Lion Head Mesa all i want for christmas is

Dated to yesterday!

The sun was high in the sky when she felt the first sharp pains of her body's protests. Serein's first thought, past the panic, was stark; I'm not ready. She sucked in a breath and cast her gaze to the sky. I'll never be ready.

It was a lonely, long-suffering agony. It was a penance. It was her red-dripping reward for daring to reach for something, daring to think she could afford to want. It was the small lifeless bundle of her firstborn, cooling too quickly, never stirring even for a moment. It was the echo of dread on her tongue, the sharp churn of her stomach.

It was two tiny, helpless little lives to follow the pain. Serein didn't bother to give them names; who knew if they would survive the night? She simply gathered them close and let her eyes drift shut. That was how @Kemal would find her, if he bothered to check.