The Sunspire pale green things

mama @Seabreeze (+ anyone else present in the den <3)

small things grow so quickly. okeanos is no exception, a fumbling puppy-shape. each day brings him closer to recognition -- of self, of surroundings -- and today that step closer is big as his beady eyes open for the first time, confusedly taking in a sudden jumble of visual information.

oh man, it's a lot. he blinks and the information disappears for a second -- but comes right back. what? he blinks again, and again, the vanish and reappearance of unfamiliar shapes attached to familiar smells. hhhbork? his tiny voice cries, alarmed, buh???? pumping his chubby legs in the direction of the one scent that might bring him comfort in this strange new world -- mama.

she was a speck of dust-colored nothingness against the breast of her mother, betraying her existence with the perpetual, minuscule, inconsequential rise and fall of her breathing. 

she, whose eyes remained closed tightly.

though her brother protested, the dust mote was content; the warmth kept her deep in slumber. the scent of their mother was a soothing blanket across the universe

—but her universe was so small, still.

Post-pregnancy was not treating the new mother well at all.  She was desperately lethargic, and she never felt like she got enough food.  Despite the sudden abundance in prey due to Tindome dissolving (a thought that twists her gut), she was losing weight.

But if there was one thing that made her more than happy, it was her babies.  She spent the days after the birth with Olive, swooning over their children.  

She cranes over her brood as the dark boy begins to cry out, and as she tilts her head down, she notices those beautiful baby blues and begins to weep.  @Olive, she whispered, not knowing whether or not the druid was asleep, look!

he bumbles into the shape of mama's side, processing that mama's side has a shape at all. it hurts his tiny head but safe in the fur of mama's belly it's not so bad, dark and comforting. "maaa," okeanos whines, his tiny paws digging at her in an attempt to bury deeper, deeper, away from the chaotic visual information around him.

the den was crowded, as it always was nowadays. not that terance minded-- seabreeze and the babies were always welcome company and olive and her children were doing nothing but helping seabreeze. who, terance had noticed, looked thinner and thinner every day. he worried, of course, but was also confused. he brought her meals constantly-- but nothing seemed to help. 

today was no different, terance poked into the den holding a deer hind, fresh from the cache-- probably wraen's catch. he moved closer, placing it near her and pressing his nose to her cheek before settling to her side. okeanos was looking up at her with bright green eyes-- little puppy greens, of course, something that brought terance immense joy. they were growing so quickly-- and he was so proud. ibis, it seemed, was content with blindness for now. but terance wouldn't push her, it didn't seem unhealthy. he gave seabreeze another touch, this time to the shoulder, before resting his head on his paws and letting the little family continue on without further interruption, his tail tapping happily against the ground.

just a cameo! terance is just gonna sit to the side and watch v happily

the puff was silent, save for the subtle murmuring of her little voice as she slept; but it was the antithesis that woke her —
a brother, bigger than her, darker than her, louder,
as the adults fawned over his voice, the little one was brought to waking.

she rolled thoughtlessly, pushing off with the slightest touch from the body next to her own.
she tumbled awkwardly, the abrupt nature of their meeting brought her out of sleep, finally.

her own little eyes flew open, shock evident at first, but then a blurriness.
the large shapes around her - the adults - remained a mess of color and shapelessness.

the first sight beheld by the nymph was her beloved brother; instead of crying out after the collision of her tiny head against his tiny jaw, she only sighed, and
a smile danced across her face.

No need to jump back in Mags!  Can PP Terance for you.

She swipes her foreleg around her son's head, pulling him close per request.  She is content to litter him with kisses, tears misting her eyes, and she returns Terance's affections with similar enthusiasm.  Her heart swells at the sight of their small but growing family.

Ibis stirred beneath her, and Seabreeze watched as her daughter's baby blues opened.  @Terance, she breathed, nudging him to witness their daughter, and her tears spilled over as her baby girl's lips pulled into a smile.

-forces self back in- i might've skipped someone i am confused on post order sry sry sry

terance almost missed it. he was so focused on his son and the wonder that this moment was that he almost missed his daughter do the same thing. his green eyes flashed towards her at seabreeze's words, and he cooed softly as he leaned his head forward to see her better. could she see him? he hoped so-- but probably not, her vision wasn't that developed yet-- was it? 

he leaned back only to press his head to hers, nuzzling himself under her cheek as emotion took hold of her. "we did this," he said softly, proudly, as he gazed upon the light and dark that were his beautiful, perfect offspring.

comforted by mama's proximity, the boy settles, squinting at the world around him. as each moment passes the shapes that so confused him begin to fit together, a puzzle suddenly solved by his developing mind. oh -- this is mama, creamy and soft, and papa, dark, watchful, present, and that tiny shape suddenly catching their attention is ibis, sister, he understands that abstractly. there is no fine detail, just colors cut into previous darkness -- somehow comforting to him. 

ibis' collision brings them face to face -- he squeaks where she is silent, but does not mind. curiously -- mindlessly? -- he tumbles towards her, trying to make sense of the finer points of her tiny face, close enough as he is to make them out.

as the two adults are overtaken by emotion, so too is the smoke puff, but her's is different. beyond being a new sensation to the little one, it is intense and nearly overwhelming despite its simlicity: as her brother studies her pale face she does the same with him, humming and cooing as if in awe, and she is filled to bursting with happiness unhindered.

there is a point where she feels too much; perhaps that will become a burden for the girl at a later time, but for now she is content to watch the dark blob that is her brother, bask in his own attention, and share her affection in the form of babbles and squishing.

oh!  oh look!  she turned from terance, to the babies, back again, repeatedly, joy trickling back into her life one child's coo at a time.  as he rests his head beneath hers, she pulls her shoulder up to embrace him, and all she can do is nod and cry.

look at them, she sobs, they're so perfect.  thank you.

o shit it's my turn-- we can wrap this up whenever you babies want, since sb is PPC <3

terance watches in awe and wonder, and so much love-- so much love. he'd never seen children so perfect. how many times had he thought the word perfect? not enough, honestly. 

he rested his head on seabreeze's side, watching contently his tiny little creations.