Now that she was nearly half way through her pregnancy she was beginning to get to the point where her stomach was round enough to start hindering her day to day life. She had already more or less put herself on bedrest pretty early on because of all the cramps and dizziness that continued to plague her, but now more than ever she was pretty much confined to her bed or at least the area around the large building they lived in. She tried to think back through Siren's pregnancy, trying to remember if her lover had gone through similar problems, but besides the nausea she couldn't remember Siren having as many negative side effects as she was living with—not at least until the delicate woman was just too round to move easily. As much as Dalila didn't want to lay around and do nothing, she had developed a vested interest in carrying these pups and if rest was going to help make sure that she did that then that's what she'd have to do. She was alone in the room for a while, Siren and the pups out enjoying the nice day. Dalila looked out one of the large windows with her head on her paws, sighing softly as she considered what to do with her day. She was used to working and doing things all day every day so even if it was a little thing she just wanted to do something. She finally settled on going out to the garden to see if maybe she could at least gather a few herbs or maybe keep Aliana company and carefully pulled herself out of bed, waddling slightly as she started making her way out of the room and down the corridor. Her going was pretty slow so she wouldn't wear herself out before she even got outside, but eventually she stepped out into the warm Auster sun and she paused for a moment, just enjoying the feeling of the warmth on her mottled fur. The breeze brought her Chimera's scent and she blinked with surprise, turning her head till she spotted him working on something down near the beach. She considered her options for a moment and watched him until she finally turned her path down toward the beach. You'll have to play the part. His words had stuck with her in the days that followed him finding out about the fact that she was carrying his pups and whenever she was feeling up to it she did try to spend more time with him than she ever had. She had gone from avoiding him when possible to actively trying to seek him out. She wanted to show that she was serious about making this work for the pups she carried even while she was still actively working through her own emotions. She offered him a gentle smile as she approached him, sighing softly as she eased herself back onto her haunches in a soft patch of sand. "Do you mind if I sit with you while you work?" "Speech"

There was always work to be done. The island had been in such obvious disrepair that there was always something that needed doing. Today he had carted away broken, rotting wood from the last of the cabanas and had stacked the wood on the beach to burn. The crumbling wood would be good for little else so he might as well invite everyone to a bonfire. Perhaps they could all have a family meal, sans Viper. The woman wanted nothing to do with any of them. Back in Ashen, Chimera would have killed her for leaving him. Now, he was just ready for her to go. She had distanced herself from him and had proven that she was a subpar mother for Cerberus. Siren was essentially raising three children. Dalila as well, since the women lived together. He was thankful for both of them since there was no way that he could raise a child alone.

Chimera had just stacked the last of the wood onto the pile when a soft voice sounded from behind him. Having been distracted, he didn't really hear the words and had expected Aliana, but was surprised instead to see Dalila seated in the sat, her round belly evident for all to see. She had asked him something, but it hadn't quite registered until he thought about it for a moment. No doubt she thought he was angry with the furrowed brow and pursed lips, but a moment later he shook his head, his brow smoothing. "I was just getting ready to take a break."She had asked to sit with him, so he would sit with her. The black and white beast settled onto the sand beside the mottled woman, stretching out his forelegs and rolling his shoulders as he did so. He was careful not to touch her, leaving that up to the patchwork woman if that was something that she wished to do.

Dalila had been making an effort with him. They interacted more now than they ever had and the man was surprised to find out that he quite liked it. As such, he had been making an effort with her as well. She was his, after all. "How are you feeling today?" A polite inquiry as to the health of his children. He also knew that she had been weak and dizzy as of late and it was... concerning. "Are you eating enough? Keeping up your strength?" He'd heard that red elk was full of iron and was good for pregnant fae's. Perhaps he would make a special trip to acquire some.

"Speech"

The look on his face when he first looked up at her made her wonder if perhaps he'd prefer to be left alone, but after a shake of his head his expression smoothed and she chalked it up to just a linger expression left from the hard work he had been doing. He always seemed to be doing something around the island and she couldn't think of a single time she had ever seen him simply relaxing—except for maybe the one time she had treated his paws and gave him a bit of a massage, but that had been after he had spent the day working on the bridge to their former island. If there was one thing she could fully appreciate in Chimera it was his work ethic and all of the effort he put into his home. She smiled again as he came to sit beside her, stretching out his legs to lay down in the sand with a roll of his shoulders. Her ears perked with surprise when he questioned how she was feeling, asking about if she was eating enough and generally checking on her well being. She was sure it was mostly because of the fact that she was carrying his pups, but she wondered to herself if this is what Aliana had meant when she spoke of how he could be kind and caring. "I'm feeling pretty good today," she told him truthfully. Some days were worse than others, but today was a pretty good day as far as her energy went. At the very least getting up and walking short distances and sitting up like this to hold a conversation wasn't too taxing. She was very much looking forward to the day when these pups were finally born so she could start up her work around the pack again or at the very least not always feeling so tired. She looked down at his back from the perspective she had sitting beside him while he laid on his stomach, considering for a moment before she finally shifted a bit closer and lifted her front paws to rest them on his shoulders, rubbing slow, firm circles across the muscles that she was certain would be sore from hauling all this wood out here. Play the part. Figuring out what that meant for her was still an on going process, but she remembered how he had liked getting a massage before so hopefully this was a good step in the right direction. With Siren it was easy, the Queen far more easy to read and far more affectionate, but with Chimera it was taking a bit of getting used to on her part. She rubbed her paws across his shoulders and upper back for a while, though she didn't exactly have the strength or mobility she had the last time to really work out any knots. Hopefully the effort and intention were good enough. "Speech"

The instant that Dalila's paws began to massage the sore, knotted up muscles in Chimera's shoulders and back, the behemoth gave an appreciative groan. Mismatched eyes drifted shut. He hadn't quite realized how sore he was until the mottled woman began kneading his muscles. He had forgotten how good she was at this. And this time she didn't have any of that disgusting oil to mash into his fur. He much preferred this type of massage.

After a time, the brutes muscles unclenched and his body felt at ease. After that, Chimera had another plan in mind. Sliding away from Dalila's working paws, Chimera caught one of them and gave the back of her white toes a gentle kiss. He knew that the backs of pregnant women took a hard beating, so Chimera returned the favor. He helped the woman to settle gently upon her stomach in the sand and gently began kneading the muscles in her back, shoulders, neck and hips with his massive paws. The brute was surprisingly gentle as he worked. She was the mother to his children, so he felt that she deserved nice things even if they weren't as amicable as he and Aliana or he and Siren.

Standing over Dalila, One of Chimera's paws moved down to gently stroke the side of her swelling belly. He was settling now that he was older. Whatever hormones that had turned him into a ball of rage when he was younger had tapered off. That wasn't to say that rage didn't often take him, but most times he was able to control it rather than just let it do what it wished. Like when he had hurt Dalila the very first time that he'd slept with her. Lowering his muzzle, Chimera nuzzled into the fae's cheek just below her ear. "I'm glad that we're no longer at odds, Dalila," he purred before his tongue swept over the back of one ear.

"Speech"

Dalila found herself smiling a little as she worked her paws over Chimera's shoulders, watching how he reacted to the massage and enjoying how much he seemed to enjoy it. She had always gotten the most joy from caring for others and doing things for them. Maybe that was one of the reasons she had gravitated so easily to Siren who she could dote on and care for day in and day out. It was an easy existence with Siren in that way and for the longest time she hadn't really understood or felt like she could do anything close to that with Chimera. Now she was beginning to understand that it really wasn't as difficult or complicated as it had originally felt. There was no denying the hatred and hurt he had showed her once upon a time, but they had both grown and changed in the time since he and Siren had purchased her from the slavers and perhaps there was room for forgiveness and acceptance on her part. After a while she felt him move and she went to pull her paws away and was surprised when he caught one of her ivory dipped paws and placed a kiss on it. She blinked with surprise, her pale gaze catching his with a bit of a flush to her face as he caught her off guard with what felt like an uncharacteristic sweetness. A shy smile pulled at her lips and her ears flicked back bashfully at the affection. What was even more unexpected, maybe even shocking, was when he eased her down onto her stomach, having her lay down on the soft, warm sand. His massive paws were surprisingly gentle and tender as he started to return the favor of massaging her sore body that was exhausted from the strain that carrying these pups had put on her. It was a gentle touch that she never in all of her days would have expected from Chimera, but she couldn't deny how good it felt. She gave a pleased hum, her eyes sliding closed as she relaxed under his touch, for once feeling completely at ease with him as he worked his way through her tired muscles. Her face flushed a bit again as he reached her hips, but she reminded herself that he knew every inch of her by now and being embarrassed by such a thing was ridiculous. The pups she was carrying were proof enough of that. She blinked open her eyes as his paw brushed over her belly, making one of the pups squirm and kick against where his paw touched and making her smirk in turn. When he leaned down over her to nuzzle her cheek she felt her heart give a little skip at the touch, but she still leaned into the touch all the same. With Siren she was far more likely to give affection than to crave receiving it from the smaller woman, but it felt different coming from Chimera. Maybe there was something about the fact that it was so rare that it felt like it should be savored that made it different, but it was hard to sort out her thoughts right now. "I am too," she replied genuinely, tipping her head to look up at him with a gentle smile. The most rambunctious of their children moved and squirmed yet again, making her wince slightly with a chuckle as they kicked against a rib. "One of them is very active today," she told him, her tail wagging gently behind her. Turning and rolling a bit so she was slightly on her side and more of her stomach was exposed, she reached for his paw that had been on her side before and gently press it to her stomach. "Can you feel them?" she asked, lifting her gaze to look at his face happily. She had never imagined herself as a mother, but now that she was at the cusp of becoming just that she was actually getting more and more excited to meet the little wolves they had made. "Speech"