Arrow Lake Will you be my breath through the deep, deep water

<3

She had been too preoccupied with the overwhelming abundance of pain and then with cleaning her firstborn to hear Mahler's scratching at the den door or notice him come in. It wasn't until she had settled down with the newborn and heard her name that she looked to him. She didn't stop him from coming near but glanced away at his comment, gratefully leaning into him once he had found his place next to her. Dealing with things on her own had just been her way for so long that she hadn't really thought to alert anyone when the pain started. She was glad for the support though, and she felt better knowing he was here to help if something was wrong with one of the children. Taki was quiet against him during the reprieve, her breathing evening out a little as she watched her son nurse. He was large, of course, given his sizable parents, and she was afraid they would all be just a large, something she would be proud of later but now, the thought of birthing more big puppies only made her cringe. 


She wasn't allowed much of a break before a fresh wave of hurt spread from her sides and down her still-round abdomen. She sat up, looking to the first pup apologetically as she jostled him some with her quick movement. She had little time to feel sorry for disturbing him--the contraction saw to it that she thought of nothing else than how much it hurt. She closed her eyes against the feeling, her entire body tensing as she waited for it to pass. When finally it did, she released a harsh breath, her sides heaving from the exertion of wading through the pain. When the waves began to start and end closer together, she wanted to get up and pace but even in pain, the idea of leaving her first child alone on the ground made her quickly change her mind, so she pushed up against Mahler instead as the pattern continued. When it came time to push again, she did-- over and over, each time somehow gathering the strength to repeat the agonizing motion. Finally, her second child was born, a soft whine escaping her with her final push. Again, Taki cleaned the pup, relief washing over her as the child began to cry out. It was another boy, only this one was all white where her first born's white coat was interrupted by a smudging of black on his neck and down his back. She pulled her second son close to her and settled back down to rest while she could. She was already pretty tired, the second puppy not coming quite as easily as the first one, and she was pretty sure she wasn't done yet. She tried not to think too much about repeating the whole process yet again, and instead she gave Mahler a grateful expression before looking back down to the two nursing newborns. She had been prepared to do this on her own, but she was growing ever more appreciative for the Kapitän's presence and support. 

But then the pain started again, much sooner than she was expecting. She wasn't quite recovered from the birth of her second child, but she knew she had little say in the matter. She sat back up, exhaustion and anguish filling her expression as she waited for the pain to subside. As each space between contractions grew smaller and smaller, Taki's energy grew more and more depleted. But, leaning against Mahler, she persevered, riding the wave of pain each time it came and went. And when the urge to push came again, she again found the strength to do as her body instructed. After a few hard pushes, a grunt of pain moved from her chest almost beyond her conscious control, and then her third child was born. Ignoring the exhaustion, she moved to clean the pup--a girl this time and pure white just like the second. Of course her daughter would be tenacious from day one, demanding to be born before she had even recovered from the birth of her second son. Once the three of them were nursing, Taki collapsed back to the ground. She was so tired and the thought of going through the pain again was almost too much to bear, but she knew she would if she had to. She rested her head on her paws, drawing all she could from the moment of calm. Her tired gaze rested on Mahler again, but she couldn't muster up the energy to say anything.