You'll Blow Us All Away

The end of Briar's pregnancy had come faster than it felt like it had. The past few days, Artorias had been glued to his wife's side, never leaving her for more than a few minutes to fetch them food or relieve himself. There was no chance in heaven or hell that he was going to be anywhere else but with her during these last steps, and he was certain he was going to be there for the birth of their first litter. His own father had always been an enigma—a ghost in his life's story that had existed and yet never really existed at all. It was because of that, Artorias had vowed to always be present in his children's lives from the day they were born. Briar's range of movement had become much more limited as her pregnancy ballooned her stomach to almost comically large level, and the Aegis found himself briefly wondering if this was what his petite mother had looked like when she'd been carrying him and his siblings. It definitely seemed that their firstborn children would be taking after the dire genes in their families.

As always, Artorias was ever grateful to Gwynevere for her attentiveness and talent. As Briar drew nearer to her expected due date, Gwyn's constant presence and checkups were one of the few things keeping Artorias from going insane with nervousness. His sister had also confirmed the closeness of the pups' arrival, and so Art remained by Briar's side, never leaving her for more than a few minutes at a time. There was no priority higher in the brute's mind than protecting and comforting his Queen in these moments. Corbin and Eira had been sent out to fetch Tamsyn and deliver a message to Sirius and Zee about the coming birth. Hopefully the presence of both of their parents would be a comfort to his wife. However, they never got a chance to find out. The pups were arriving before the grandparents would.

Briar was especially restless this day. The Queen had spent most of her time pacing their bedchambers, and when she needed a change of scenery, began pacing the halls of the Carpathius Wing so much Art feared she might wear a rut in the carpets. Every time she would pause and flinch beneath a cramp, Art was immediately and attentively at her side, studying her expressions carefully and ready to call for Gwyn at a moment's notice. Each time Briar reassured him, the azure and black wolf would breathe a sigh of relief and resume pacing with her, allowing her to lean into his side whenever her paws got tired. After some time, however, another cramp hit Briar, but this one turned into a full contraction, and Artorias' heart missed a beat. It was time! Amber eyes wide and an anxious expression on his face, Art nodded emphatically while already moving to open the bedroom doors for her. "Of course, my love. You get settled, I'll take care of the rest."

While Briar went to get settled down on the expansive bedding of soft furs laid out before the fireplace, Artorias howled for Gwynevere, then closed the doors most of the way, leaving them open a crack for Gwyn to enter without fuss but granting the alpha couple their privacy for this life changing moment. Being the dutiful and somewhat obsessive husband he had become with his incessant prepping, Artorias moved about the bedroom with rehearsed steps, going to grab two bowls and cloths from one of the tables and bringing it over to Briar, then fetched a pitcher of water and filled both bowls, presenting one to his wife to drink from and reserving the other for cleanup. He then stepped around to Briar's backside and lay down, curling his body around hers to offer her comfort to lean back into. His large paw rested with such delicacy on her stomach, rubbing over her taut skin with a nervous yet excited smile. "It's happening! You've got this, Briar. I'm here if you need me for anything."

"Artorias & Briar Carpathius"