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“He looks like a grumpy old man,” Opal said, then burst into tears. She collapsed down to hug Cleo and Jasper Junior. “I was so scared this day would never happen.”

“You won’t lose us,” Cleo said, fat tears rolling down her face. Not to be left out, Jasper Junior joined them with loud cries of his own.

I couldn’t take it any longer. It had been hard enough to remain here when Opal was supporting Cleo, but now that she was crying I couldn’t stay still.

I squeezed myself in between Lexarit and Opal.

“Please don’t cry,” I begged, petting her back.

“They’re happy tears,” she said, straightening up and wiping at her face. She swayed a little, and I put my arms around her.

“You need to rest,” I said, sounding a worried rumble.

“Tolreum is correct,” Healer Grifforum said. “You have done very well, but you’re no longer needed to comfort Human Cleo. She and the cub need to rest, as do you.”

“Get some sleep,” Cleo said, sniffling and batting away the cloth Lexarit tried to use to wipe away her tears. “I have a really important assignment for you after you’ve rested.”

Opal tilted her head. “Yeah?”

“See if you can get some podmash for me,” Cleo said.

Opal wrinkled her nose. “Why would you want that?”

“Because Mom always ate it when she was nursing. She said it helped with milk production,” Cleo explained.

“I’ll do my best,” Opal agreed, but I could already see that Narmuna was looking podmash up on his Ident. If there was any on this station, Narmuna would make sure Cleo got it.

“See you tomorrow,” Cleo said.

“Have them come get me if you need anything,” Opal said.

Cleo grinned. “I won’t.”

They both chuckled, then Opal turned in my arms and leaned heavily against me. “I think I might need to be carried. My legs aren’t so steady.”

I felt her body shake, and as I bent my knees to pick her up, her legs gave out.

“I've got you,” I murmured, shifting her in my arms so I could cradle her against my chest.

“Sorry,” she whispered, letting her head rest against my shoulder. “I’m suddenly really tired.”

“That's unsurprising," I responded, carrying her out of medical before one of the healers stopped us to check on Opal. I knew there was nothing wrong with her that a long rest and a good meal wouldn't set right. She didn't need to be scanned or have any tests run.

One of the law keepers was waiting in the hall and quickly moved to escort us back to our suite.

“I heard Cleo’s pup is a healthy male,” the law keeper said.

“Yes, they've named him Jasper Junior, after his sire,” I said. Opal kept her eyes closed, and I thought she might have already dozed off.

“This is excellent,” the law keeper said. “If the healers hadn't been sending out updates to the station's Unibase, I think medical might've gotten invaded despite all the rules that Station Director Hestorum set down.”

“I didn't know they were sending out updates,” I said with a surprised rattle.

“There's a whole section in the station's Unibase about all three of us,” Opal said without opening her eyes. “Well, probably four of us now to include Baby JJ. There are even details about our favorite foods and how much I like to play games with balls.”

An amused rumble slipped out of me. “That explains why we've received so many boxes full of toy balls. We have a stack of boxes full of them now.”

Opal hummed, rubbing her face against the bare strip of skin. “Yup.”