A future so bright it's dazzling

As the days stretched into weeks, the Mendacium couple began to kick their family preparations into high gear. What had started out as a euphoric dream had now become an approaching reality, and as Manea's belly began to swell with their growing children, so too did Alastor's eagerness and excitement. He was so ready to be a dad! Many a night had the dire wolf laid awake imagining what his children would be like, running through a plethora of fantasies of what they might look like, sound like, smell like, be like. It was this enthusiasm that had him running around like crazy, doing everything he could to prepare for the arrival of the little ones and making sure every eventuality he could think of was planned for. He'd doubled his hunting schedule, making sure their new home in the prairie had an abundance of food and amble furs for bedding, blankets, doors, whatever they could need it for. He'd gone with Irilyth to help her gather herbs she would need to assist with prenatal care and during the birth, making sure the shelves Manea had made for storage were always overflowing with goods. He wanted to be ready for anything and everything.

On this day, Alastor had actually been out doing a little something for his wife. He'd seen how much effort she'd put into sprucing up their new home, renovating and resizing, preparing everything she could for a comfortable life on the prairie, and he wanted to give her a little gesture to let her know how much he loved and appreciated her. The dark brute lumbered his way across the plains from the nearby gulley he'd been to a number of times with Irilyth for herbs, carrying with him a small bowl of fresh berries and a very familiar wolf skull on top of his head. Yes, he had gone back to their honeymoon cave to collect Piggy's skull. To him, it was a memento of their wonderful union, and of the conception of their special babies! He'd left Irilyth in the valley to continue her herb gathering, knowing it was only a short sprint over if she needed him. Right now, he wanted to spend a peaceful interlude with his wife before those moments became rare and fleeting when their pups were born.

Alastor spotted his beloved lying atop the hill their den was built into, basking in the warm sunlight like a beautiful angel descended to earth from Somnium. Alastor's eyes crinkled as he grinned widely around the bowl in his mouth, gazing at the splendor she was while he trotted briskly up the hill toward her. His heavy paws rustled the dry grasses beneath them, alerting her to his approach, and he greeted her with a happy chuff in lieu of words. He came up to her, placing the bowl of berries at her paws, then shifting to lie down beside her, turning and curling his body to face her to her pregnancy swollen belly was safely tucked between the two of them. "I thought you might like something sweet to snack on," he said and gestured to the berries. His abyssal eyes turned to her belly then, shining with an emphatic light. "How are they doing today?"

He didn't wait for a response before lifting one giant paw to rest gingerly against her stomach, stroking over the taut skin where his children rested. The grin that never left his face widened to an almost painful degree, his husky black tail thumping against the ground like a whip. It wouldn't be much longer now; the children they had created together in the most marvelous manner were almost here! He thought back on what Irilyth had said during a checkup: two pups grew inside his wife's womb. Two beautiful angels. While it thrilled and delighted him, it did also break his heart knowing that they would have to end the life of one of them before they could even open their eyes. The thought made Alastor's smile falter for a moment, but it was quick to recover as he rubbed his paw over Manea's belly, looking back up into her beautiful aqua eyes to distract him from that train of thought.


"Alastor"