Dark Magick

Four days later, Ash and the twins had been released from the hospital and were still working on getting settled in at home. Of course Andy was with them, doing all that he could so his poor sweetheart could get some sleep. The only thing he really couldn’t do for them since the bassist refused to formula-feed and hadn’t started pumping his breast milk yet was feed them, but that was okay.

Both of them were exhausted from taking care of Legacy and Magick, but it was their fault the two of them existed, when it was all said and done. The younger man was doing everything he possibly could for all three of them, but parenting was definitely harder than he’d thought it would be. Still, he wouldn’t give up his daughters for anything, not even a million dollars or to see Black Veil Brides take off and get even bigger than they already were. That was why, at the present moment, he was stretched out on the couch with the twins on his chest, both sound asleep from listening to his heart.

With a soft yawn, Ash tied his robe around his waist and slowly made his way downstairs after not finding the twins in their bassinet. He was still pretty sore after pushing two six and a-half-pound babies out of his body, and found that he had to do things slower than he was used to.

He grinned at seeing his lover stretched out on the couch with their daughters using him as a mattress, a hand on both their backs. They were all sound asleep, the girls’ heads turned to face each other as they’d undoubtedly been in the womb. Upon closer inspection, he realized that they were holding each others’ hands, which drew a soft “awww” from him as he tried to avoid disturbing them. It was such a sweet sight that he couldn’t resist taking a picture of it to send to their families.

“Mmm…Ashes?” Andy groaned a short time later.

“Shhh, Ands. It’s me,” he reassured him, slowly rounding the couch so he could see him.

“I thought you were too sore to move,” his lover said.

“Too sore to move very fast,” the bassist corrected him, chuckling. “I can still move around and do things…I just have to do them slower than either of us are used to.”

“Ahhh,” the younger man said softly, gently rubbing the girls’ backs.

“How long have you had them like that?” Ash asked, taking a bite of the sandwich he’d thrown together for himself.

“Since about an hour after you laid down,” he answered. “They woke up and started fussing, and when they rejected anything else I tried, I didn’t know what else to do.”

“Mmm,” he hummed around the bite he was chewing.

“When I finally laid down with them like this, they dozed back off and have been out ever since,” Andy chuckled.

“Mmm,” both girls hummed in unison.

Ash made quick work of the remains of his sandwich, knowing they were likely to wake up hungry soon enough. Once he was done and had his plate in the sink, he made his way back to the living room, shedding his shirt as he walked, before sitting down on the couch. Since he’d always preferred being shirtless, he found it easier and more comfortable to strip his torso before attempting to nurse the girls.

Just a few minutes later, Legacy and Magick began to nuzzle their daddy’s chest as they began to wake up, already searching for food. Before he could even sit up to bring them over to him, Andy let out a soft gasp as they both latched onto his nipples through his shirt, thinking it was their mama who held them. The bassist couldn’t help a soft laugh as he watched, but didn’t blame them for thinking that. They were only newborns, and half-asleep, at that, so it wasn’t very surprising.

The younger man allowed them to stay as they were as he sat up before walking over, knowing it’d keep them from crying while he was moving. Once he got them over to their mama, though, he gently pried them loose and quickly handed them off as his sweetheart was ready for them, not wanting to upset them any more than he had to.

“I’m gonna go get food for myself, if you’re all right with them,” Andy said softly.

“We’re fine,” his sweetheart answered. He cradled the girls like footballs, their little legs curled up against the back of the couch.

“All right. Just holler if ya need me, Ashes.” The younger man gently kissed him before heading into the kitchen.

“Mmm…” Ash hummed, readjusting his arms slightly.

Legacy and Magick suckled his nipples hungrily, slowly draining his full-to-bursting breasts of their latest load. Having them so full of milk physically hurt sometimes, and he knew he really needed to start pumping soon. He still had yet to send Andy out for a breast pump, though, which complicated that train of thought a bit. Without the pump, there would be no pumping, both for relief and so his lover could feed their girls with bottles. Humming thoughtfully, Ash decided to send him out for just that purpose once he was done eating, knowing he’d agree in a heartbeat, if it meant his comfort.

The moment he heard his sweetheart’s request, Andy was more than agreeable about going out to get the breast pump. However, he insisted on getting Jinxx to come over while he was gone, if only to help with the girls. The bassist chuckled as he agreed, knowing that it was both because of that, and because he was uncomfortable leaving them alone. An exhausted new mother and twins…yeah, he didn’t blame him on that front.

“Ahhh,” Ash sighed, relaxing into the bed they now shared full-time. The twins were in a bassinet by the bedside, so they were close at hand if he needed to get to them.

“Jinxx is here now, Ashie,” his lover said softly, standing by the doorway. “You want him to come up and keep you company?”

“If he wants to,” he answered. “I’ll probably end up falling asleep at some point.”

“That’s fine. You know the guys would all understand, but Jinxx especially.” Andy came over and gave him a gentle kiss. “After all, having newborn twins is no walk in the park.”

The bassist chuckled as he made himself fully comfortable and said his goodbyes. Not long afterward, he heard a soft knock on their open bedroom door and opened his eyes, smiling when he saw Jinxx. He beckoned his friend over, levering himself up enough to give him a hug.

“Don’t strain yourself too much, Ash,” Jinxx said, helping him lay back down.

“Hey, can’t a girl give her friend a hug?” he asked, making an intentional pun on his current state.

“Very funny,” he answered with a soft laugh. “How’ve you and the girls been?”

“Legacy and Magick have been doing great,” the bassist answered, grinning. “They’ve been keeping us up a lot, but hey, they’re newborns; it was kinda expected.”

“Yeah, it’s kinda expected with just one baby,” the multi-instrumentalist laughed.

“The fact that we haven’t been able to get a breast pump before today hasn’t made things any easier,” Ash sighed. “We were so busy getting their nursery set up and touring earlier that it slipped our minds, and the past four days since they were born, we’ve been too busy taking care of them.”

“And taking care of them, you should be,” his friend sympathized. “Although, I’ll bet it’s not very easy to get any rest when you’ve gotta wake up every couple hours to feed ’em, regardless of whether Andy takes care of diaper changes or not.”

“That’s the main reason why I’m so tired,” he agreed, yawning. “I can’t ever get enough sleep before it’s time to wake up again to feed them.”

“Then you lay up here and take a nap,” Jinxx insisted. “So long as I don’t suspect they’re hungry, I’ll take care of ’em till Andy gets back.”

“You sure, Jinxx?” the bassist asked sleepily. “I mean, they’re not your responsibility since they’re not your kids.”

“Yes, I’m sure. You’re exhausted, Ash,” the multi-instrumentalist answered.

Knowing he wasn’t going to win this argument, Ash rolled onto his side so that he was facing the bassinet. He nodded as he settled down for his nap, knowing he needed the rest while he could get it. He trusted his friend to take good care of his daughters while he slept, so it was easier than he’d expected to finally drift off for his nap.



Not far away at Babies ‘R’ Us, Andy kept a wary eye on the sales associate helping him find the breast pump he’d been sent out for, as well as anything that went with it. She’d seemed a little too flirtatious for his liking, but he hadn’t paid full attention to it since he knew he was exhausted and that his mind could be playing tricks on him. However, her constantly bumping into and rubbing against him was really starting to get uncomfortable. Her flirtatious inflection every time she opened her mouth didn’t help matters.

“Are you sure you don’t need anything else, sir?” she asked, seemingly flirting with him again.

“Yes, I’m sure,” he answered, getting a little testy now. He was in love with and faithful to Ash; their having the twins just strengthened that.

“I honestly think you need more than you’re letting on,” the woman said, running her finger down his forearm.

“Look, lady, get your hands off me,” Andy snapped, stepping back. “I have a girlfriend, and not only that, but we have newborn twins together. I don’t need you or anything you’re ‘offering’.”

Glaring, the sales associate turned on her heel and stomped off down the aisle, not even making sure her customer was able to get up front with his selections.

“Jeez, I’m glad Ash doesn’t act like that,” the frontmant muttered. He chose his words carefully so that those who weren’t fans wouldn’t know what he meant if he overheard him.

Barely able to juggle what the bitch of a sales associate helped him find, Andy slowly made his way up front to the registers. Thankfully, there was one cashier who didn’t have anyone in her line and immediately came over to him. She started taking what she could, making the load more manageable for him as she led him over to her register.

“Thank you, miss,” he said. He hadn’t looked up to catch the name on her tag just yet.

“It’s not a problem, sir,” the cashier answered, chuckling as she started the transaction.

“Well, considering that one of your coworkers just left me on my own to get all this up here with no cart…” The frontman allowed his words to trail off as he set the rest of his selections down.

“What? That’s not how our employees are supposed to be,” she said, frowning.

“Yeah. I think her name tag had Alice or something like that on it,” he answered, nodding.

“Alicia,” she supplied.

“Yeah, that was it!” Andy agreed. “In fact, I’d like to talk to your manager about it.”

“Not a problem; I’ll call her up for you,” the woman, whose name tag read Sierra, said. Grabbing a mic pinned to the vest she wore, she said, “Nikki, can you come up front for a minute? I have a customer who’d like to talk to you.”

While she was scanning his purchases and awaiting a response, he pulled his wallet out so he could get ready to pay.

“She’ll be up in just a minute, sir; she’s with a customer at the moment,” Sierra told him, finishing up the transaction.

“Any particular place you want me to wait?” the frontman asked as he slid his card.

“Right over there will be fine,” she answered, pointing toward a door that he suspected led to the office.

Nodding, Andy finished up the transaction he was working on, asking Sierra to watch his purchases long enough for him to grab a cart this time. She agreed, putting the bags behind her counter, smiling and moving on to her next customer while he did as he’d said. When he got back to her line, she immediately started helping load his cart between moving to her station to continue the transaction.

After loading the cart up with everything he’d bought, he smiled at Sierra one last time as he said his goodbyes before moving aside. He stood in the general area she’d pointed him to, checking his phone to make sure Ash hadn’t called or texted him, wanting or needing anything else. He was also making sure Jinxx hadn’t texted or called him to tell him he was needed at home while he was unable to get to his phone. Thankfully, he found no such missed calls or texts, but with the girls back at the house with them, he couldn’t help but worry, much the same way his own dad recalled worrying about him and his mother.

“Sir, are you the customer Sierra called me about?”

Looking up, he saw a middle-aged ginger had quietly approached him.

“If you’re the manager, then yes, I am,” he answered.

“C’mon in the office with me,” she said, gesturing to the nearby door. “There’s room for your cart, just to make sure nothing gets stolen.”

“Thank you, ma’am,” Andy said, nodding as he pushed the cart into the room.

“Go ahead and take a seat,” she told him, gesturing to a spare chair as she sat down. “My name is Nikki.”

“Andy Biersack,” he answered, holding out his hand.

“You’re the frontman of that band whose bassist was somehow turned into a woman, aren’t you?” she asked, accepting the handshake.

“I am,” the frontman responded, nodding as he sat back. “In fact, that’s the reason why I’m even in this store right now.”

“As much I figured when I thought I recognized you. So what issue did you have with our store today?” Nikki asked curiously.

“The sales associate that was originally helping me, Alicia, I was told her name was, was more annoying than helpful,” Andy began. “The entire time she was leading me to the various products I needed, she was overly flirtatious; constantly bumping into and rubbing against me, as well as using a flirtatious tone.”

The manager’s eyes widened as she listened. “Fraternization, both with coworkers and customers, is against SOP.”

“As much I figured,” he agreed, nodding. “She tried a different tactic of hitting on me, basically offering to take me to a motel or something for a romp without actually saying such a thing. I turned her down, saying that I already had a girlfriend, with whom I now have newborn twins, and that I didn’t need or want what she was offering.”

“I’ll be filing a report about this indefinitely. She may as well consider herself fired at this point, seeing as you’re the third customer this month to make such a complaint,” the woman assured him.

“I’m certainly glad something will be done about it,” the frontman said. “I pity any other happily taken man who stumbles across her path.”

“Consider it taken care of, Mr. Biersack,” she responded. “Hopefully the rest of your day will be better than your experience here with Alicia. And I also hope that you won’t hesitate to shop here again, if need be, despite her behavior.”

Nodding, Andy rose from his seat and shook her hand one more time before grabbing his cart and letting himself out. He was beyond exhausted from caring for his twin daughters the past four days, as well as helping Ash whenever he needed it. This was one more complication that he didn’t need to an already somewhat complicated errand.

After getting his purchases loaded into the trunk of his car and returning the cart he’d ultimately grabbed, he climbed into the driver’s seat. Thankfully, the store wasn’t too far from home, considering how exhausted he was, so he couldn’t wait to get back home. With that, he secured his phone in the console so it wouldn’t be distracting, nor fly too far out of reach if he were to get into an accident, and cranked his car up. It wasn’t long afterward that he arrived back home, and boy was he glad to see the house.

Notes