:1995:

Ronnie feels like she’s found herself in a weird, reverse deja-vu. Here she is, sitting on the sofa in Paisley Park, with Prince and Lani, like she was yesterday. Only, it’s not her Prince. And it’s not her Paisley. It’s weird, how she’s started thinking about her timeline and Lani’s timeline, separating them in her head. Like a completely sane person would do, obviously.

“The girls are quiet,” Lani remarks, breaking the awkward, tense silence between them.

“They’re plotting something. Expect your whole kitchen to be covered in maple syrup.”

“Just explain everything to me again, slowly,” Prince interrupts. He seems riled up, for reasons Ronnie can’t quite explain. Every time she hopes to understand him, thinking he might react like her Prince, he doesn’t. He’s a tough nut to crack, and Ronnie feels like she’s meeting him for the very first time. It’s disconcerting.

“Prince, for the hundredth time, they’re my children.”

“So our children.”

“I suppose?” She looks from Prince to Lani. “They’re my children and the Prince I’m married to is their father, I don’t know how else to explain it.”

“Well you’d better fucking try.” Ronnie flinches as he snaps, for a crazy second she thinks I can’t get out of here, I’m trapped. Her eyes immediately dart to the kitchen where Marie, Leah and Violet babble happily together.

“Prince,” there’s warning in Lani’s voice but he’s not having it.

“I’m sick and tired of you coming in unannounced and muddling with Lani’s brain! Who’re you to mess with our lives? Huh?”

“Mess with your lives? You don’t think my life is being messed with, too?” Ronnie bites back. “I can’t control it. It just happens.”

“That’s what you say.”

“E ipo, it’s happened to me too, she’s not --”

“Lani! Will you stop believing this woman blindly for one second?” Prince jumps to his feet. “She’s comin’ in, tellin’ you made up shit about the future or whatnot, about fucking Mayte, out of all people?”

Ronnie’s eyes widen, she was expecting Lani to tell him, of course - she knows she would tell her husband if their roles were switched - but she wasn’t expecting him to get so angry about it.

“I didn’t lie,” she doesn’t take her eyes off him. “My husband was married to Mayte Garcia. In 1996, they had a child, and --”

“Fucking stop it!” Prince almost gets in her face, Ronnie’s hand balls into a fist, she’s having to resist putting it through his teeth. “You do not tell us what our future is. You do not. Only God can do that, and you ain’t no God.”

“Prince.” Lani’s voice is firm now, firmer than Ronnie’s ever heard her. Both their heads turn to her. “Calm down. It’s not Ronnie’s fault. She hasn’t done anything wrong.”

Ronnie clears her throat and finds that special voice that she uses to talk to mothers, who have been through the worst situations possible. It always serves her well when things are tense. “I’m sorry. I know it’s hard. I know it’s not nice to hear. But we need to figure this out together, there’s no other way we --”

“Mommy?” In another weird deja-vu moment, Leah walks in the room, her thumb in her mouth. “Need potty.”

Lani’s eyes widen as Ronnie goes to her daughter. She sees Prince looking at Leah, bewildered, shocked and Ronnie doesn’t know if she can see anger and resentment there, too. She knows that he can see just how much her daughter looks like him. Leah catches on too and she holds on to her, looking at Prince.

“Mommy,” she whines in her shoulder.

Before she takes Leah to the loo, Ronnie looks at Prince. “You can think whatever you want about me. I don’t care. I know I’m telling the truth, and I know something’s happening to me and Lani. It’s about time you stop being in denial and actually try to figure out a way to help us.”

With that, she turns on her heel and strides towards the loo with Leah on her hip, her walk is almost confident enough to fool anyone who isn’t her husband.

I wish he was here right now, she thinks desperately.

***

As Lani watches Ronnie walk off to the washroom with Leah, embarrassment and annoyance wash over her.

Unable to contain it any longer, she turns to address the source, her fiance with a scowl on her face.  "What the hell was that?!"

"It was exactly what it looked like," he retorts, fire in his eyes.  "I'm tired of this nonsense. At first I was willing to give this woman the benefit of the doubt, but now..."

"Now what, Prince?!  You feel justified in attacking her?  And for what? It's not like she's choosing to show up here..." Lani defends, eyes on the hallway to ensure they're alone.  

"How do you know she's not?" he asks defensively, hands on his hips. "Maybe she just wants to fill your head with more lies...you know, like yesterday?" he continues, raising his eyebrow.  

"I didn't tell you about Mayte..about Ahmir so you could attack Ronnie with it, you know," she retorts angrily, raking a hand through her hair in frustration.  

Giggles suddenly fill the air from the kitchen, as Prince counters back to Lani, "Then why did you tell me?"

A baby squeal derails the silence, followed by Marie's telltale giggle...then a "Where's Violet? which brings an abrupt end to their argument.  

Prince and Lani share a pointed look of concern, before Prince dashes off to the kitchen to investigate.

Lani hangs back for just a moment, thinking back to the unanswered question left hanging between them. Why did I tell you?  Because I was...I am scared...

Absentmindedly following him into the kitchen reveals Marie and Violet deeply engrossed in a game of peek a boo.

Marie is standing in front of Violet's car seat, hands over eyes and an ear to ear grin on her face as Violet raptly watches on...until Marie excitedly removes her hands to make eye contact with her.  

"There's Violet!"  she exclaims as Violet erupts in a fit of giggles, kicking her feet and chubby baby legs with glee.   

She looks over at her fiance who’s watching the interaction with a look of dazed confusion on his face, as though he’s not quite sure how to process the sight of his daughters (is it daughters?) playing together like old friends.

Suddenly Marie turns to him in her excitement.  “Pa-” she starts rushing out, but cuts herself off at the look of bewildered irritation on her ipo’s face.  Please don’t snap at her honey...she’s just a little girl...

“Sir...can me and Violet have a cookie?” she asks shyly, glancing back toward Violet who’s cooing and blowing raspberries trying to regain her new playmate’s attention.  

To Lani’s relief, Prince turns to meet her cautious expression with a twinkle in his eye.  “Well I’ll have to check with Lani here--” he replies with a wink in Marie’s direction, “--but I think we just might have a cookie or two around here somewhere.”

Marie’s eyes rove over to Lani with a pleading look.  “Please Lan Lan,” she asks softly with big blue eyes that seem to take up half her face.  

“I think that can be arranged,” Lani replies with a smile.  “But I think we should wait for your mom and Leah first--” she continues in a faraway tone, looking off in the direction of the washroom down the hall before meeting Prince’s eyes with confusion.

“Why don’t you go check on them?” Prince interjects with a concerned look before bending down to make eye contact with Marie.  

“Marie and I will play with Violet until you get back won’t we?” he asks her with a gentle look, receiving a shy nod in response.

Lani’s eyes rove back and forth between her fiance and the little girl for a beat until Prince’s voice once again breaks the silence.  “Go on, honey. I’ve got this--” he reassures her, his eyes returning to Marie who’s once again entertaining Violet, hands over her eyes.  “Where’s Violet?”

Satisfied that things seem to be under control for the moment, she dashes off to find Ronnie and Leah.  I really hope they’re still here--  Marie needs her mom...and we owe Ronnie a huge apology-’

***

“Mommy, no potty,” Leah declares after a good fifteen minutes of sitting on the toilet. Ronnie sighs.

“Okay, sweetie, are you sure?”

“Yes Mama.” She’s looking down, quiet and sad. Ronnie’s heart clenches painfully. “No potty.”

Ronnie helps her daughter hop off the toilet and flushes it anyway, pulling her trousers back up. Leah is never this quiet or pensive and it’s really a shock to Ronnie, too, to see her like this. “Hey, little tornado. What’s up?”

“Why do Papa no like me?”

“Oh, Leah, no.” Ronnie picks her up to stroke her back. Leah clings to her, her tiny hands clutching her shirt. How can she even begin to explain what’s happening? When she’s struggling to understand it herself? “No, Leah. That’s not your Papa, baby. It’s Lani’s friend, who just looks a lot like Papa. Papa loves you so much, sweetheart.”

“I want Papa.”

Ronnie swallows. She does too, she really does and judging by the sour look on her daughter’s face, she’s going to have something very close to a tantrum if Ronnie doesn’t control it. “I know, baby, but Papa’s away right now. We’ll be back home to see him soon.” Will we? She doesn’t really know. She might as well try to lie to herself as well.

“Mommy, no, I want Papa, I --”

“Hey, Leah.” They both turn around and Leah makes a happy squeal.

“Lan Lan!”

With a gentle smile on her face, Lani approaches them. Leah wiggles and reaches out her little arms to Lani and Ronnie passes her on.

“Lan Lan tea party!”

“Told you,” Ronnie gives a small smile, even though her heart is still fluttering. “Memory of an elephant. Just like her Papa.”

Something flinches on Lani’s face but her smile remains warm and caring. “Yeah, Leah, I know I owe you a tea party. We should do that now.”

Ronnie feels incredibly uncomfortable - it’s in her Scottish nature to absolutely hate causing a fuss and, judging by the expression on Prince’s - this timeline’s Prince, anyway - face a few minutes ago, that’s exactly what she’s doing. “Lani, you don’t have to. I can just take them out, go to the park or something, wait until --”

“Nonsense,” Lani interrupts with a voice that clearly doesn’t warrant arguments. “Ronnie, I’m so sorry about --”

“It’s okay.”

“No, it’s not. You can’t be treated like this. And Prince was wrong to treat you like this. You’re a guest, and he’s not --”

“Lan Lan,” Leah interrupts. “Why is Papa mad at Mommy?”

The question catches them both off guard. Ronnie clears her throat. “Leah, I told you, he’s not --”

Lani raises a hand and looks at Leah in the eyes. “That isn’t your Papa, baby. It’s Prince.”

Leah’s little forehead frowns. “But my Papa is Prince too.”

“Well, this is another Prince, who has the same name as your Papa.”

It seems to work as Leah’s curious eyes blink at Lani. Ronnie gives a relaxed smile and steps in to stroke Leah’s back. “Yeah, baby, Lani’s right. They’re just -- two Princes. That happens sometimes.”

Leah leans her head on Lani’s shoulder. “Lan Lan my Papa is very nice, he smiles a lot and he - he plays the guitar and calls me pwincess!”

Even if Leah’s words affect Lani, she keeps the smile on her face. “I’m sure your Papa’s lovely, Leah, and he’s right, you are a little princess.” Lani pinches her nose and Leah giggles. “Now wanna go find your sister?”

Leah nods enthusiastically and Ronnie smiles. “Thank you, Lani.”

“It’s okay. Look, I’m really sorry again, I’m --”

“Don’t be. Honestly. I understand. He’s a bit -- temperamental.” Ronnie can’t help but chuckle. “If anyone understands, it’s me. Gosh, I’ve been married to the sod for four years this July.”

“Yeah. Yeah, he is, but that’s his charm, isn’t it?” Lani smiles slightly pinched around the corners of her mouth as they carry Leah down the hallway.

“By far.” Ronnie keeps looking at her. Now’s a good as time as any to ask her that, seeing as they’re alone. “You’re scared, aren’t you? After what I told you, about Ahmir?”

Lani clears her throat. “I don’t really understand it to be honest.”

“Me neither, Lani. But there’s so many explanations -- you know, there’s the multiverse theory, and string theory, and all those things it could be. I’m going to be researching it the moment I get some free time, I promise. I don’t think it’s as simple as time travel, it just doesn’t match up.”

Lani watches her carefully. “So that’s what you think it is? Alternate universes?”

“I know just as much as you do,” Ronnie shrugs. “It’s just my best guess.”

As distracted as she is, Leah manages to catch something from the conversation. “Mama, who’s A-mir?”

Ronnie can feel Lani’s eyes on her, hot and worried. Ronnie’s not worried herself. Her and Prince have talked about this, have known this will come up at some point, and it feels wrong to have this conversation without him here. Ronnie strokes her back. “Ahmir’s your baby brother, sweetie.”

“Baby brother?”

“Yes. Papa had a wee baby years ago but now the baby’s an angel, but he’ll always be part of our family.”

Her daughter blinks and puts a finger on her puckered lips. “Papa’s angel?”

“That’s right. You can ask Papa about Ahmir and he can tell you more, okay?”

“Oh, Ronnie.” Lani sighs. “She’s a treasure, really.”

“I know, right?” Ronnie tucks Leah’s curl behind her face. “That’s why you shouldn’t worry. If everything was fine with me and Prince, everything will be fine with you and -- Prince, I guess. I mean, he always seems to do well when he finds his soulmate. And I’ve no doubt you’re his.”

A happy smile finally comes on Lani’s features and Ronnie feels a swell of joy for having brought it there. When they make it into the kitchen, they see Prince playing with Marie and Violet. There’s a very familiar smile on his face, one Ronnie knows very well. Even in this place, wherever this place is, any version of him is always a wonderful father.

He notices her and he stands up, swallowing dryly. Ronnie takes Leah back from Lani and keeps her chin up. She’s not going to apologise for something she has no control over - and she won’t be called a liar, not now.

What comes out of his mouth surprises her: “I’m sorry, Ronnie.”

***

Ronnie looks Prince with a stunned, yet appreciative look on her face which prompts him to clarify further, but he’s temporarily rendered mute as a hungry Violet starts to fuss in her seat.  

Lani reaches down to pull her into her arms, addressing both Marie and Leah who are now looking back and forth between their mother and Prince with nervous confusion.  

“Come on, girls,” Lani interjects quietly, picking up Violet and starting to prepare a bottle.  “Who wants to help me feed Violet?”

“Me me!”  Marie shrieks excitedly. “Please Lan Lan! I’ll be real careful.” she promises, eyeing the baby with affection.

“No me!”  Leah jumps in, hands in her hips.  “Marie’s had her all visit!” she retorts, giving her sister the evil eye as she sticks out her tongue.  “Baby hog!”

“Girls!”  Ronnie interjects, using her best mom voice to no avail.  “Girls! That’s enough!” she tries a second time. “We’re guests here...this isn’t the way…”  only to be interrupted by the unexpected feel of Prince’s hand on her forearm commanding her attention.

Ronnie’s steely gaze meets Prince’s smoky amber one.  She’s clearly cross with him overstepping her parental boundaries, but reluctantly backs down as his eyes soften at the girls desperate antics.  

“Calm down, girls,” he directs in a gentle baritone, crouching down to their level.  “If you both can promise to get along and help Lani feed Violet, I see two little girls with a tea party in their future...that is, if it’s okay with their mama,” he continues, his gaze now meeting Ronnie askance.  

“Please mama!”  Marie begs, blue eyes shining.  

“Mama...please.  I want tea party with Lan Lan!” Leah adds, tugging Ronnie’s pant leg as Prince watches on with a tender expression...feeling a surge of pride over his little doppelganger for the very first time.  

“Oh all right!”  Ronnie concedes with a gruffness belied by the twinkle in her eyes.  “But only if you two can promise Prince and Lani you’ll get along…”

“We promise,” the two reply in unison, eyes roving back and forth between Prince and Lani pleading.  

“Please Uncie P,” Marie begs, turning on her baby blue eyed charm.  Ronnie’s eyes meet Prince’s with surprise as she silently mouths a question, earning her a slight nod in response.  “Uncie P?”

“We’ll be good...won’t we, Leah?” she prompts, nudging her little sister in the side.  

“If I’m good, I get tea party with Lan Lan?” she asks Lani point blank, clearly remembering how she’d gone MIA on her last time and not wanting a repeat performance.  

“I promise,” Lani replies, crossing her fingers over her heart and earning the girls’ giggles in response.  

“Come with me you two,” she continues gently.  She heads toward the living room; Violet now content in her arms with a bottle as Marie and Leah follow behind them excitedly.

“Me first!” “No me!” they banter back and forth, sibling rivalry in full swing even as Lani’s eyes dart back to Prince and Ronnie with a silent pleading look.  Please make this right...please get along…

--

With Lani and the girls in the living room, an uncomfortable silence once again permeates the kitchen...with Ronnie and Prince warily stealing glances at each other as though unsure what to do next.  

Surprisingly it’s Prince’s quiet baritone that finally breaks it, with an apologetic sounding, “I meant what I said before…” which brings Ronnie’s questioning gaze to his.  “I really am sorry,” he finishes with chagrin, shuffling his feet in an uneasy rhythm, eyes on the ground.

“It’s fine,” Ronnie replies in a tone implying that it really wasn’t, but that she understands where he’s coming from.  He never asked for any of this. None of them had really, and yet here they were…

“No...it’s not,” he continues, contrite. “It’s just…” he trails off, raising troubled bloodshot eyes to Ronnie’s with confusion.

“Trust me, I get it,” she offers softly, gently touching his arm in reassurance.  “I’m just as confused as you are. I wish I could explain what’s happening, but believe me when I tell you that the last thing I want to do is make problems for you and Lani…”

“Then why…?” Prince asks haltingly, clearly troubled.  “Why make up stories...about Mayte...about our supposed dead child?”

“I wish I could tell you it didn’t happen,” Ronnie replies, eyes shining with unshed tears, “...but I can’t. Ahmir’s death tore my husband up for years, and in some ways it still does. You never really get over something like that.  

Still...it’s like I just got done telling Lani.  I don’t think it has to be this way for you two. In fact, I know it doesn’t...because as much as I don’t know you, not exactly anyway, I feel like I know you very well.  And if you’re anything like my husband…”

At that exact moment, Lani rushes back into the kitchen before her eyes fall on the intense moment going on right in front of her eyes, her bright blue eyes darting back and forth from Ronnie to Prince with concern.  

“Is everything okay?” she asks softly, as though walking on eggshells as she takes a hesitant step back toward the living room where Marie and Leah are excitedly singing to a giggling Violet.  “Bake me a cake as fast as you can…”

“I can always come back if…” she continues reluctantly as her eyes drift back over to her fiance for reassurance.  “E ipo?”

“It’s okay, mama.   I think we’re done here, right Ronnie?” he asks, hazel orbs meeting silver with a look of apology and understanding.

“Of course,” she offers with a nod and tentative smile before directing her attention to Lani, who’s now rustling through the cabinets.  “Now it looks like you could use some help. Anything I can do, Lani?”

Over her shoulder, Lani replies with a distracted sounding, “There should be some lemonade and cookies in the fridge for the girls…”

--

“Cookies, lemonade, got it.” Ronnie clears her throat and heads over to the fridge, trying her best to get her brain out of the deadlock caused by the conversation with Prince. It distresses her, in a way, that this Prince will never know and feel the pain that her husband has been through, the pain she still sees in his eyes every now and again. She idly wonders about the state of his hips.

Just at that moment, Violet starts fussing quietly, her cries echoing from the living room, a small, sharp whine. Marie comes running into the kitchen panicked. “Mommy --”

Ronnie’s seen this more times than she can count. “It’s okay, sweetie. Vi’s just hungry and wants her mama or her daddy to feed her, right?”

“Daddy, can you?” Lani looks at Prince, pleading, on her way out of the kitchen. “I need to jump over to the pantry to get some stuff for sandwiches.”

“‘Course Daddy can.” He heads out toward the living room where Violet’s cries start to settle once she sees her father. “I’ll go give her her formula, mama, and then we’ll be back for that famous tea party I’ve been hearin’ so much about.” He calls back, winking at Leah. “Hang on purple lady.  Daddy’s coming...”

He makes his way over to the fussing baby just as Ronnie finds the big jug of homemade lemonade. “Mm, that looks yummy. Who wants a --”

Suddenly, just as she says this, the world starts spinning so hard that she drops the jug and it shatters at her feet. Ronnie braces herself on the counter and at this point, she knows what’s happening, this is quite an unmistakable feeling really. The one terrifying thought that goes through her head is oh my God, the girls are getting left behind.

“Leah! Marie! Hold on to --”

“Mama, I don’t feel so good,” she hears Leah’s whine.

:2020:

When the world stops spinning, Ronnie feels like she’s sitting down somewhere soft, somewhere familiar. Bed. It’s the bedroom in Paisley Park where they fell asleep just the night before.

“Leah! Marie!”

“Mama!” Leah is crying, clearly confused and scared. “Mama, the world was going round and round!”

“Mama, where is Lani and Mr. P? And Vi?”

They’re here. Ronnie will have to think about how she’s going to explain any of this to them later, but right now, she can just breathe through the tightness still clutching her, because both her daughters are here and they’re safe.

Before Ronnie can react, the door to the bedroom bursts open and the girls shout in unison.

“Papa!”

“Oh thank God. Oh thank the Lord.” To Ronnie’s surprise, her husband looks a bit wild as he holds both his girls close. “Are you okay, sweethearts? God, I was so worried.”

“Prince, we --” is all Ronnie can say before he pulls her into a desperate embrace, his entire body shaking. “Prince, what --”

“Ronnie, you’ve been gone for hours. I was looking for you all over the place. I thought -- I thought --”

“Hush. Hush, no, honey, it’s fine, we’re here, we’re safe. We’re alright.”

As she holds him and feels his breathing go back to normal, her brain works furiously. Before, she’d only been gone for seconds. Now, she’d been gone for hours. She desperately wishes there was a manual on how this whole thing worked, some kind of instructions, rules that she can follow and make sure it’s all going according to plan.

Maybe that’s the point. Maybe there are no rules.

Prince pulls back to look at her, the girls going to hug him from both sides. “Ronnie, where --”

But he can’t finish because he’s swarmed with a river of words.

“Papa, we met a lovely lady called Lani and her baby called Vi and she was --”

“Papa, and there was this man, who looked so much like you, and he was too called Pwince!”

“And Papa we was gonna have tea party ---”

“But this Pwince wasn’t as nice as you Papa! And Mama said you have an angel, Papa, is it true?”

Recognition sparks in Prince’s eyes as he looks at Ronnie and she can’t help but laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation.

“It’s not about where we were, honey,” she tells him over the girls’ voices. “It’s when.”