Broken Antler Fen Nothing lasts forever but this is getting good now

Please let babies post first! Then it will be open to visitors. Tagging relevant accounts... @Diantha @Jasmine @Roswell @Eljay @Wraen

The knowledge that something was about to change, like a season's gentle shifting, hadn't yet sunken in to Ibis. She knew what to anticipate with the coming birth and the extension of her family, yet for all the physical changes which had manifested across her body she did not think towards the future; the end result, of having more mouths to feed, was too advanced for her. It was enough to know her belly had swollen as well as her teats. She was not as ungainly as before and was thankful for that small miracle, as she did not want to adjust her hidden den more than necessary.

As she finished tidying the den she thought of her daughters, the husband that left. How big would @Arielle be now, she wondered? Maybe she would have grown beyond @Lilitu and dwarfed her sister. Perhaps by now they were both small like her (or at least on the smaller side, as Lilitu was already taller than her mother by an inch). She liked to think that @Akavir had found the lost girl and kept her safe all of this time. Maybe they had made a home together and started over; that pained her to consider, so the trail of thoughts ceased.

She thought of Lilitu as she had worked upon the mountain alongside Bridget; of how capable she had become in such a short amount of time. The remaining daughter had departed the fen to hunt for her sister, having asked permission, yet Ibis could not remember the conversation. Her mind was elsewhere, seemingly always. Lost in thoughts of the past and of an uncertain future, avoidant of the present. As she fell asleep her thoughts drifted further away - to imaginings of Akavir's touch, of her girls giggling as they ran in the fields, and all was well in the false world of the dream.

In the morning there was a sharp squall and a pinch. A seeping chill had overtaken the earth where Ibis lay and together these things brought her back to reality. She woke up to a mess of fluids muddying the ground where she had sprawled herself. Another contraction cut through her as the last of the bundles came sliding free. Had she done this in her sleep? The pain came and so did euphoria to contrast it, adrenaline to dull it all, and in a hurry Ibis moved to inspect the children.

Girl, girl, and -- a boy?

Oh, my darlings... She sighed, still trying to make sense of how this could all unfold while she was sleeping. Had she only dreamed the ease in which they entered her life? Was this, right here, real? She probed at them to be sure, touching each with her nose and then the warm swath of her tongue, holding them close so they could nurse.

Good morning, babies. How she loved them. Their perfect little bodies, the slightest movements, the little sounds; even the pinch as they sought their first meals brought her joy and a dizzying, overwhelming love.

in the witching hour, roswell's world; a mini utopia all his own — peace of which was occasionally interrupted by the kick of one of his littermates — came crashing upon him. it was violent ( for him ), the eruption of birth; like the spewing of ash and molten lava from vesuvius, the tremors of his eden brought to ruin.

the world he plops upon — unceremoniously and covered in the goo of his birthsac — was ...unpleasant. the earth is hard and cold and still half-covered and shivering from the rapidly cooling warmth roswell'd taken for granted. he, as all babes, has entered the world blind, deaf and unable to regulate his own body heat with a meager sense of smell.

it is enough, though to lead him to where he needs to be once he is cleaned by the swiping warmth of ibis' tongue. the soft vibrations of her voice lull him as he suckles eagerly; the spill of warm mother's milk in his tongue sates and stifles the demanding mewls he'd been unknowingly making. small sounds known only while they vibrated his vocal chords, while he pushed the breath from his lungs to make them — forgotten about as feeding seizes his attention.

Inside or outside, it didn't make much difference to the newborn. Either option was uncomfortable and she was hardly at peace, nestled in the womb or against a warm belly. 

Her shriek was what Ibis had heard upon waking. Once the birth sack was cleaned from her little amber nugget of a body she was shoved in to place between brother and sister, cleaned, warmed - but still she writhed and refused to settle. 

Ready and raring to take on the world. No time to dine and dash; this potato was full of piss and vinegar. The only abatement to hostilities came when her brother tucked in for his meal and the sense of FOMO pulled her close, like a tractor beam.

Eljay'd been keeping tabs on how Ibis was doing and regularly checked up on her and brought her something to eat. When he was making his way towards her with some food that day, Eljay certainly didn't expect to find her with babies already born, but as he approached the scent told him that he was about to be surprised. Eljay dropped the scrawny rabbit he'd brought and woofed to announce his presence.

Ibis? he called out as he approached, wary to get too close lest she was protective of her new brood. Are you alright? Do you need help? He mostly wanted to make sure that if she was still in labour she would reach out for his help, or if she had already given birth that he wanted to ask if he could make sure that she wasn't bleeding and that the pups were healthy.

The smallest of the trio, little and pale like a dandelion puff, could hardly contest the will of her brother or the eager steam-rolling of her sister. They battled to get their first meals. This last girl, puny as she was, could barely breathe let along think about food. 

She was cold and uncomfortable but at the same time, too weak to protest any of the indignities that life threw at her. She squirmed until her energy reserves were empty, then lay like a turtle stuck on her back, finding comfort suckling on her little toes. 

Hugging her own limbs close until her brother squished against her, and she could find comfort burrowing against his bulky body instead.

She was transfixed by them. The boy most of all, as he was the first son she'd ever had — and he was perfect! So round already, and so big! Would he grow up to look like Okeanos? Could she finally have her brother back after all of this time? As she groomed and doted upon him, the shape of a wolf at the den's opening drew her attention. In her current state of physical exhaustion Ibis thought, Akavir? Come look at your son -!

Eljay made himself known instead. Ibis was visibly disappointed for a second, and greedily pulled her children closer to herself. A little peep between the children caused her to glance down, where she saw the smallest girl - the runt - struggling. With a sigh Ibis nosed at her until she was right-way-up, and by then Eljay had ventured inside to ask his questions.

I am alright, she assured.

Come, look at them, she invited of Eljay, although she remained possessively wrapped around them. Look, I have a boy! A son! And two more girls. So small and sweet. My, she was tired. Her mouth was speaking words without her approval at this point. Aren't they perfect?

I hope it's ok to skip the content puppies, but if not, let me know :)

Eljay breathed out a sigh of relief when Ibis confirmed that she was alright. Soon thereafter she invited him in to look at them, and Eljay approached. His approach was gentle and slow, as he knew that mothers could be very protective over their children and not all wanted him close. Especially Ibis, someone that he didn't know very well yet, Eljay didn't want to make any wrong moves, and he wanted to make her feel safe.

When he was close enough, Eljay arched his neck to have a closer look at them, while he lay on his stomach to be on level with the mother and her new brood. I'm glad labour went well, Eljay said, the relief palpable in his voice. Three children, two of which were nursing and one who seemed, for now, huddled against her brother and sucking her own toes. She was smaller than the others, too. She might need a little help to start nursing, Eljay said as he gestured at Diantha, then at Ibis. He looked inquisitively at Ibis; suggesting that he could help, but not making a move before Ibis would approve of this verbally.

I'm gonna leave the thread open until Monday if anyone wants to post further replies, but would like to archive it soon. :)

They were each so different. Small, yes. A ginger-coated dusky blob, like Arielle, and a pale shape so much like Lilitu that it made Ibis' chest hurt. She could not help but compare them to their older siblings, to their potential fathers. While the boy looked like his mother, he also resembled Penn distinctly; meanwhile the ginger girl brought to mind the slight-bodied coywolf that Ibis had used as a distraction. Were they full siblings? And the smallest one — would she survive the night?

Eljay piped up with some pointers, carefully phrased and offered. Ibis stopped wondering but could not stop staring at them, cleaning their faces, sparing kisses between. She'll be alright, the mother cooed over the small one, determined to get her to feed soon. All in its own time, she thought. They'll be happy here, I just know it.

Still, she ached.

All throughout Ibis's pregnancy Wraen got involved and helped, when it was necessary, and made sure that the everything was running and going in the pack, while their Auspex was on maternity leave. She would stop by the den two or three times again to bring some gifts in form of food or interesting objects (such as pieces of antler and bone) for kids to play with, when they were born and old enough to engage with them. Now and then she would exchange some news, but usually such conversations were short, because life at Brecheliant was peacefully eventless against the background of spring in full bloom and colours. 

She happened to stop by on the day the long-awaited children finally arrived in this world - perhaps, a couple of hours later after the main event. Wraen deliberated, whether she should stay or leave, eventually going forward to put another edible gift by the den's entrance and then withdrew quietly to inform the rest of the pack of the news. Wraen felt happy for her niece and the grand-nieces and nephews and looked forward to welcome them officially in the safe confines of their Enchanted forest. 

A cameo. Last one from me.

Ibis seemed not too worried about the runt of the litter. Eljay'd experienced enough birthings to know that she would have a tough life with many risks in these first few weeks. Hopefully Ibis was right and she would come out stronger in the end. He didn't push for it, knew better than to threaten a fresh mother in any sort of way.

Eljay wondered who the father was. Was she like Towhee about it..? He asked gently, Is there anyone else I should call? Eljay would be fine to leave the fresh mother alone with her children now, but just in case... well, he didn't want her to be alone if there was someone out there that she might want to share this moment with.

Were Ibis to take notice of the raven's visit, she made no mention of it, and barely looked away from her new brood when the scent of Wraen appeared.

As glad as Ibis was to have an audience for this she deeply coveted her new family, having already been possessive and controlling of @Lilitu as the older girl matured, and things were likely to get worse for these newborns.

Eljay's question brought a silent shake of her head as response, then a second later Ibis realized he probably couldn't see well in to the den. Quietly she comments, There is nobody but me.

Lilitu had not yet returned, her sister remained missing, and at this point Akavir was presumed dead. The children's father was one of two men, neither of which Ibis had any inclination to find.

Thank you for being here, Eljay. I think we are all okay for now. She mutters in the dark warmth of the den, wondering if he will stay nearby or depart for other work.

At her answer Eljay nodded at Ibis. She did not really answer the question beyond the question — whether she needed anyone near — and Eljay hesitated whether he should stay or go. Eventually, he said, Please call for me if you need anything else. I'll drop by later with some food. It would be harder once Maia's children were born, but until then, he would make sure to check in with Ibis regularly to see if the pups were growing as expected. For now, Eljay dipped his head and departed, presuming she could use some rest for now.