Sun Mote Copse Better hit the deck like the card dealer

While for months, Niamh had basically been a baby incubator, her task had now become milk-producer, which still took a fair amount of energy. While she relied on her other family members to feed her, she fed the children herself, at least until Towhee and Meerkat moved in. And so, exhausted but still hard at work producing nutrition for her babies, Niamh didn't really notice the first bout of Alyx's cries simply because puppies cried practically all the time. But there was something different about her tone- this wasn't an angry cry, a hungry cry, or a cry used just to exercise her lungs. This was shrill- this was pain.

Niamh startled awake as soon as her brain recognized that her daughter's voice was fraught with anguish. "Hey, hey, hey, Quetzal, easy, it's OK," She said, but herown voice became tense and began to leech fear as her daughter continued to wail, twinge and writhe. She licked her daughter to soothe her, and it was then that she noticed the swelling mass on Alyx's side. Given the fact that the stinger had now been hidden by the swelling, and the evidence (the dying/near death bee) was hidden underneath Alyx's belly, Niamh had absolutely no idea why Alyx was suddenly swelling up. "No, no no," She said, her voice hoarse and loud. "Phox? Phox!" She called out, hoping that he was in the vicinity, or that anyone was. "Hello? Anyone? Please!" She called out. She thought she could smell Towhee, and maybe Meerkat nearby. "Towhee? Someone!" She called out again. Her heart thudded frantically in her chest as she licked Alyx's swelling flank, fretting over her child and the unknown cause of this sudden injury.