It was early morning. Azalea had been back for a solid twenty four two hours from her trip north that ended up with a visit with Roman rather than Liberty. She could feel her discomfort, feel what was beginning. As the sun's rays stretched over the horizon Azalea paced outside the den. It was a large den, plenty of room for multiple wolves, a lot better than her last but still not a place she preferred to sleep regularly. Her breath was heavy, tongue lulled out. Contractions wracked her body in parted intervals. As the contractions grew near, growing on top of each other, Azalea barked in alarm. She was pretty sure this pain was much greater than last time. of course, she also knew how it all worked this time and didn't need to be walked through what to do. She had gone down into the den and stretched out on her side, legs flailing now and then in an attempt to find her a more comfortable position. She needed Sarak and hell, right now she wouldn't mind Erani either. The Adravendi whimpered, waiting in agony for her body to tell her to start pushing. Her coat was a mess, marked with dirt and other debris. Her body screamed for release and the little terrorists inside her were not kicking about, likely working into position to be ejected from the relative safety of her body and out into the world.

To be honest, though he would never admit it, there was a part of Kismet that was feeling trapped once more. Soren's moods, his mother's pregnancy he had to be a good brother and son and step up to help the family he wouldn't fault them for that but there was a part of him that still desperately wished to return to Warja, find adventure as and when he pleased. It was easy being around her, sure she certainly gave him something to worry about some times but it certainly wasn't whether she was going to bite his head off as he'd brought the wrong thing for dinner. He hadn't brought anything with him now as he went to check on his mother, she'd been gone for a while, a stupid thing in his opinion, not that he dared to voice it with his mother so moody right now. He'd learnt that she was back now though and curiosity would bring him to her den. His speed would increase as he heard her whimpers of pain and concern would immediately strike the boy. "Mum?" He questioned, not daring to simply barge right in though he lingered at the entrance, mismatched eyes peering inside to try work out what was happening. "Mum, what's happening? Are you ok? Should I get help?"

"Mum?" The voice of the yearling boy broke through the haze of pain that was cascading over Azalea and threatening to drag her under. She felt like she couldn't quite get enough air and the calm she had managed seemed to slowly be slipping from her grasp. His call to her played on repeat in her head and she clenched her teeth with a growl, cutting herself off from telling him to shut up though he had only really called her once. "Mum, what's happening? Are you ok? Should I get help?" There it was again, calling to her. Talking. He offered to get help. And Azalea found herself nodding like a maniac before she realized that he couldn't see her doing so. "YES!" She gasped. All she wanted was Sarak and peace. She wanted to curl up and forget about the world. She curled in on herself, moaning miserably. Where was Sarak? She wanted him so bad. She wanted his love and comfort. She wanted him to hold her and tell her it would be alright. For a moment she took a mental step back, wondering over how much she had come to rely on the male. She could feel a puppy coming now, jockeying into the birth canal, ready to great the cold winter world.

The girl knew that her sister had been back for quite some time now; but suffering through depression and wondering away from Valhalla hadn't exactly helped her in wanting to visit her family. She loved Azalea, she really did. Infact, it would seem guin was the most close to her-- though that was no surprise since Solaine had left along with her parents. She would have thought by now it'd grow easier, but it only made the youth grow more and more detached from the world. The only reason she was still present was the thought of Dhiren alone. Guinevere would rush to Azaleas side with herbs clasped in her jaws, Guin was no expert but she soon got the basics of healing [ afterall she wanted to do well to follow in her mothers footsteps.] She would place the herbs beside Azalea, hoping all is well. " Here, eat this, it'll sooth and help with the pregnancy." Motherwort, is what it was called- guin knew all healers had it close by, commonly used in pregnancies. She would glance quickly to kismet, oh how he's grown so big! Its a shame guin never had the time to get to know him any better. Perhaps its to late- the girl was leaving Valhalla soon anyway.

Soren hadn't exactly too keen to see his mother as of late, their last conversation hadn't ended on all that great of a note and as she continued to grow in size so too had her temper, most of this he had not really experienced firsthand mind, but he had seen her waddling around the packlands on a rampage enough time to learn to stay out of her way. Not only that but another female had been plaguing his mind as of late. He wasn't exactly sure he was ready to share that with his mother yet.

Still guilt at his avoiding her had begun to plague the boy and he had decided it was high time he pay her a visit. As he neared her den it became apparent something was going on, whimpers could be heard coming from inside and a wolf he did not recognize was poking her way into the den. Soren frowned and silently drew up beside his brother, peering over the female and into the den.

He could just make out his mother?s form, sprawled upon the floor of the den, her sides heaving and as his eyes grew wider he pulled back suddenly. "She's not-?" He turned hazel gaze upon his brother, clearly not too comfortable with the reality that was playing out before him. Of course he knew what was happening, or at least he had a reasonable enough guess, but it all seemed too odd, too surreal.

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Azalea's vision went fuzzy for a moment and when it cleared back up there was a wolf standing over her. Guin? "Here, eat this, it'll sooth and help with the pregnancy." Azalea had no clue what her sister was pushing toward her, she only knew the basic healing stuff from that brief time as a child that she had been interested in herbs. Her tail wagged meekly and she smiled at her sister. "I'm glad to see you. Wish... it were in a better situation." She ate when she was given as her eyes were drawn past her to where she could see the outside world. There she saw both of her sons standing and her eyes grew wide. "I SUGGEST THE TWO OF YOU TURN AROUND AND GO TAKE A BREATHER." She yelled, her tone quite obnoxiously loud and likely rattling her sister's brain. The boys didn't need to see this, though. Azalea hadn't been allowed when Guin and Solaine were being born and now was no different. She readjusted herself then, ready to begin pushing. She panted heavily, gritting her teeth in between. 'Don't let anyone else in." She instructed her sister. Azalea preferred privacy, and only because she hadn't seen her dear sister in ages was she allowing her here. When the little lump slipped out her eyes grew wide and panic flared up. She squeezed her eyes shut tight and leaned down to nip open the sack and get the little body clean. It wriggled under her touch and her heart jumped into her throat as those maternal emotions kicked in and told her to love the... boy. A boy. Her third boy. When had Azalea come to have so many children? When had her life taken this turn? It felt like just yesterday that she was still running around carefree, daring strangers to try and tame her and bidding Sarak out of Valhalla to explore the world. How did so much time manage to pass since Guinevere was born? Would she ever get back to how things were? Her time to wonder was cut off, she tensed and groaned, beginning the battle of the next puppy. The second was a male as well, much different than the pup born first. Two more followed before she was finally done. A girl and then lastly another boy. It would seem she was good at passing on the white markings that ran so heavily in her mother's side of the family. Six children total, two that weren't at least half white. She curled in around them, calming her nerves and looking rather unsettled. "Well... at least I didn't--" She cut off then, jumping up and bolting for the tunnel, bumping her sister as she did and leaving a trail of puppies in her wake as they fell from her teats and began to cry out. She got a good seven feet from the den entrance before she emptied the contents of her stomach. Azalea would wipe her mouth in the snow before retreating back into the den where she nosed the pups back into arrangement to nurse. It was more natural this time but it was still obvious that whatever maternal instinct she was supposed to have was at least partially broken. "Well, never mind that. The boys can come in now, if they would like." Where was Sarak?

Suddenly there was cold. The freshly born white child kicked frantically as a pair of bones nipped the sac he had just been come from. There only was smell and touch. Nothing else was clear to him. Hunger gnawed at his frail stomach, as he clambered toward the direction of heavy rasping. To his nose came the satisfying smell of milk, as he followed it, tumbling over himself every once in a while, until he finally reached his prize. Warmth and milk. He hungrily latched onto his mother's teats, sucking milk down like a savage, feeling the warmth of his brothers and sisters. Each one was still moist, and wriggled as they sucked the food down. A bowling pin effect occured, as their dam stood up and moved away from the hungry bunch, tumbling over one another. A sharp whine came from his tiny jaws, as sharp little teeth snapped at imaginary teats. After what seemed like an eternity, their dam returned, offering more warm milk. His frail body tumbled over a mass of wriggling bodies, before he once more had a meal within his jaws, kneading his mother's stomach. Once he had finished, he stopped suckling, and gave a great yawn, rolling to his side right next to his mother, falling asleep.

Azalea would only give a single word in response to his question and her tone certainly suggested that he needed to hurry. Not another sound would leave him as he went to turn and find some help though he hadn't even taken a single step before he realised that help was already on the way, at least he hoped it was help. He barely knew his aunt Guinevere and given that he couldn't even be sure what was happening he didn't even know what help he needed to get. Guinevere seemed to be on a mission of sorts though and Kismet would hang back as she moved inside the den. She wasn't kicked out nor were there any screams for help and he would have perhaps heard his mother's happiness that Guinevere had arrived had it not been for Soren's sudden arrival. "Not what?" He questioned his brother but before either could say anything else their mother was suddenly shouting. It was a suggestion but it sounded more like a demand and given his mother's moods Kismet would simply obey as he nudged his brother away from the den. The sounds from within the den didn't soothe the boy at all, his mother certainly sounded in pain and though he had his brother at his side now, Kismet still found he couldn't block out the concern he currently felt. A part of him wondered if perhaps he and Soren should go find more help, even Sarak at the very least though he found himself reluctant to move, though he was no help at all he didn't want to stray too far from Azalea now. It seemed to take forever but finally the sounds of pain would cease and an almost eerie quiet filled the air. He would glance at his brother the concern upon his face though before he could say anything someone would speedily emerge from the den and to his relief it would be his mother. He would rise now, mismatched gaze focussed upon her form though his relief wouldn't last long as he noticed she was being sick. He cared little for the earlier order now and would edge closer to the den once more, though his mother had already entered it again before he got far. "What's happening? Is mum ok?" He questioned, still hovering at the entrance. Before his aunt could answer however he heard his mother's voice quiet now and more tired sounding than he could recall having heard her before. Without another prompt however he would head inside, gaze falling first to his mother and then swiftly noticing the pups at her side, his new siblings! Surprise would be evident on his features as he stared at them, they were so small, so delicate in appearance.

Into the cold cold world she would go, paws forward awkwardly pressed against her as she was broken free of the warmth that she had been feeling. With all this new emotions and instincts would come into place. At first the white little bundle headed straight towards her mother in search of food. She was the smallest of her siblings, the runt of the litter. Sitting next to her bigger brother as she slowly let the nice warmth of a dream take her over. This big bad world would cause her lots of problems, but she didn't know that quiet just yet. Curling up into her mother, and her siblings.

The child had been resting soundly, although something was quite wrong. He could feel the shifting of his companions, he could feel the pulsing of their limbs as something seemed to squeeze around him, pressuring him to move where he did not want to go. After several contractions, he would feel something he had never felt before. The feeling was much colder then he had known his whole life up till now, and it was suffocating. But that feeling didn't last long, for soon he was able to breath and feel warmth. But no sooner had he found then he was ripped away from it for a short time, before feeling something pushing him a bit until he settled again. He lied among his siblings, whimpering as he sought the comfort of his mother and his back to the world. He would yelp several times, loud high pitched squeals that would make his presence known to the world. Yes, he was definitely a vocal one. He was strong, despite his current small size. He was last born, thus making him the runt. But he would not remain so, oh no. He would surprise the world and grow bigger, but he would grow slowly. As a child, his stature would remain very small and frail, almost as if the wind might topple him over as he walked later in life. But oh how he would surprise the world.