Sunbeam Lair It’s not so hard now, you’ve got it all

Time to be born! I've permission from Pija to PP Nekoda.
Welcome to the world, lil hatchlings~! Please let Ukko and the babies reply first.

All through the night she'd been restless, even with her mate being there beside her. Sleep had been achieved at last, and she'd hoped that, perhaps, that'd put an end to her unease. When she'd awoken that morning, however, she'd found it to have remained. It confirmed her suspicions, and she'd felt glad to have sent Nekoda away the morning prior to retrieve @Damien. No matter who the father might be, he was a friend of hers, and she'd wanted him there just in case the birth of her children might turn into her last moments of life. The worries she harboured had yet to be shared with anyone, having been kept to herself so that she might not cause a panic when it could very well be necessary. There was no way to tell the futures of the children within her womb, and so there existed no possible tests that might be done to determine if one was Draco's next vessel. All she could really do was hope, as well as cherish what time she had left, should it be brought to a sudden end.

The morning had slipped by and transition to noon, but there'd been no children to show for it. She'd paced around within her den, stopping occasionally to rest her legs, but always had she started back up again. When the first pang of pain had worked it's way through her system was when she'd finally laid herself down, getting as comfortable as she could as the process continued. There was a moment in which she'd considering sending @Ukko off to retrieve some herbs for her, but she'd ended up calling him nearer to her instead. If Draco decided that her time on earth was over, then she wanted to have him nearby when it happened. Asterr didn't want to die alone, nor did she want for her children to suffer the same fate. Thus, she'd mentally prepared herself for the pain to come, choosing it over the relief that could have been achieved with herbs.

A spasm in her abdomen seemed to get the ball rolling, and she'd held her breath as the following pain warned her of the to-be-firstborn's movement through her body. It'd been a relatively quick birth, the child having offered little resistance. The moment the body had slid out onto the floor, Asterr tore the sac away and went to cleaning, noticing almost immediately that it was a girl. A second passed, and she'd realized that her heart continued to beat. Despite having given birth to a female, it hadn't meant the end of her own life, towards which she felt an immense amount of relief. She looked the girl that would someday be known as @Airi over, examining her before having nudged her towards her stomach. Already she was a mother, but the rest of her children had yet to arrive; something she'd been made aware just as soon as the next jolt of pain shot through her midsection.

The next to arrive had come out just as easily as the first, and the dragoness tended to the child immediately. Another girl, to eventually be called @Kaori, had come into existence. Like her sister before her, she possessed a body of charred hues, lightened only by a few white hairs on her chest. How great the patch would come to grow, she knew not, but didn't mind either way. The girl was her daughter, and so she'd moved her right up to her sister's side, licking the both of them over their backs once or twice to assure them that she was still there. However, it wasn't long that they'd held her attention, for there came more pain, and a mass that was greater in size than the previous two. With her, the girl had struggled, but her body had won in the end and so onto the ground another pup had slid. It was @Shiori that had been born last, though she did not yet possess a name, her colouration being identical to that of her previous sister. The youngest's body was larger than the other twos', but all three appeared healthy. After a thorough cleaning, the final addition to their family had been brought up against her stomach. Minutes passed, but without any signal to more children arriving having been given. Realizing that she was done, Asterr had laid her head down against the ground, panting, but happy.

Sleep weighed heavily on her eyelids, but it'd been fought off for the time being. "Ukko..." she'd managed to say, her voice but a mumble. "Ukko, we all live." The children and herself, as well as him. The reason behind her words hadn't been clarified as she'd allowed for her eyes to close, resting them, but doing her best to remain conscious.

As much as Asterr was restless the night before, so had Ukko been. Nothing he offered seem to help and he couldn't get any sleep either so he did his best to offer comfort until she finally settled. While she'd gotten sleep, Ukko hadn't allowed himself and through the night he lay at the entrance of the den to keep guard. If something were to happen, he would be there, and if she needed her space, he could easily slip out. 

The night had not brought such a thing as they moved into morning. Again, there was little for him to offer and he just remained nearby, diligent and protective as always, ready to do whatever bidding she bestowed upon him. Once more, nothing could be done and so his post remained outside the mouth of the den as they waited the arrival of their young. When a messenger had been sent for some male Ukko didn't know, he felt a twist in his stomach he didn't know how to unknot. The name meant nothing to him, Asterr never speaking of him in their time together, and so a sour taste was left in his mouth as he awaited for whomever this Damien was. 

As the day moves on with nothing to show for it, Ukko now remains at the opening of the den where he paces back and forth. It is her first bearing of children and he knows it is likely to be hard on her, depending on the number of children inside her belly. When he hears a commotion, his ears shoot forward and he glances to the dark opening but does not invade her space. Outside, he waits until she gives him the green light that everything is okay. 

It is only when he hears the uttering of his name that he stops his pacing and immediately draws up to the opening. He swallows a lump in his throat as he crouched down low, inching closer to the mouth of the den but afraid she may not want him near. It is only a peek he wishes for, confirmation with his own eyes that everyone is okay and alive and well, despite Asterr giving him the announcement. In that moment, he does not think of Tavi or the Maplewood or Stark or anyone else. Just his mate and his children, as foreign as the words had sounded prior, everything felt okay now. She is alive, as the children, and he only offers a whine once to know more.

In the womb her dreams were of many things; sometimes they were of gentle water ebbing against a sandy, rocky shore, mountains covering the horizon behind it. Sometimes they were of flying , soaring high in the chill of the air. Other times they were of dark, murky things, with shadows thick and sluggish as fetid blood. Her last dream in the womb was one of those dark ones, until the utter blackness shifted to a half gray light. The cloistered feeling she had grown with for her whole unborn life was suddenly ripped away, leaving her cold and alone. 

She was the first, and leadership was lonely. The other moving bundles she had half felt in her dreams were gone now. They too were a comfort she grew to appreciate. The girl protested this at first with an indignant squeal, but as she squirmed towards another, albeit less enveloping warmth, her mouth working for something she could not yet understan- wait what was this liquid spilling forth? 

Her mouth latched onto a strange spiget, bringing warming nutrients and goodness to her belly. Her annoyance swept away, she kneaded thoughtlessly at the warmth, pushing more of this liquid goodness into her, all dreams of the womb dissolved by the creamy warmth

Kaori really didn’t quite understand what was going on…all she could really recall was a warmth and then feeling cold and then having to try to move and failing to try to find a heat source. When her attempts at movement failed, she let out a small squeak that she couldn’t hear. Followed by a squeal she couldn’t hear. Finished by starting to wail loudly, that once again, she couldn’t hear. She really didn’t know what she was doing. She couldn’t tell what was going on around her small body or what to do or where to go but she hushed when she’d been moved next to a large heat source and eventually latched on to something unidentifiable to her, and felt something warm come out. Drinking it up quickly, she filled her tiny belly with the warm liquid happily.

The dragon emerged squalling and rancorous. There was no doubting her arrival nor her liveliness, for as soon as the sac which had encased her through gestation was pulled away and the first gulps of air were swallowed, she began to cry out in indignation. It was cold! It was loud! Gone was the deep, soothing red of the womb. Gone was the pervasive metronome of her mother's heart beat, beat, beating in a red so deep it was almost black.

Her sisters squealed beside her, and it seemed as though Shiori would never stop, but her mouth closed around flesh and hark! milk came forth. This quieted her, and her cries diminished to the occassional grunt as she suckled, content.

For weeks it stayed on the back of Damien's mind, the promise he'd made to Asterr of being there for the pups in case they were his. But other thoughts battled too, compromising his certainty. How could Asterr ever know whether the pups were his? And if they were, how could he be their father without leaving Blackfeather Woods behind? And even if he managed to do that, how could he ever keep the secret from the Dark Brotherhood? Thsi would for sure bring him trouble down the road.

But those thoughts seemed to turn off the moment Asterr's brother came to Blackfeather Woods to collect him saying Asterr was in labor, lucky not to be surprised in the company of either of his siblings, or anyone else from the pack. He didn't think twice before following the Draconid to the lair, but did send out a howl for the pack to know that he was going to leave for a couple days. They wouldn't ask where he went, he was sure they would be used by now to his random expeditions.

It was a long way to the mountains, and the trek up the hills was not an easy one, but Damien was eager to get there, to find Asterr and offer whatever kind of support he could, even if the pups were not his own. And he felt like a complete stranger when he arrived at the caverns, profaning a foreign place, but still he felt this was the right place for his children to grow up, unlike his own home.

Nekoda brought him to the den right away, and Damien thanked him before approaching. There was a male sitting outside, like a sentinel across the entrance, and Damien cleared his throat to announce his presence. He was a stranger in this lair, after all, and he knew better than to disrespect those that lived within. But this male was blocking his way to Asterr, and the dark prince was eager to see her.

Ukko had not entered the den by himself, and she'd yet to extend a direct invitation. There was a brief moment in which she'd slipped into unconsciousness, but his whine had been quick to rouse her. Despite the exhaustion that she felt, she'd forced her head upwards and gazed at her children—three, all girls, and all as dark as the night itself. She wondered how they might grow, what they'd look like, and how they would be. A smile was directed towards them before she'd turned her attention towards the den's entrance, watching her mate for a moment before saying, "You may come closer, but be careful." Her voice was hardly above a whisper, the energy necessary to speak any louder being something that she'd yet to regain. Shifting, she'd curved her spine just enough to lay her head to the side of the small bodies, but not so much so that she'd be shielding the hatchlings from the onlooker.

They'd made noise at first, ever the lively sorts, but had quieted down quickly after having started to nurse. The feeling was an unusual one, something that no amount of lessons could have ever prepared her for, but she didn't dislike it. Peculiar, but welcomed, for it confirmed each and every second that her children still lived. That they'd not been born only to die, but had instead entered the world with the purpose of living their lives. For the time being, names remained at the back of her mind, having been pushed away so that she could spend more time fawning over her newborns. Alas, her gaze had been pulled away from them once again when she'd heard a sound from outside of her den, ears perking to try and better detect who—or what—was out there.

Unable to see out into the world beyond her private little space, she'd sought out Ukko, an unasked question in her eyes: was there something out there? The smell of birth clouded her senses, as did her fatigue, leaving her to simply wonder and nothing else. Perhaps it was a family member, or someone of the tribe coming to offer their blessings. Whatever it was, she entrusted the dark male with the task of assessing the situation and then proceeding from there.

His worries are set aside. He doesn't think about the stranger potentially coming to this borders to see Asterr or the concern that any of them are in danger. She's survived through this, their three girls are alive and wiggling and making noise. Even from where he rests in the mouth, he can see that much. The call to come inside the small enclosure, just enough so that he can fit inside, he strategically places his paws so that he doesn't step or touch on any of them. It takes a few seconds for him to adjust in a way that gives them as much space as possible and where he's able to really look at the life that's come together before him.

He'd returned to Teekon what felt like an eternity ago. He'd made a new life and leadership and family in a time he never expected. Wandering around aimlessly with no purpose, his best friend gone, but in this moment he can hardly think of those things. His darkened orange eyes lift to his mate and he leans forward to place a gentle kiss across her muzzle and a gleam in his gaze that can only convey you did it, we did it.

Ukko tries not to overstay his welcome in the cramped enclosure and eventually backs most of the way out, hovering the mouth of the den. He struggles to keep his gaze away from his little family but he remains perched in protection.

Asterr calls out to him at the same time he sees a dark form materialize. At first he thinks it may be Jolon, whom he hadn't seen since his arrival, but his gait is too even and there's another with him he vaguely recognizes as a relative. The stranger clears his throat upon his approach but Ukko becomes stiff and rises to all fours. The other's size and features do little to intimidate him. His own form is large but his thick fur gives him an addition in size that is often deceiving.

Neither speak but he can see the curiousness across the stranger's features that puts an unease in his stomach. Ukko does not move from the mouth of the den, an unmovable blockade to protect the ones he's lived for for the past several weeks. His fur bristles and his shoulder square, holding a proud hide with a crown that is only fit for a king protecting his land.

It is only obvious to Damien that the male blocking his view of Asterr shared a leadership position with the Draconid. He stands tall, matching the young shadow's ow height, but there's a bulk to Damien that the copper-eyed beast could never achieve. And still, Damien bows down respectfully, forcing his neck to bend in order to retain his head. The other seems stiff, anxious, but his caution is with reason. Damien can scent Asterr inside, and with hers the heavy smell of birth swamps the entrance of her den.

"I am a friend," he breaks the silence, unsure as to whether Asterr can hear him from inside. "Asterr sent Nekoda for me. I had been waiting," he explains, but the tension remains. The silence, even inside the den, makes Damien nervous and he wonders whether everything is okay inside. But there's no way for him to find out across the sentinel.

uhmm.. sorry this one's shorter than yours guys lmao

The invitation to enter the space had been accepted, and she’d soon been able to watch as he’d maneuvered the frontal portion of his body into the den. A smile—though appearing tired—was never far from her lips, looking between her children and her mate. They were her family, and they were all together now. Everyone had survived the birth, and her worries had been laid to rest. Tranquility reigned over her mind, everything that she’d been stressing over prior to the birth of her children forgotten. Ukko’s kiss was accepted, and had she not been exhausted and nursing the hatchlings, surely she would have reached out to him immediately after. Before she’d found the words to encourage him to move closer so that she might be able to do just that, he’d pulled away. At first, she’d wanted to call him back in, but ended up not saying a single word. It was best that the space not be crowded for now, and she’d have plenty of time to spend with him later on. There was no rush, and so she’d not spoken against his desire to stand guard. In fact, she’d appreciated it, for she knew not how others might be kept away if he were to leave them.

It wasn’t long before she’d noticed a change, her partner’s form no longer against the earth. He’d risen up outside of the den, which had her curious. Was there a threat? Surely not; Asterr didn’t want to believe that someone would dare to enter the lair so deeply unless if they were a friend. Her own body tensed as best it could, though it wasn’t long before she’d relaxed again, a familiar voice having been picked up on. It was seemingly distant, but still recognizable. “Ukko…” the girl had murmured, then repeated. The second time his name had passed her lips, it’d been louder, but not terribly so. “It is alright. He will not bring us any harm,” she’d continued. There was no need for any further actions to be taken, she believed. Damien was a friend, to whom she’d sent her brother for the purpose of retrieval. In the Draconid’s mind, he was welcome there, though she’d not the ability to properly convey such beliefs to her partner. In truth, she’d not even thought to do so, for her mind lingered elsewhere, drifting continuously between being conscious and unconscious.

A friend?

Ukko snorts but doesn't break his gaze from the stranger. He'd never heard of him, if he is who he says he is (and he's sure to be), what proof did he have? Why hadn't there been anything prior to this day? His jaw tightens and sets but he doesn't move. There isn't a thing in the world that will move him, no matter how close.

"Some friend," he comments smoothly, "considering her mate doesn't have a clue who you are."

Perhaps—an afterthought—that says more about their own relationship, if Asterr were to keep something from him. Nor will it surprise him, should it be the case, but the facts didn't change. Asterr is his mate and those are his children and some random wolf he doesn't know, from some pack he has never heard of, isn't going near his family. And whatever Asterr speaks from the birthing den, quiet and hoarse, but he does not hear.

"You may offer your support," he tells him glancing down to the ground between their feet without so much a rodent to offer the mother for sustenance, "however meager that may be."

Asterr's voice falls to the void, too weak to even make it out out of the den, and the sentinel stands. Damien stays put, respecting the other male's right to keep Asterr safe, but his comment catches him off guard. It proved how very little he even knew about Asterr. Her mate, one Damien had never even heard of, had now to be added into the equation, and Damien wasn't so sure he lied the idea... Or did he?

"Her Mate," he repeats curtly, "Didn't look like she had one when she came looking for me in heat," he comments, the sass in his words perhaps too dangerous for his context. But he hadn't thought of that in the moment, his blood boiling almost instantly at the suggestion of 'offering support'. Was it not enough that he'd come all the way from Blackfeather Woods to welcome his pups to the world?

It became clear that she’d not been heard, and most likely wouldn’t be. Another attempt at getting their attention had not been made, for she’d realized that doing so would only waste what little energy she had left; the energy that she needed in order to speak the names of her daughters. Over their nursing forms had she looked, considering what they each might come to be called whilst listening, partially, to the happenings outside of the den. Not everything was heard, may words having been missed, and so she’d eventually stopped trying and situated herself so that she could peer at the hatchlings as she laid there with them. Every so often she’d found her tired gaze slipping over towards the entrance, waiting for… well, she wasn't entirely sure what she was awaiting.

It only takes a few seconds to register the words, to realize there might be a chance the litter might not be his, but it is not enough to deter him. His glare only hardens as he rolls through one tidbit of information over the next, knowing Asterr hadn’t left his sight during her heat since they met and prior to him, nothing else mattered. The thought alone causes him to lift his head just a fraction higher and an eyebrow quirked to show the words didn’t cut through him as expected—at least not in that moment.

It isn’t some strange wolf he doesn’t know that stands by her side, that has provided for her since the first signs of pregnancy. It isn’t Damien that fed her and kept her safe, that led her home when she’d become den-ridden. It isn’t Damien that stands protectively in front of them now, not letting some strange wolf he doesn’t know inside to see his family. Whatever Asterr had done before Ukko arrived could hardly be blamed for—however, not being told had definitely hit a spot he hadn’t expected—but steadfast he remains in light of the new information.

“But she didn’t choose you, now did she?” is all he has to offer.

Straightforward and direct seemed to be Ukko's style, but it only made Damien laugh. A smirk drew up the corner of his lips at the male's response, which only showed insecurity. "But she did call me here," was his answer as he now dared to look up at the male. "Now, if you wouldn't mind I have a litter to welcome to this world," he said, taking one step closer and requesting to be given some space. The journey to the lair would not go to waste, and Damien would have his way regardless of how dominant the sentinel thought he could be. He had an arrangement with Asterr, and Ukko would not stand in his way.

Damien takes a step forward and Ukko snorts, unwavering. It is foolish for the other to think he'd budge an inch, as if whatever charm he thought he had would get him past his guard. His eyes shift only when the other is closer, silent in his stare as if their distance decreased only to inches. He thinks briefly of Reek and the day he'd challenged him when he hadn't been ready, but he's far more prepared for round two especially that he stands on the other side this time.

"I would mind, actually, seeing as the den is for family only," Ukko relays smoothly without an alter of his flattened expression. Only his eyes move slightly between Damien's own as he holds his focus. "You may see them when visitors are allowed." Of course, this only translates to over my dead body but the words are lost on his tongue as his muzzle twitches but smooths before his teeth are shown.

Are we allowed to skip @Asterr?? >_>

His way is blocked, and Damien's body holds position just inches away from Ukko's nose. He's infuriated by the other's insolence, lip twitching dangerously, but he knows that he's not in position to strike. His fangs are not revealed, it was not worth it.

"Alright..." he spoke, voice coarse and slow, dangerously close to a growl "I will come back when Asterr and the pups are in better conditions to have guests," he said and paused for a moment as he looked right into Ukko's eyes before taking one step back. "Keep an eye on them for me, will you?" he added coyly as he turned to take his leave. That was the last Ukko heard that day from Damien, for his patience had run out. He made his way back down the mountain and once there he looked back to make one promise in the name of she who pulls the strings before his journey back home: "I will have his head one day."

Ukko is not given a chance to speak for Damien turns to leave and, perhaps, for the best, for he isn’t sure what words would actually come forth. If any. The longer he stands there, he realizes the taste in his mouth and want in his stomach is nothing but blood. A craving he has not had much experience with but one all the same and pity for the dark male should he step foot near the mountain again. It is enough, for the moment, to ease some of the blame forward and projected on the retreating male, but the longer he stands there he begins to feel the shift. His legs tremble and his ears upon his head fall back, slowly turning to look at the entrance of the den. Asterr does not get her wish to see her friend and Ukko doesn’t know why he's still standing there.

The events that had taken place outside of the den had seemed to be concluded, though she was at a loss in regards to exactly what had happened. Only snippets of the conversation had been caught here and there, none of which having been enough for her to piece together a larger picture—not yet, that is. Once she’d had time to rest and truly think, surely she’d manage to string something together, but for now she felt lost and entirely out of the loop. No matter, it wasn’t something for her to worry over just yet, understanding that there were far more pressing matters at hand, such as the naming of her daughters. Whilst they could, in all honesty, be named at any point after their birth, she’d wished to do it sooner, rather than later. Besides, it was something that her tired mind was able to (sort of) focus on.

She’d waited a moment to see if Ukko would return to his previous position at the entrance of the den, wanting to share the moment with him. When he had not reappear, however, she’d looked to the firstborn and nosed over her, softly uttering, “Airi,” in the process. After her grandmother, the vessel before her. It had seemed like the right thing to do, for she’d wished to honour her family. To the next child she’d looked, searching through her mind for something perfect. “Kaori,” was to be her name, whilst the last to be born would be known as, “Shiori.” Her little hatchlings, whose names she had hoped to have been heard by Ukko.

Asterr had looked towards the entrance one last time, searching for any signs that he might show he’d heard her, but found none. Shortly thereafter exhaustion had claimed her at last, dragging the new mother down into a deep sleep.