Life had been so wonderful for Neoni'liga lately. After the initial worry of what she had done, and the Pride's potential reaction to it, she had since been completely reassured. Although she had been forced to remain in her role as a Huntress, for the sake of the other mothers apparently, she felt as though most Pride members were supportive of her.
She smiled as she looked around her. She had recently moved into the Nursery, with the help of Kota. Another female had moved in too, after just recently discovering that she was pregnant as well. She had moved in on her own, but she knew that the female had a mate. She wasn't sure why they hadn't move in together, but she was sure there was a good reason for it, and it was none of her business what that reason was. Neoni and Afina had become great friends, and she was so happy that her cubs and Afina's cubs were going to grow up together.
As she continued to smile contently, she felt a sharp pain in her stomach. She immediatly knew what it was. The time had come for her to give birth. Doing her best to hide what was going on, she turned to her adopted son Penda'ji, who had also moved into the Nursery with her. "Penda, could you please go and get me a little something to eat?" The last thing she wanted was for her son to see her give birth to his siblings. That would be too weird for sure.
Penda'ji turned to his adoptive mother and nodded gently. "Sure!" With that, he bounded off to go and catch something small, like a hare.
Once he was gone, Neoni'liga started breathing more steadily as she prepared to push. She was a bit scared about doing this on her own, but at the same time, she was confident that she would be absolutely fine.
After a small while of pushing and breathing in stages, the first cub was born. Neoni'liga quickly moved to clean the perfect little female up before placing her next to her warm stomach. This girl had similar colours and markings to her, but was much lighter, like her father. She also had her father's spots. Although Neoni'liga didn't often think of the male who had helped her get just what she wanted, it did sadden her somewhat that he would never know his cubs, and they would never know him. She quickly pushed this sad thought from her mind though, as she focused on the task at hand.
Once again, after a small while of pushing, the second cub was born. Another perfect little girl, although this one was pretty much all Neoni'liga. Smiling happily, she cleaned up the tiny cub and placed her beside her sister. She was so happy right now, she thought she might burst. Two beautiful daughters, all of her own.
She wasn't finished yet though, as it seemed that there was another cub waiting to get out. This one took a little bit longer to arrive than the other two, but eventually, the third cub was born. After she had cleaned her off, Neoni'liga gasped. She was brown, just like Neoni's own siblings, and the father that Neoni herself never knew. This girl also had her own mystery father's spots and colours. It was very unusual, but to Neoni, she was yet another perfect cub. She placed her next to her sisters, smiling from ear to ear as she did so.
She thought that that may be it, but it wasn't. Almost straight after the third cub came the fourth cub. Neoni let out a small laugh, as she saw that this little girl had her father's octopus marking. She had some of his colours too, as well as the brown of Neoni's own father. In her head, she sounded like a parrot, as all she kept thinking was 'this cub is perfect, this cub is beautiful'. After cleaning her off and placing her with her sisters, Neoni'liga looked at them all together. Four daughters. Who ever would've guessed?
She didn't have much time to consider this, as the pain continued. How could she be having another one?! Of course she was as pleased as anything, but she wasn't expecting to have this many cubs. This one took the longest by far, which made her think that it must be the last. After what seemed like ages, the fifth cub was born. This one was a boy! Neoni'liga hadn't cared what gender her cubs would be, but she was certainly excited to now have a son as well as her four daughters. She cleaned him off so that she could get a proper look at him. He was such a lovely shade of teal, most likely a mix of his father's light blues and her purples. He had variations of her tentacle markings as well. He was completely perfect, just like his sisters. After she placed him beside them, she laughed. It wasn't going to be easy being the only boy among four sisters, so she would have to keep an extra close eye on him.
Well, that was it. She had given birth to five wonderful cubs. The experience had been amazing for her, and the result had been much more than she could ever have dreamed of. Smiling contently, she lowered her head to where the cubs were, breathing slowly as she reflected on what had happened.
Having caught a hare, Penda'ji came running back into the Nursery, only to stop dead in his tracks when he saw the five cubs that were now squirming around at his mother's side. Needless to say, he dropped the hare, as his mouth was wide open in shock. "You gave BIRTH whilst I was away?!"
Neoni'liga lifted her head and chuckled gently. "Yes I did. I didn't think it would be very appropriate for you to watch, so I sent you away." She beamed. "Don't worry, I'm fine. It all came so naturally, like I had done it a million times before." She sighed happily. "And look, they're all perfect. I've had four perfect daughters and one perfect son."
Penda'ji slowly walked over to where his mother was lay. The cubs came in a variety of colours and sizes, with different markings and features. They were all pretty great, and he hoped that he could be a good role model for them as their big brother. "Congrats mother!" He grinned. "What are you doing to name them?"
Neoni'liga blinked as she thought about that question. She definately had had a few names in mind, but now she wasn't sure if any of them were right! As she looked at each cub individually, she thought about what she should name them. It took a while, but she finally chose names for each of them. Starting with the eldest, she nuzzled each one as she stated their names. "This is Zephyranthes. This is Nuru. This is Leucothea. This is Lana and this is...Kinacha'bahari." She grinned as she turned back to Penda. "I'm certain your Father will approve of that last name."
Penda'ji looked at each cub in turn, attempting to memorise their names. The last one would probably be the easiest, as like Neoni had said, his father would like that name very much. "They're all great names!" He then smiled and nuzzled into her. "Now, you should get some rest. Don't worry, I'll keep watch to make sure they don't wiggle off."
Neoni'liga purred as Penda nuzzled into her. "Thank you son." With that, she lowered her head once more and allowed her red eyes to close. This was surely the happiest day of her life, and although she would try and get some rest, she wasn't sure if she would be able to.
Word Count = 1111 (without Penda's bits)
