birth

Scimitar disappeared from view. Slowly, Bazi started to come to. She ached everywhere, but the lack of tension and movement in her abdomen was glorious. It didn't make her feel empty, or cold - just utterly and completely relieved.

Finally, the sound of distress caught her attention. Bazi looked behind her elbow, and for one horrifying seconds, she was the mother that had lost her child within minutes of birthing him. Panic inflated her chest, and she was about to struggle to her feet when Swift's wriggling gave away his position. With a whispered holy fucking shit thank you, Bazi stretched awkwardly to pluck her little run-away from the floor and place him first in line, next to her elbow - where she could watch him.

Slowly and with fumbling movements, Bazi settled into motherhood.

She cleaned the pups, and herself, eating the rest of the membranes and their individual placentas. In the delirium of birth, she had severed their cords, but had no memory of doing so. When Scimitar poked his head back in, everyone was clean, and Bazi was smiling up at him. The scent of freshly killed rabbit made her mouth water, but she kept her sleepy eyes on her husband. "We have them," she whispered hoarsely, "Whittier, Pasha, Swift, and Allure. We have all four."