Redhawk Caldera swanlight

welcome babies! no posting order for anyone <3

in the safe recesses of the blackthorn den, chickadee strained and cried and whimpered, tended to by @Maia, @Eljay, bridget, and @Kivaluk. she knew of the women's circle among the moon wolves, but this was so great a pain and so vast a trial that she only wanted these ones close.
it was hard, having begun almost a day ago. first she had walked, complaining, then she had taken to swimming the lake when the back pains began.
and when chickadee had clambered roundly onto the muddy shores, her own waters had broken there, and she had cried out in great surprise. and then her contractions had begun in earnest, great horrible pains which sank her to the earth in wide-eyed shock and confusion at how horribly a body could rend.
by evening she knew, and by nightfall she had stalled, teeth clenched as body refused to progress any further.
midnight brought with it a long and cleansing rain which soaked the trees and daubed the flowers with pools of glowing light beneath the stars; at last she relaxed and slept in fitful grasps of dreamscape.
just before dawn, @Eagle was born, a body clad in soft colors of dark ash and river clays. "eagle eljay," chickadee whispered, as tears poured down her face, released from some place within her.
as the sun grew over the horizon, @Crane followed, a child of stone dust and sable. "crane maia," she named this one, looking at the boy with exhausted love that washed over her a second time, just as strongly.
when at last dawn broke in watery golden radiance, @Cardinal arrived, a tiny girl clad almost completely in the autumn shades which accented her father. "cardinal sakhmet," the young mother whispered, experiencing a pang for the woman she did not think she would ever meet. but this paled beneath the cascade of adoration for the daughter, her only daughter, her first.
no more children came, and she was free to lie back among the loving care of brecheliant, eagerly motioning kivaluk to her side with a soft laugh. "look! they're all so gorgeous, babe."

he remained close, at chickadee's insistence even though tradition told him differently. watching her in pain sets him on edge, teeth gritting and full of a restlessness that he doesn't know what to do with.

so, he paces; wearing a path into the earth.

the sounds and smells inside the den concern him and his ears remain alert; his muscles tensed as if ready for a fight. but what was he to fight?

his ears perk as the cries die down: chickadee's and smaller whimpers of their children.

their children.

a thought that it was surreal washes over kivaluk even as he moves dutifully to chickadee's side like an ever loyal malinois, taking in the three small newborns tucked against her side. a swirl of colors: of his mother, of his brother and them. a small measure of relief washes over kivaluk that none of them look like kigipigak.

a selfish thing to think when faced with the beauty of his newborn children and his wife who just birthed them.

they're beautiful, he murmurs, hunkering low; protective and loving as he places a kiss on each of their small heads and then to her cheek. you're beautiful. and amazing and — words had begun to fail him and so he rests in his own silence; soaking up the terror and the unbridled joy at being a first time father.

Maia was exhausted.  She could not even imagine how Chickadee felt, but her weariness fled the moment the first of her grandchildren was born.  Eagle Eljay.  She could not blame the tiredness for the tears that sparked in her eyes.  She hadn’t known.  There were no words, nor did she have any when the second arrived to bear her name.  Crane Maia.  She would try every moment to be worthy of the honor.  She needed to compose herself a moment after before moving in to help wherever needed.

Maia had not slept fully since Chickadee’s water broke.  She’d never endured a labor this long, but her daughter bore it staunchly, and after long hours of quiet encouragement and gentle support, three beautiful children nestled at her side.

She stepped quietly aside as soon as she was sure all were well, allowing mother and father a moment to cherish this alone.  Her first joy had been shattered so quickly; her heart was full to know her daughter’s would be vastly different.

before he was born in a lapse of time in the gloaming, eagle elijay stirs.

everything was shifting, his heartbeat pittered as if hummingbird wings, and all of his utilities were turned off!

now he was being expunged from his apartment because of withheld deposit ... whoopsies.

it wasn’t overly elegant as all births were, but he came from a humble place as the firstborn son, so by the time he attained consciousness,  the entire world decidedly would fall onto his shoulders.

as soon as he was released from the placenta, a hearty screech greeted his audience, dampening into tiny warbles and cries as he diddled about earthside.

a dozen ounces of joy born to the young parents (soon to be sixteen if he could cop a teat).

the young eyas would commit the heartbeats of his mother and ruddy-cheeked siblings to his first memory (soon to dissipate), and the swathe of heat emitting from his father’s was welcomed.

This is not a new story. This is one that has been told many times before, and will be told many times again.

And it starts right here.

Once upon a time, a girl is born to young parents. She is not remarkable by any means, not yet at the very least, pudgy and round with baby fat. Just outside the comfortable home she is born into, a red bird alights for just a moment on a branch, singing a few chirping songs, and then it is gone. 

The girl is dubbed Cardinal, and her very first action in this life is to tap her mother on the nose with the flail of a single, small paw. She is gossamer and smoke, delicate in every way. And, as soon as she was pulled to the curve of a belly, she would drop into sleep, dreaming of a lavender wood, somewhere far away.

Eljay worried. He always worried when there was a birthing. Today, though, he worried in particular. He fussed and hovered as his daughter came closer and closer to giving birth, stayed close, provided her with what he could. He stayed through the last few nights, nearby, ready to tend to whatever she needed. When the time came to give birth, he was there for her, assisted with the birth to what degree Chickadee allowed him to. Thankfully the birthing went well. As the first child was born, Eljay smiled softly at its name — and likewise for the second. You are doing so well... I'm proud of you, he murmured to his daughter. He gave some more breathing space after the third was born and the birthing was over, without any complications as far as he could tell. He nodded at Kivaluk and took some distance, stiffly walking over to Maia and nuzzling her cheek lovingly.

Grandchildren. They were perfect. He could hardly wait to teach them about the world.