*****

 

"Ugh..... I hate commercials.  Who are these even for anyway?" Buffy complains as she reaches her hand in the giant bowl in front of her for another mouthful of popcorn.

 

Laying on her stomach in front of the tv, with her legs kicking lazily in the air, pops the snack into her mouth with regret written all over her face.  Her eyes went wide, and her face becomes flushed, she starts coughing, wheezing as she tries to clear the kernel from her throat. 

 

"Mo-Mom....... ca-can you...br-bring me some... wa-water??!"

 

Buffy stammers desperately to appeal to Joyce's motherly instincts.

 

"MO-MOM!!!" She couldn't wait any longer, with the momma call falling on deaf ears, she runs towards the kitchen to save herself with a big glass of natural cough suppressant.

 

She pours it right down her throat, dribbling some water down her chin then releasing a much-needed sigh. Getting her breathing under control, as she stares at the sonograph picture on the fridge, stops for a second before she paints a small smile on her face and shakes her head.

 

"Domino is super cute already! When did Mom get this done? Oh right, Mom." 

 

"Mom! Where are you?! Oh right, she said she was doing laundry earlier." Buffy refills her glass of water and starts to head to the laundry room. She notices her mom staring into blank space holding one of her t-shirts. 

 

"Mo-Mom? What's Wrong?" She notices Joyce taking a small step back, then stumbling forward before slamming her head against the dryer and falling flat on her back. Buffy, in complete shock, eyes wide and mouth agape, standing firm onto the cold wooden flooring of the hallway in fear induced silence.

 

She drops her glass of water, the sound of shattering glass breaking her out of her stupor, she runs to her mother with a stream of uncontrollable tears running down her cheeks. 

 

"Mom! wa-wake up!! Mom! Why aren't you answ----?" Buffy startled as she stands up and takes a step back.  

 

All she could do was watch.  With the sunlight beaming down on Joyce through the window, her eyes are closed as her back arches than slams back down with such force, the concrete floor cracks and chips away.  The sound of bones crunching and breaking can be heard. Joyce's arms and legs are convulsing and shaking. 

 

Her bones healing and mending only to be broken again, healing than reshaping back into place.  Buffy probably should have called 911 at this point, but she honestly didn't even think about it.  She didn't know what to think. 

 

No words came to mind, not a thought in her head but worry as she stands there watching the horrific scene play out in front of her.  She's worried about her mom, she's worried about her unborn sister, she's worried that she may have lost them both in an instant.  Life was just getting interesting to her; she was having fun.  She even associated the event that started all of this with happy memories.  

 

She remembers floating in the air and having a sense of wonder. The thought of the mysteries of the world were now so exhilarating to her.  She didn't expect those same mysteries to also be so terrifying.  At 10 years old, she knows next to nothing about the intricacies of the world she lives in. She's realizing now, she might know even less than that.

 

"What...What is going on?!" Buffy screeches out as she places her hands over her ears as she tries to block out the crunching noises.  She wants to run out of the room, but she also doesn't want to leave her mother.  Buffy is conflicted and scared, she has never felt so lost in her entire life. 

 

As quickly as it began, the agonizing crunching sound abruptly comes to an end, followed by an uncomfortable silence filling the room. Buffy thinking it's finally over, musters up the courage to call out to her. 

 

"Mom---" The sense of wonder once again fills her mind as she witnesses her mom slowly float upwards as white and orange light surround her, gusts of wind seemingly from nowhere whip around her like a summer breeze.

 

Joyce still with her eyes closed as her back and neck arch once again, this time with a calm and blissful look on her face.  A slightly curved smile could be seen, before dropping back down on her back with no sign of waking up, anytime soon. 

 

****

 

Joyce releases a soft moan as she turns her head lightly, beginning to stir.

 

"Mom!! Can you hear me?!" Joyce flutters her eyes a bit before opening them and staring at her daughter who looks like she's been crying for hours.

 

"Buffy! What's wrong?!" Joyce sits up, wondering why she was laying on the laundry room floor but puts that aside for now.  Buffy with the most panicking way to tell a story, reveals everything that happened since she passed out on the floor. 

 

"...And then, you started to float with bright white and orange light around you! I was so scared, Mom! Wha-What was that?!" 

 

Joyce is trying to piece together everything she just heard.  At first, nothing she said made sense, until she remembered the status window that opened in front of her. Joyce gasps as she says, "How do I see that status thing again?!" An orange screen with a white border and black lettering opened up in front of her, revealing her status. 

 

"Buffy, can you see this?" Buffy looks at her mother with confusion, "see what, mom?"  Joyce tries her best to explain what she sees, yet both of them seem equally clueless.  

 

"But...what does any of that mean??" Joyce pauses before answering, "I don't want to sound too presumptuous when I say this, but I'm pretty sure I... I'm pretty sure I evolved." 

 

Buffy trying to compose her racing thoughts, "E-Evolve? Into What? I remember learning about this in school, but evolution doesn't just happen like... well, like that!  It takes like...a million years or something." 

 

Joyce also understanding that evolution isn't supposed to work like that, stares at the last notice in her status.  The message from her daughter, "so, this is Domino's doing, I see." Joyce says with a small smile while looking down and touching her stomach.

 

"DOMINO! Is ...Is my sister, okay?!" Buffy says with worry and a slight feeling of guilt for just now thinking of her. 

 

"Domino is fine, honey.  More than that, she's amazing." Joyce says with a comforting gaze. 

 

****

 

"Oh, calm down, sister! Mommy will be just fine, she only experienced a small fraction of what I did, but you're right, true evolutions take millions of years, I'm living proof of that.  So, now what? Should I gift a system to Buffy as well? Hmm..." 

 

Domino ponders for a minute before finally objecting the idea.  "Probably not a good idea, she's still pretty young, she isn't even a Slayer yet.  Though, I am super curious what would happen if I gave her a system early, even if I do, it's not the time yet.  Mommy is already stressing over her own system; she doesn't even really know what it means yet.  I should let that sink in before I gift anymore systems...... probably." She says with a mischievous grin.  

 

"Anyway, The Solar-Heart System worked better than I even imagined!  She's at least %50 Kryptonian now.  I wonder why her status has a bunch of asterisks next to her race? Is she not Kryptonian or Human? Why wouldn't it just tell her a percentage of how much she evolved? Was I not specific enough when gifting the system? No, I know that's not it, I don't feel like anything is really wrong.  She must need to level up or something."  

 

Domino puts one hand under her elbow and resting her left hand under her chin, tapping it with her little finger.  "Well, whatever, just hurry up, Mommy! I'm too excited about this! When she levels up, I won't be too far behind.  Wait, what happens if I evolve further, inside mommy's belly? Maybe I should have thought this through more carefully...." 

 

****