Blacktail Deer Plateau Doompy poomp

He listened as Blue Willow offered several possible explanations. Fleetingly, he wished he hadn't buried her before the Healer could find the cause, yet he quickly dismissed the sentiment. Poking and prodding poor Pied wouldn't have brought her back. The thought of other pups still being inside of her at the time of her death had never occurred to Peregrine. He stared down at his baby girls and the thought made him ache. He was happier not knowing if that had been the cause.

"Don't waste your time blaming yourself, Willow. It was nobody's fault. It was nature taking its course, which is just the harsh reality of it. It doesn't make us any less bereaved, of course, but Pied wouldn't want us moping around kicking ourselves over her death. And there was nothing she would've changed, I'm sure. She loved her children long before they were born and I could tell how much she wanted to be a mother." He paused. "And she will live on through her son and daughter."

After a pause during which Peregrine gazed at sleeping Ty's twitching hind paw, he mused aloud, "I don't know if you already know this but she was my niece, my sister Velox's only daughter. And... not long before she died, she told me she could see ghosts. I still don't know whether I believe she really saw something supernatural but I wonder... I kinda find myself hoping there's an afterlife, that she's at peace and watching over all of us." The swarthy male snorted to himself. "God, that sounds cheesy as fuck."

Tytonidae suddenly whimpered in her sleep and Peregrine passed his tongue over her head and face in an attempt to soothe her. He then looked at Blue Willow and said, "Can you grab Osprey, please, and move her over here, out of the sun. I don't want them to overheat." With that, he closed his jaws around Tytonidae, lifted her, turned around and deposited her in the den's mouth, where cool shadows lingered. He then stepped aside, making room for Blue Willow to drop Osprey Jr. beside her sister.