walk from this dark room for the last time

Though it had been a season of much adjustment for Maverick to handle, the man had done so in great stride. First with Venom's loss of sight and his sudden need to really step up to the plate to support her as Empress and alpha, then again when their incredible pups were born into the world and he had to act as the watchdog for both of them to make sure their little wolf nuggets didn't prematurely eject themselves from the living realm. It had been challenging, but Mav was never one to shy away from a challenge, and by the gods was he glad he hadn't! Being a father had turned out to be one of the greatest joys of his lifetime! Having his own band of miniature versions of himself and Venom was an amazing thing, and every day he got to play with them and teach them showed him how much joy could come from the simplest things. Watching his children grow and develop their own personalities was beautiful, and it really made him wonder why his own sire had been such a terrible father. Well, on his life, he swore up and down that he would never be anything like that man. He would be the man his pups deserved, and the husband Venom did as well.

Looking after Venom had given the sky and snow brute a fairly good intuition of when something was off or wrong with her. So when his betrothed came shuffling back into the palace after running her patrols, looking tired and unwell, Maverick was immediately concerned. Venom had assured him she was fine, of course, but Mav wasn't entirely convinced. He decided to stay around the palace, just in case she needed him for anything. It would do neither of them any good if he went out with their kids or on a patrol and an emergency happened at home. For the most part, the evening was quiet. Venom slept through most of it, which in Mav's anxious mind just served to further convince him that she was indeed ill. But just before dawn, as the pups were winding down for bed and he was preparing to go snuggle with his beloved, Venom's panicked call for him echoed out from their bedchambers.

Maverick's heart sank, ears folding back as he took off for the bedroom. Oh gods, what had happened to Venom? Wasn't suddenly going blind bad enough?! What had fate decided to strike her down with this time? Skidding into the room on skittering paws that gave out from beneath him, the dire brute collapsed on himself in a heap on the stone floor, muttering a grunting "Ow" while he scrambled back to his feet and hurried over to where his fiancée lay in their bed. Worry was etched across his face, not that she could tell, though it rang through clear as day in his voice. "What's wrong, Ven? What's happening? Do I need to call a healer?" He spoke in a hurry, looking her over for any signs of injury or obvious ailments, praying that this wasn't something else serious and ruinous.

"Maverick & Venom"