"Do you get any sleep?" wonders the one who's considering it.

"Not much, the first month. If you got one a little older."

"I guess maybe if they're the only one in the house they don't just all set each other off - why're you taking two -"

"So we can each hold one!"

"What about Kalatha?"

"She usually sleeps through the night but we can hold two if she's up."

"What are you going to do when they're old enough to take apprenticeships?"

"If they want to take apprenticeships we'll be supportive. Parents usually support their kids until older than that and if they want to stay that'd be fine too."

"Some teachers take apprentices young as four."

"I doubt she'll want to leave that young but if she did I don't think we'd try to stop her."

"Would you have to like the teacher?"

"...if she were four yeah, probably."

"Hmm." She doesn't take a baby home right away.

They adore their beautiful new babies!!

They dooooo! Babieeeees!

And Aitim brings home exotic games to try with his boyfriend and books he thinks he'll like and searches tirelessly for chocolates.

"I feel so comparatively inadequate at presents." His presents for Aitim to date have included a puppetable page-turner he has not managed to teach Aitim to use, at this point likely because Amentans just can't operate servants; some books; and a blue hat.

He likes his blue hat. "Don't worry, you are yourself the very best present."

"You're very sweet."

"You need to try chocolate."

"This being one of your alien foods that you're just translating like that?"

"It's the closest word. But it's better."

"That sounds really farfetched!"

"Amenta seems reasonable to you up to the point of better chocolate, I am sure!"

"I saw your pocket everything! It'll cover a lot of claims. I dunno about better chocolate." Kiss.