hers -- truly, not just physically.

She allowed herself a few more seconds before her screaming conscience pulled her back. Her cheeks were warm. "Like that."

Ash stared at them, her cheeks a bright red. She seemed somewhat upset, which worried Rhea. "Go on. Teach your sister what you've learned."

Ash opened her mouth to comment, but not before Zach leaned down to capture her lips with his. She immediately stiffened as Zach actually kissed her.

He moved one hand up behind her head and deepened the kiss. She whimpered as her eyes closed, and her arms wrapped around his neck.

Rhea smiled in contentment as she watched her children make out. It felt... right, somehow. Not at all strange.

Too right. The heat in her core was warming slightly. She'd always had a bit of a drive, but most of the time she could just ignore it. Here, with her children pulling at each other, she found it difficult to ignore.

Ash shivered as Zach's hand wrapped around her back. Rhea felt a small pang of jealousy as she remembered what his kiss felt like. With a bit of practice, he was going to become a wonderful kisser.

"Um, not to interrupt..." Rhea tapped their shoulders. "But there's something else I can show you."

Zach pulled back, leaving Ash gasping for air. "Wait, really?"

Rhea took the opportunity to take his mouth once again. She could taste his sister on him. To her surprise, he kissed much differently now. After a few seconds of him readjusting to kissing his mother rather than Ash, they settled back into a rhythm.

That's when Rhea pulled out a new move. Without warning, she opened her mouth and brushed her tongue against his lips. He jumped in surprise, but she managed to hold on and maintain contact. Cautiously, he opened his lips and let his tongue join hers.

She bit back a moan as he pressed into her mouth. He caught on all too quickly. Before she knew it, he was pushing vehemently into her mouth, exploring every corner.

She whimpered and grabbed onto his collar, pulling him in.

"Hey, guys. I think it's my turn! What are you guys even doing?"

With great reluctance, Rhea pulled back. "Ash is right, Zach. Go on, show her what you've learned."

Zach hardly turned around before Ash leapt up to eagerly kiss him.

Ash's moans only made matters worse for Rhea. She shifted, unconsciously trying to create friction between her thighs. She needed to clear her head.

The two made no moves to touch each other, other than the occasional reach for leverage to increase the kiss.

"Alright, you two. I think it's time for bed."

Zach broke away to look at her, much to Ash's obvious dismay. "Wait, are we done?"

Rhea chuckled and shook her head. "No, but I don't want to overwhelm you on our first night. We're not in any real rush, you know."

Ash cleared her throat. "Right. Well, see you guys tomorrow." She quickly got up and fled the room.

Zach raised an eyebrow. "What was that about?"

Rhea sighed. "I think she's not used to feeling vulnerable around you. Don't worry about it."

Zach sat back on the couch. Rhea sneaked a glance to where his sturdy erection was just beginning to fade. "So what are we doing tomorrow?"

"It'll be a surprise." Aka, she had no idea. "For now, you should get your rest. We've got plenty of time."

Zach nodded, but looked like he wanted to say more. "Is there something you want to say?"

He closed his mouth. "No. Goodnight, Mom."

"Goodnight, dearest."

The moment he was gone, Rhea sighed in relief. She needed to work off some of the pressure. She rose from the couch with a groan and stretched before heading to the shower.

After undressing and stepping under the hot water, Rhea glanced around for any long, properly shaped objects to satisfy her. Unfortunately, even the showerhead was attached. Looks like her fingers would have to suffice.

Closing her eyes, Rhea leaned back against the wall and lowered her fingers down to her cleft. She didn't pleasure herself often, not once since the Event. Still, she knew what to do to get herself worked up. She gently traced her fingers over her clit, allowing the tingles of pleasure to flow into her body.

Despite her impatience, she allowed herself to relish the gentle ministrations for several minutes. When she was satisfied, she immediately jumped to rubbing herself vigorously in a circle. Within a couple of minutes, she came with a quiet cry of pleasure.

It wasn't the most satisfying, but it was good enough. She took a few deep breaths, embracing the post-orgasm currents of pleasure that washed over her.

After cleaning herself and climbing out of the shower, she realized it had been nearly an hour. She peeked in to each of their rooms.

Zach was already fast asleep, while Ash was pacing in her room, muttering to herself quietly. She was acting strange about the whole situation. Not that the situation wasn't strange, but this was not the reaction Rhea anticipated.