i am not a child now // pups

[arbie]

Myu had, for once, stayed in her den. She didn’t even attempt to venture out to the entrance; the cold stone beneath her was more than enough comfort. She felt heavy and ready to explode, however knew that wasn’t the case. She knew that, instead, it was time. It was time to finally get these pups out of her, time to test her knowledge of younger wolves and how to be a mother. To see if she really was fit to be called Duke’s mate and care for his children.

The pain was becoming unbelievable, but she held in her whines. It was clear now that the Alpha was having her pups, and everyone steered clear of her den. Duke would have to know by her own voice, and Myu raised her head slightly, howling loud and clear. She sounded slightly pained, much to her embarrassment, but the message was clear. Duke had to be here.

She whined slightly to herself (finally) and closed her eyes. She couldn’t handle this. She didn’t want to. She didn’t want to be a mother either. This was a mistake.

Finally she could relax, and she angled her head. Three pups. They moved slightly, and she rested her head back on the ground, attempting to gather her bearings. She wasn’t sure what to do now, however Myu knew it was probably something caring and loving. Like giving names to them. Where was Duke? Surely someone could have got him, or perhaps he knew himself? Where the hell was he? She felt frustrated, tail hitting the ground. The dust seemed to irk the pups, and she glanced at them again before slowly sitting up on her side, licking them clean of gunk. It felt like the right thing to do.

“Hmph.” she snorted in one of their faces. They looked so fragile. Hesitating, she looked up at the cave entrance, ears flattening against her skull momentarily. She felt so open to an attack. Looking back at her pups, exhaustion washing over her, she used her snout to guide them to her stomach, wanting them out of the way in case they rolled away. She didn’t want to have to move for a long time.

Duke better get here bloody soon.

[Paint]

Duke was unfortunate enough to be far away when the howl sounded. Instantly he picked up the hint of pain, and knew it was time. He threw himself into the full force of his run. He had never been the wolf with graceful agility, but he had power on his side, and as his momentum built he crashed through bushes and straight through herds of prey which scattered, terrified, and he felt joy. She would be okay, she was strong, and there were pups waiting for him. He felt like throwing back his maw to howl but daren't distract himself from his run.

What seemed like far too long passed before he hurtled up the clearing outside of the den and skidded to a halt. There were no other wolves around, clearly deciding to give Myu the peace she deserved. The scent hit his black nose like a punch- new pups, and a very tired Myu.

He stepped inside carefully, grey monochrome head peeking in before he made his way in further. He smiled gently at Myu, eyes then becoming fixed upon the three little ones at her tummy. He felt his heart swell with pride. For some reason, a relationship just didn't seem complete until you had pups to call your own. His dark eyes glimmered happily, although he did not jump around with joy as some happy fathers might have. As always, Duke was composed in his happiness, but he could not hold back from smiling.

He gently licked Myu's cheek, laying down before her so he could see both her and the new pups. He studied their colours, one had the heavily genetic black and white markings, but the other two had Myu's colours as well. It made him happy that they were all different. From what he could scent and see, there were two girls and a boy.
"Well done, Myu," he spoke softly, not wanting to disturb her or them. His next words held compassion, but pride. He knew that she would not want to be mollycoddled, but he felt that he should recognise the effort she had gone to here, to complete their family. "You must be exhausted."

[arbie]

She grunted at his ‘well done’, but could do no more than that. She smiled gently at him, feeling the pups suckling, and rested her head on her paws. She definitely did not want to do that again, no matter how Duke felt when the time would come. He had already said he didn’t want any more pups, anyway. He would keep to his word.

She eyed him a little, nodding at his second statement. She was more than exhausted, however she didn’t feel the need to go on about it. Myu didn’t like complaining too much because she didn’t like showing weakness, no matter who she was around. It wasn’t that she was out to impress Duke - it was just who she was. It was an instinctual thing for her more than anything. She looked back down at the pups, eyeing each one before looking at Duke.

“Three’s good.” she murmured, more to herself. Three was good, however didn’t really compare to Duke’s first litter. Better than his second, though. But it wasn’t a competition, and Myu removed Anevay from her mind completely. This was about her, Duke and their new pups. And their pups, she noticed, didn’t have any names.

[Paint]

Duke looked down at his new pups with affection. He nodded to Myu's comment. Three was good, not too many, but just enough. He was happy to see that they all seemed healthy, too. He noticed that Myu hadn't said anything about names, in fact they had barely discussed the matter. But now seemed very appropriate- he didn't want his pups leaving this den without a name.

"I've always liked strong names. Regal." he commented, although it seemed like an obvious statment given the names of his previous pups. "S0 we've got two girls and a boy. Have you got any ideas?"

He racked his own brain as he thought. He moved forwards as gently as his bulky self could, and pushed his nose into the male pup's fur, inhaling the scent. He was mostly Myu's colour, but Duke noticed a dark chest and belly even at this young age.

"What should we call him?" he asked, fondly sitting back to look down at his family.

[arbie]

Myu watched the pups for a moment. She felt the urge to eat, however a strange feeling came over her: she didn’t want to leave. She didn’t want to sleep, either, and she wondered why. She knew she was safe, so she was in no danger.

But my pups will be out of sight.

The sudden thought irked her, and she thought about it. It was true, and as the thought relished in her nerves and repeated itself in her mind, she felt herself becoming more and more nervous about even looking away from them. She gazed at the pups. What sort of spell had they put on the vicious alpha?

Names were difficult. She gazed at the pup. Wracking her brain for memories, for family members… No, family members were out of the question. However, one wolf did come to mind: when she was a loner and travelled, before coming to the Valley, Myu came across a valiant fighter and brave wolf. He didn’t have a cruel streak in his body, however he fought well and did successfully chase Myu out of his pack. His name was one to remember.

“Caspian.” she stated quietly, licking the pup once. He took no notice, and Myu looked up at Duke, “It’s a strong name, yes?”

[Paint]

Duke nodded, leaning forward and nudging the boy as he lay there. So tiny, so vulnerable. Yet he could grow up into the next Onisim- stubborn, pigheaded, vicious to the point of stupidity. Duke supposed that at some point, he himself was like that. He blinked, pushing the thought away. Perhaps these would be different. After all, they did not have Anevay's blood in them, they had Myu's. She had far more sense, really.

"Caspian is a good name," Duke agreed. He also wanted to add that he liked it because it did not sound inherently evil, but for some reason he felt that this may sound like a weakness. He wanted these pups to be strong, but not so single-minded. He needed a leader, really, to take over from him and Myu when they died.

"For the girls..." he looked down at them. The one who was black and white, he wanted to name that. He knew the genetics were strong in his fur, they'd be passed down to many of his pups and grandpups. It made him feel proud. The other looked like Myu, though, and that made him feel very affectionate towards her. Perhaps she would have Myu's same disposition- tough to get through to, but a solid, dependable and beautiful wolf beneath it all.

But he had to go by names, not colours. He pressed his wet nose softly against the black and white girl.

"Kohar," he announced, decidedly. Still, it was Myu's pup too. He looked up at her. "How do you think that sounds?"