It had been a while since the birth of Bourbon and Lucretias brood. Iolaire had seen them safely into the world, then had faded away. Her life had been incredibly busy: her days long and filled with work. With birthing her own niece and nephews, taking care of Roan and tending her garden, she barely had time for anything.

On this fine, warm day, Iolaire decided that today, she would call upon Bourbon and his family. Settling her pack, she started off towards the Ashen territory. She hadn't been to this part of their land yet and so it took her a while to find the bridge that would lead her to the island, but she eventually found it.

Iolaire lifted her slender skull and released a sweet, friendly call, announcing her presence and basically asking where in the hell she was going. Hopefully Bourbon or Lucretia would collect her, but she'd accept the help of anyone. They'd surely know where they were going better than she would.

It had taken some time to get used to the islands. Although Luce preferred staying on the mainland (her atelier and herbs were all there), they had decided to enjoy the summer sun by teaching the puppies to swim. Some of them had taken to it better than others. Cognac's horns were coming in faster than his sibling's and it had set the poor boy terribly off balance. He stumbled around on a good day. While she was filled with worry for all of their futures, her anxiety had finally faded to a regular day-to-day hum. No longer was she frozen by fear. She motivated herself by being the best mother she possibly could be. A familiar scent caught her nose followed shortly by a friendly call. Luce changed course and headed back towards the shore, beckoning her brood to follow. "Iolaire!" she said warmly, wagging her tail. Lucretia's posture was still tense but her eyes looked uncharacteristically relaxed. "Welcome, welcome, to our island home," she grinned.

Mojito hadn't exactly mastered walking yet but he did have a leg up on his brother in that his horns had yet to truly grow in yet, they'd not yet breached but the nubs on his head were much more visible now and likely to start growing in properly soon, the buds unmistakably a sign he'd inherited his mother's mutation. However, despite having less trouble with balance when compared to his brother, Mojito still walked with all the stiff-legged confidence and determination of a young pup.

Swimming on the other hand, well swimming was another thing entirely. He'd found he liked bounding in the shallows and though he enjoyed the water well enough he struggled under the water-logged weight of his long coat, a gift from his father but a detriment for a young pup just learning to swim, so he kept closer to the shallows. A call went up and Mojito stopped splashing for a moment, his floppy ears perking and his head tilting to the side. He was still a bit too young to totally understand though he could tell it was meant for his parents. His mom started back towards the shore and gestured for them to follow so Mojito fell into line behind her, stopping briefly to shake out his thick coat but otherwise keep closing to his mother.

He heard his mother speaking and the boy pressed into the back of one of her forepaws, peeking around her to look at... well it wasn't anyone he'd ever met, he was certain of that, though her scent was vaguely familiar, tugging at the very edges of his young memory. He listened to the way his mother was speaking to the woman and moved out curiously to try and sniff at her paws, deciding she wasn't a threat.

Moonshine quickly decided that she loved the water. Just like she loved being out of the den, or loved the dirt, or loved the green things growing around them. Her features seemed to always host a smile, but as she played in the water her tongue lolled out of her mouth and she panted with effort as she raced around and expended all of her extra energy.

Saying Moon was high energy was an understatement, she raced wherever she went. She’d also picked up a habit of head butting, however less effective her bare skull was. That wasn’t on her mind now though, all she could think about was the clear water and the beating of the waves.

She didn’t notice the call of the strange woman, but her mother was insistent. ”But, mom!” Moonshine whined softly but followed anyway. With pale blue eyes the charcoal marked pup looked up at the dark woman. Unafraid she approached, her long haired ivory tail wagging happily behind her. She wiggled excitedly, completely forgetting the water she’d left behind.

Okay, so, he liked the horns. He really did. The idea that when he grew up he'd be just like his ma made him quite happy... but he hadn't expected it to be this difficult to get there. They'd come in so much more quickly than Mo's were and it was clear that there just wasn't anything to be done but wait it out while the rest of his body caught up. At night he struggled with big headaches and tended to be quite mopey right before bedtime. Ma had tried to soothe him with all kinds of concoctions, but he preferred to just tough it out. Swimming had proved to be a challenge - no matter what he did, his head dipped below the surface. He had inhaled plenty of water before Ma had finally dragged him out by his tail and he was feeling quite embarrassed over it. At the sound of a stranger's call, he shook the sand off of his coat and bounded towards Iolaire before falling horns-first into the sand at her feet.

Bourbon was having a blast in the ocean with his puppies, he hadn’t expected to love fatherhood as much as he did. He was returned to his own puphood as he played eagerly with his offspring. It was good that Luce was a bit more reserved than their father, she kept an eye on poor Cog as he struggled in the water but he moved back and forth from Moo to Mo. His tail wagged eagerly and the dog didn’t lose the smile on his features.

He hid his own disappointment from leaving the water as he heard Io’s gentle call. He helped herd the puppies to the shore and smiled warmly at the Armada healer. ”Hello, Io!” He greeted as the puppies approached curiously. ”Come to officially meet the puppies?” Bourbon asked proudly as he reclined onto the sand and beamed. They had quickly become his whole world and he hadn’t realized the emotions that they would cause him.

It didn't take long for someone to find her and that someone just happened to be one of the canines that she came to see. "Hey, Luce." Io grinned. "I found some time and decided to come and see how you lot were faring." And then the herd of puppies was running at her. Bloody hell, were they ever adorable! One of them made a beeline for her and, tripping, landed in a pile at her paws. "Oh, no." Iolaire slid to lay upon her stomach. Using her paws, she righted the fallen pup, lightly dusting the sand from his pelt.

Green-gold eyes lighted upon each tiny form and she couldn't stop herself from grinning. "Gods, Luce... they're lovely." Io then lowered her head a bit, getting on a similar level with the small collie mixes. "Hello, darlings. I'm Io. What are your names?" Dark ears flicked forward as she waited to learn what each pup was called.

Bourbon arrived, dripping wet. They all were wet, actually. The collie greeted her and asked if she came to see the pups and Io nodded. "I came to see all of you, and I must say, the pair of you make some very handsome children." What was this weird feeling that she had? Iolaire had never had an urge to be a mother. Not one bit. Now, all of a sudden... she regretted not being able to have a litter with Roan. The thought made her quite sad.

Lucretia smiled bashfully. As relaxed as she had become, she still found it hard to take a compliment on anything that wasn't her skills as shamyn. But wasn't childrearing part of healing? She wasn't sure. Regardless, she found a hot blush rising on her cheeks. "Thank you, Io, but it's all him. You can see they all got his fur," she laughed. All the puppies were extra soft and fluffy. They were adorable - at least, she thought so. They hadn't yet been introduced to the older and larger children of the pack. Truthfully, Lucretia had resignations about how Deathbelle's children might react.

Although she'd never breathe a word of it, Luce knew them to be spoiled. They'd been raised thinking they were gods - how could they not have an inflated sense of self? As a doting mother, she worried that they might look down on her children. Mojito, Moonshine, and Cognac certainly didn't fit the typical Klein ideals. And yet they completed her entire life. Luce nudged Cognac affectionately after Io righted him. "His horns have come in very, very quickly. Poor thing, his body hasn't quite caught up. But that aside, everyone else is hitting all of their markers perfectly," she gushed. It was easy to talk when it was about her children. She sat down next to Bourbon and leaned into his shoulder, unable to keep her tail from wagging.

His siblings beside him Mojito's confidence was bolstered, he watched as the stranger gently helped Cognac back to his paws and introduced herself as Io. Then she asked for their names. Mojito did a sort of excited dance, his tail starting to pick up. "I'm Mojito." He barked happily. "We're playin' in the water, are you gonna join us?" He loved playing with his dad and swimming with his mom but Mojito also wanted to play with this new wolf.

He continued to fidget as the adult talked, glancing rapidly between them as they spoke but also eager to get back to splashing in the water, hopefully with Io!

Moonshine loved her mom and dad, they gave her all the love she could want, they fed her, and kept her warm and safe. There was no greater good than her incredible parents. Her mom and dad completed each other and being with them and her siblings brought the young puppy joy. Iolaire seemed kind and had nothing but good things to say about them. Moon decided that she liked her already.

With a little hop and an over exaggerated wagging of her tail Moonshine brought the attention to herself after Mo. ”I’m Moo, or Moon, or Moonshine!” The young puppy announced her names proudly, but as usual forgetting about her last name. Her brother brought up a good question, would she be swimming with them? She tilted her head curiously, obviously just as interested in the wanswer.

Even though he tumbled, the stranger righted him quickly enough. Cognac smiled lopsidedly, not too embarrassed by the predicament. He didn't really seem to get caught up in appearances. As long as he was safe and happy, nothing seemed to phase him. The little guy shook sand off of his horns after Iolaire dusted him off. "Hi, 'm Cognac," he said, his ear flopping over naturally. He stared up at Iolaire, marveling at how much bigger she was. Everyone was bigger than him, and he thought that was pretty funny. Maybe one day he'd be big like his parents! Ignorance is bliss.

Iolaire came to check up on the lot of them, and he couldn’t say he blamed her. The dog was a proud one but now that he had made a family with Luce he was even more proud. His children were glorious and he adored all three of them. ”Thank you, Io.” He told her sincerely, if there was anything in his life he should be proud of it was his incredible children. ”I’m very fond of them.” His mate was quick to mention he deserved all the credit but she was the one to do the hard part. She was the one who grew them close to her heart and went through the pain of birth.

Their attention was focused on little Cognac and his unbalanced form. He was having the most trouble as they started to get bigger. His horns were a bit much and they sent him tumbling often. He loved to hear Lucretia gush about their children, it only reaffirmed how much he loved her. Bourbon knew how perfectly they fit together and he would never second guess his relationship with the Klein he loved. The children introduced themselves adorably, and he lifted his head proudly. He adored his family.

They were all just so absolutely perfect. Happy little pups. She wanted to pull them all close and cuddle them, but she refrained. Instead, the woman smiled down upon the children, only sparing a glance to their parents when they spoke. "Oh, I dunno, Luce. I see a lot of you in them." Bourbon spoke and she grinned, giving him a nod. The pair were incredibly lucky.

Mojito invited her to come play in the water with them and Iolaire laughed. "I'd be happy to come swim with you, but you'll have to show me how." The woman could swim, of course, but it would be fun to let the children take on the role of teachers. She then shot a glance at Luce and Bourbon. "If you don't mind, that is?" She was asking permission. It would be rude to just bogart someone's children, no matter how badly she needed some child time. Her lack of children had really been getting to her lately. There was nothing more that she wanted in the world.