Shiller peered curiously at the baby in the cradle, and although it wasn't his first time seeing a newborn, he was always shocked by their ugliness.
Newborns were really ugly, all red and wrinkly, their features almost indistinguishable, looking like big, red rats.
However, the difference this time was that there were two big rats, and Wanda could look at them with such loving affection as if beholding some priceless treasures.
Jarvis looked at Shiller, who noticed his gaze and turned to him, pointing to himself in confusion and said, "You're not thinking of asking me to provide therapy for these two little guys, are you?"
"Of course not, Doctor. Have you had too much to drink? I'm talking about Wanda, Wanda!"
"Oh, Wanda's fine," Shiller shook his head, "Ever since she got pregnant, her mental state has improved a lot. She's definitely not suffering from postpartum depression. I think even someone with no background in psychology could tell she's really happy right now."
Jarvis sighed helplessly and said, "You weren't listening at all just now, Doctor. I meant that Magneto wants to come over and see his grandchildren, and I need to make sure they don't start arguing here."
Jarvis tugged at Shiller's sleeve and said, "Right now, Wanda sees everyone as if they're out to steal her babies. I haven't even held them yet. Just imagine if Magneto comes over and says something..."
His face filled with great worry, Shiller realised and said, "That's just like a first-time dad."
Jarvis thought Shiller was praising his concern for the children, but Shiller continued, "This is concern leading to chaos, making your IQ drop."
Seeing Jarvis's puzzled expression, Shiller said, "Wanda was a student of Professor X, do you think he wouldn't show up? With the Professor here, do you think Magneto would dare say anything outrageous?"
Jarvis was visibly stunned, then he let out a breath of relief. Wanda had heard their entire conversation and rolled her eyes, saying, "I couldn't care less about what he says, but he's not going to hold my babies. He has no sense of gentleness, he's sure to hurt them."
Jarvis then hesitantly went to persuade Wanda, so he could also hold the newborns.
Wanda was being extremely cautious; so far, nobody besides the delivering doctor, the nurses, and herself had touched the two newborns.
Shiller had initially thought they would be boy and girl twins, but they were actually two boys, and their names weren't decided yet. They had already bought a house in Queens District. Wanda's recovery was going quite well, and it was estimated that she would be home within a week.
Just as Shiller was about to leave after his visit, Magneto and Professor X arrived. Professor X looked okay, but Magneto seemed tired, apparently copying homework wasn't so easy after all.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Magneto and Professor X were eager to see the children, so they parted at the door, but before Shiller reached the elevator, he heard a commotion coming from the room.
He thought Magneto had made some tactless remark and that a fight had broken out between father and daughter, but then considered that while Magneto might lack emotional intelligence, he wouldn't be so foolish. Wanda had just given birth and was at her weakest; even an old man who had lived half a lifetime wouldn't provoke his daughter at this time.
He hurried back and found Wanda staring angrily at the air, with Magneto and Professor X also looking in the same direction.
There was nothing there now, but when Shiller activated his Spirit Vision, he saw a familiar energy residue.
Could it be the Big Shadow had come?
It wasn't an impossibility, since in the original story, these children were related to the Big Shadow, or even parts of it, which led to a series of tragedies later on.
But now, Wanda was already the master of Chaotic Power, even embodying it herself. The children she had given birth to couldn't possibly have anything to do with the Big Shadow. Could it be Xeseon trying to reap what he hadn't sown?
His timing couldn't be better. Although Magneto wasn't likely to provoke a real conflict with Wanda at this time, he was bound to say things in an unpleasant way, and the inevitable clash over him wanting to hold the children, which Wanda would certainly refuse, was bound to happen.
It was probably during the tense standoff between the two, before Professor X had a chance to mediate, that the Big Shadow appeared, only to get beaten up by the three of them, leaving behind only a small trace of energy which even Shiller found hard to identify.
"There's nothing to worry about here," Professor X said to Shiller with a smile, and Shiller nodded back, then turned and left.
The moment he stepped out of the elevator, he received a call from Stark. The man hesitated and stumbled over his words, and Shiller couldn't get a clear answer after a long time about why he had called.
Shiller was about to suggest a meeting, but Stark, like a cat with its tail stepped on, abruptly refused with a yowl.
Shiller repeatedly asked for half a day, and finally figured out that Pepper was pregnant.
Stark made a call because he wanted to ask whether his anxiety would have any negative impact on Pepper's pregnancy. Hearing Stark say "my anxiety disorder," Shiller could hardly keep from bursting into laughter, thinking to himself that even you could have such a day.
In the past, Stark completely denied having an anxiety disorder, always stubbornly insisting that he was fine or that these were just some common emotional fluctuations, and that Shiller was just exaggerating to swindle his medical funds by falsely claiming he had a disease.
But now that Pepper was involved, Stark was clearly panicking. However, Shiller didn't understand how they could have conceived if they weren't planning for it.
He voiced his doubts, and Stark hemmed and hawed for over ten minutes before saying they both had drunk some alcohol at the time, and he couldn't clearly remember exactly what had happened.
As a professional psychologist, Shiller could only tell him that the little alcohol he drank at the time likely had a more significant impact on the fetus than the anxiety disorder.
It took another half-hour of questioning for Shiller to piece together what had happened from Stark's fragmented logic.
At the time, Stark returned home, full of anger and determined to teach those damn politicians a lesson. Although he hadn't fully made up with Pepper, being engrossed in his work meant Pepper didn't voice any objections.
As the saying goes, there are no overnight grudges between husband and wife, but neither wanted to be the first to make up due to pride. That's when Obadiah added fuel to the fire by taking away most of the company's operational rights, and Pepper became Stark's personal assistant again.
The two reverted to their original way of interacting. Yet, something was different. Although the details of life remained the same, it revealed an extraordinary significance. The worries and uncertainties that had been surging beneath the surface of everyday life had transformed into complete understanding and trust. No one could resist the feeling of revisiting an old dream.
So, unsurprisingly, passion returned. The couple resumed their sweet romance, and Stark, ever the romantic, prepared a beautiful candlelit dinner and Dionysium for their anniversary night.
The rest was just as Stark described, both drank too much, and one thing led to another. They woke up the next morning to possibly realizing they had created a trouble.
Because she knew about this, Pepper was always suspicious and paranoid, virtually taking a daily lie-down in the lab's diagnostic apparatus.
Of course, the very small tumor that had been in her uterus was now entirely gone, but the equipment that had been developed for the tumor proved to be useful at this time.
In the very early stages of pregnancy, hospitals have difficulty detecting it – it's as if one has grown a tiny tumor invisible to the device – but the lab's machine was designed for extremely small tumors, so Pepper found out she was pregnant after about three days.
Both were stunned.
It wasn't just Stark who was unprepared. Pepper was also at a loss, but since it was discovered so early, there was still room for second thoughts.
Initially, neither of them really wanted to keep the baby because Stark worried about his mental state, and Pepper felt she was at an age to focus on her career. Even though Helen had said they need not worry on her account, both still had their concerns.
Yet Stark's mental health was indeed a worrying issue because ever since he had learned about the pregnancy, he had been visibly distracted, almost as if "I have something on my mind" was written all over his face. Then, under Howard's interrogation, he unfortunately let the news slip.
The Starks were the ones who persuaded them to keep the baby because a very realistic issue was at hand – their ages were not on the younger side, and even with advanced technology and medical progress, it wasn't possible to defy the laws of the human body, meaning the later one has children, the riskier it becomes.
Additionally, having children later in life is not only potentially bad for the mother but also the child, and even after the child is born, parents may not have the energy needed for care. So, if they were sure they wanted a child, earlier would be better.
Stark and Pepper wrestled with the decision for a long time and eventually decided to keep the baby. However, once they made the decision, there were even more things to be anxious about, starting with Stark's mental health.
America could be said to have the most detached family concept among countries; basically, don't expect your parents to help raise your kids. Whether to marry or to have children is entirely the couple's business. As the other half of the marriage, Stark had to stay stable to provide Pepper with enough support.
But obviously, due to his long-time refusal to take medication, Stark was not in a healthy state, which could significantly impact Pepper's well-being.
In the end, Shiller decided to schedule a meeting with Stark. In his view, everyone experiences anxiety during life transitions, and Stark's was just a bit more severe due to his plentiful emotions. This wouldn't affect his normal life; otherwise, Shiller wouldn't have let things be.
So he thought this meeting would be a quick one, but no sooner had he comforted Stark than Matt called to say Erica wasn't doing very well emotionally. Shiller headed to the Brooklyn Area.
Upon arrival, it turned out that Erica was just exhausted. Shiller found out that Matt had recently discovered some peculiar clues and was busy investigating, so Erica was left to care for the child alone, wearing herself out.
Matt felt guilty and decided to cook a grand meal that night to spoil his hardworking wife. Shiller didn't want to intrude on their private time, but when Matt mentioned he had important information to share, Shiller decided to stay.