Ravensblood Forest the bird and the bee [m]

Her ebon husband jarred awake and immediately inquired after how she was feeling. His caresses were welcome and most comforting. The split second between when she nudged him and when he awakened [almost as if he had been conscious the entire time] had felt like an eon — and during that eon, her demure sense of trust in the universe’s energies yielded to cold apprehension. With the last pain, it became clear that her time had come.  Though the fae had watched her belly grow and the lives within her womb flourish, it had all seemed such a fantasy — until that very moment. These babes [their children!], their lives were entirely dependent upon her. Well, Dakarai was there of course but motherhood was a special experience. What if she messed up? What if she was going to a bad mother? Her pregnancy had gone so fast, but their conception felt as if it was years ago. Olive hadn’t much time to prepare; to soak up the experience of motherhood before it was motherhood; to learn everything there was to know about pup rearing! So much had happened since their romp upon the sunspire… and the strong emotions that tinged the past several months muddied her sense of time. It was a time that had been so long, yet so short. so lovely yet so horrific. it created expansion as much as it created reduction, in both the physical and metaphysical senses. It was all so uncertain, but there was one thing she was certain of…

She wasn’t ready. 

Her heart thump thump thumped, though there was no pleasure in this quickened pace. Olive leaned into his touch and rocked her head against his, hoping to work out some of the restlessness she felt in her body and soul. This wasn’t something she could run from, the lamb thought as another small pain shot through her abdomen. The pups were coming whether she was ready or not, and she would be forever changed because of it. Such a drastic upheaval was suddenly quite scary to mother-to-be — but perhaps Dakarai would be ready enough for the both of them. He already fathered puppies before, knew how this all went. Olive trusted him implicitly and found great comfort in his nearness. He was to be her shepherd. He knew what to do. With jade eyes, large and swimming in the moonlight, she pulled at the ground and crawled her rounded, petite form to close to gap between them. She tucked her visage in the velveteen fur that lined his collar, as she always did when she felt ungrounded and uncertain. She was safe here, in this spot upon his neck. Here, her reckless ways could never put their children in danger again. “I’m scared.” she whispered into him.