Know this life

She was more confident in the lives of these little ones, now that a large chunk of their future had been smoothed. They would know their heritage well, and sure, they would still have hurdles in life but somehow.. This made all the difference.

In the last few days she had been too tired to leave the den, but Rhyme always brought her a decent meal, and she was sure to share it with Epitaph who lived in a separate section of her den.

She was in the comforts of her den, and hating the confinement of it all, she wanted to be out there, patrolling the borders and keeping an eye over her beloved pack. Instead, she was stuck here with nothing but her thoughts to occupy her. She had done the unbelievable, professed her feelings for Rhyme. She was still reeling from that, and still learning the implications. In doing so, she was taking some responsibility over all the young he had helped to bring to life. She would live with the consequences of another loving him, and wondering if she had hurt them. Of course she had to find out that this path might be every bit as difficult as the last, but at least here and now.. Her heart was free.

Rhyme didn’t sleep in her den, they hadn’t yet figured out how all of this would work. Rhyme wouldn’t be there when she felt the first sudden pain in her stomach, the sudden bleeding, the realization of the life she was about to push into this world. She gasped, rolling into a better position, looking frantically for Winter. “Winter, winter?” no response “Somebody?”

No, don’t panic. She had been a healer once, she knew what to do. She concentrated on her breathing, blocking everything out. There was no space for anything in her mind, but for the little lives inside of her.