Redhawk Caldera and a happy new year [birth]

There was so much death around here lately; first Peregrine, then Kaizer and now Fox. Raven felt grief so deep, she went a little numb. With the puppies sorted closer to her belly, where they could suckle, she looked up a little blankly when Elwood entered the den. For a full minute or two, she made no reply.

Then she blinked her yellow eyes and seemed to come back to herself. "She's dead," Raven croaked, staring at Fox's lifelessly body. "She was dead when I got here," she added mournfully. "I should've stopped by earlier." Regret pierced her heart. Maybe she could have done something for her mother if she hadn't been so skittish about approaching her lately.

But the reason for that—the false pregnancy—was the very reason the pups would now survive... hopefully. "I told you it was a blessing," the Delta whispered right before she started to cry.