Whitebark Stream The blurred world is filled with dust

GOOD MORNING, YOU IS BORNEDED !!

Seclusion.

Following the news of Salvatore’s death, she grew sparse; she could not determine how to feel, or how she might handle what she was feeling. All thoughts of what her family may be like, the dream of her children having what she did not—a father—flew out the window. She was alone in this, like Asterr before her, and she was worried—for her hatchlings, for herself, for the future. Would she be a good mother? Or would her children take after their estranged aunt, abandoning her just as Airi abandoned their mother? She worried over things she knew she should not, and those worries drove her to remain at a distance—to remain alone.

Restless and pacing, there was little else to do when the Draconid found herself awoken and unable to return to sleep early in the morning. Something was amiss—but only when she felt a pain shoot through her abdomen did she understand what: they were coming. Settling down near the back of her den, she struggled to find how to lay that proved comfortable. No matter how she shifted, nothing felt quite right, and she was forced by another wave of pain to simply accept that, that was how it would have to be; she regretted having yet to stock her supply of herbs, having nothing within her reach that might be safe to ingest with her hatchlings on board.

For how long she remained there, sprawled out on her side and panting, Kaori couldn’t be sure—but when the contractions grew more frequent, closer together, she was relieved to know it was time. Her body acted on its own, the need to push filling her mind and, moments later, she was gently removing the sac from @Toshi and licking him clean, stimulating her first hatchling. Already did she feel a fondness for her son—as well as relief, realising he was not female, ensuring that her mother’s life was not at risk. A sigh slipped out her maw, content, as she nosed the dark-furred boy towards her teats. Part of her wanted nothing more than to encircle her son and give him all the attention she could muster but, she knew, it was not yet time for that. Already were the contractions coming again, steady, followed not long after by her efforts to expel another hatchling—another boy, she realised, removing the sac from the lighter @Kiyoshi and licking him clean. Two boys, the latter of which was nosed towards her stomach as well, encouraged to stay near to his brother. All the while, Kaori could not rid herself of the overwhelming joy and relief she felt.

How long passed afterwards without another contraction, she lost track; long enough for her to realise that she would have no more than two sons—and this she was content with. Eventually, once she was sure, the young mother drew her body around the hatchlings, encircling them in the same manner as a dragon might her hoard—protecting them, keeping them warm, and keeping the rest of the world away from their defenseless forms. That is how she would remain, offering them space to wiggle and hardly anymore than that, as she also rested. Later, she would murmur to them their names but, for now, all she wanted to do was rest and hold them close.

One moment he’s enveloped in the darkness of a familiar void and the next—pop!—suddenly thrusted into the world. It’s spacious and cold and overwhelming; nothing like the comfortable womb. Toshi tried to cry, but some sort of case wrapped around his body, thus muffled the wines. This place sucked. He was forced here against his will and he couldn’t even complain about it!

Just as he was about to dub the world as the worst place to ever exist, something amazing happened. He was freed from his case and guided to a much warmer spot. It wasn’t as nice as the womb, but hey it was something. It went from mediocre to the absolute best thing when he discovered what milk was. Once he took a sip he couldn’t stop. Soon he’d be drunk from the stuff. And just when he thought things couldn’t get any better, someone else joined him. They provided some extra warmth and company. To top it all off, the brothers were shielded from the cold by the bartender.

Alright, he had to admit this place wasn’t half bad.

At first, there was darkness.
And then, there was light.

Light which Kiyoshi could not see, but that in days to come, would wondrously discover. As it was, a different something broke his nothing, and he slipped into this chilly world with very little struggle, save for a shiver, and a gaping gasp in search of air. Something of comfort worked him over in a quick, thorough, pattern, and his gasp became a breath, a breath he breathed - on his complete and utter own - for the very first time.

And he breathed, and he felt himself lifted and placed down somewhere warmer than before. Breathed - and his tiny nose snuffed something pleasant and sweet wafting off of the one he knew as his life-giver. Breathed - and the familiar scent that he had been pulled from rolled out from another beside him, too, a soft and familial warmth he had no name for now, but would one day say, with a smile of affection, that this one was Toshi, this one was his brother.

Light, and sight, and understanding would come in time; today was the first day, and today, Kiyoshi was simply content to snuggle, and knead the warm belly of his blessed life-giver. He was content, to suckle as he tucked himself further into this perfect cocoon of these ones who smelled of comfort, and of home. His birth was uneventful and unremarkable in many ways -- not one for the books, not one of great triumph, and not one of struggle. Not one to be written in the annals of life -- but to Kiyoshi, this was the most remarkable of days, for today, he learned to breathe.

It'd been some time since he last saw Kaori. She'd practically vanished since the announcement of Salvatore's death in the neighbouring forest, a tragic accident which had robbed the Whitebark wolves of a friend. He and the Kaori had been followers of Bhediya, Artyom recalled, and did not doubt that the duo had been close for this reason. Artyom had looked for the dragoness prior to the birth of his children and had picked up on her scent here and there, enough to assure him that she was still around.

She was left to her privacy while the Alpha's attention turned toward new life. Stepping with ease into new fatherhood, the gilded hunter was often loathe to leave his mate's side in the time that followed their litter's arrival. Artyom attended to what was required, but Dawn and the pups remained at the forefront of his mind throughout each hunt, each hasty patrol. His heart yearned to be close to them, for fear of missing out.

Two weeks had passed so swiftly, and so much had changed. The pups' eyes had opened and they'd grown considerably, become somewhat more aware of the world around them. It was a joy to experience, but Artyom had dedicated himself almost entirely to simply watching over. With a flurry of affectionate kisses and puzzles to his family, the Alpha exited their hollow that morning to turn focus toward his neglected comrades.

It was the unmistakable aroma of a birthing that drew him closer to Kaori's whelping burrow, and surprise knocked the breath right from him. Artyom hovered some distance away, nose working as he sniffed the air again to assure himself that his mind was not playing tricks. Might this be the reason why the dragoness had secluded herself from the pack? Fearful that the leaders might reprimand her, a subordinate in their ranks, for breeding out of turn? A low whine pushed past the ranger's lips as he called out to the new mother - it's only me, he seemed to say, taking a few tentative steps closer but unwilling to venture within striking range. "@Kaori," Artyom said out loud at last, voice soft and velvet ears pricked as he listened eagerly for the soft coos of newborns, "do you need help?"

Exhaustion tugged at her eyelids, whispering sweet nothings through the mind of the new mother. With her hatchlings tucked comfortably against her and her body easing, eager to rest, she could think of no reason to deny herself sleep—not until footfalls reached her ears and the air smelled of another, someone beyond her den. Suddenly engulfed by the urge to protect her sons, Kaori stood just enough to cover them, body hovering over the twins in a protective stance. A low, uncertain growl rose from her throat, a warning to whomever lurked outside. She was far too caught up in what instinct deemed necessary that she did not realise who it was outside her den—not until he spoke.

There was a moment at which she relaxed, finding familiarity in the voice that greeted her, but a moment later she was tense again. “Artyom…” she called back, gaze locked on the mouth of the den. Although his voice was soft and she wanted nothing more than to trust that he would bring no harm, hormones alone prevented it. “I… no, I am fine.” She was fine. She was alert. She had two little boys to call her own. All was well—all would be well, she hoped.

“Why… are you here…?” she asked, birth-muddled mind already playing out a thousand different scenarios. He is going to take them, one thought insisted. He will harm them, another added. Crouching further down, she kept herself coiled around and hovering over the new Draconids, using her body to shield theirs.

@Kaori fade in your next post?

"I smelled blood," he lied when she asked why he'd come. Well, sort of. He'd picked up on the scent of afterbirth in the air, and traced it to Kaori's den. Artyom heard movement within her hollow, the gentle cries of newborns, and remained entirely aware of how threatened his presence made her feel.

He exhaled softly, and held his ground; he had to know. "Kaori, are they..." he stalled, took a moment to consider how best to ask without it sounded less like a concerned friend and more like a demand. Emotion tightened the pale Alpha's throat as he thought of his fallen comrade, of his gored flesh and spilled guts, and that lifeless eye that stared back at him.

Inhale

He closed his eyes for a long pause, before taking the plunge: "is Salvatore their father?"

A question formed on his tongue, slipping beyond the gates that were his lips and out into the air—

—is Salvatore their father?

The question stilled her, made the dragoness hesitate. She debated whether it was best to answer or allow him to merely assume what he wanted. Which would benefit her young…? Briefly, her gaze slipped from him and down towards her hatchlings, sorrow pooling in their depths as she stared at them. Two boys, her children—set to walk the same path as she and her sisters, a mother to call their own but a father absent. Only this time… this time he was not the one at fault.

Looking back to the leader, she found her voice to be missing. Rather, slowly did she nod her head, confirming that which she was sure he already knew. Only after did her body ease up and she sunk back down to comfort her hatchlings, drawing them close and sharing her warmth. But it was not until the male’s body was beyond her den’s mouth that she allowed her head to rest upon the ground beside them, exhaustion taking hold at last.