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 Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 10:07 pm
Kitengele panted, a grimace plastered over her lips. She was laying under the stars, just feet away from her den. For whatever reason, she had thought it a good idea to get out for a bit of fresh air, despite her massively swollen belly. Naturally, she went into labour right there, unable to get back into the den in time.
Her claws were unsheathed and she grappled at the dirt, letting out a moan. The contractions were becoming stronger and she knew that the birth was imminent. Another whine escaped her mouth and her muscles strained with the attempt to birth the first cub.
After several minutes of effort, a little girl, predominantly purple, entered the world.
Kit struggled to sit up but could not, and she let out an annoyed grunt. "Ash," she groaned, "clean her up please!" She knew the newborn could not stay in the sac any longer, and cursed herself for not being able to clean her herself.
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 10:24 pm
Ashki had been sleeping rather peacefully outside of their den whilst his mate rested within its depths. As with any pregnant lioness, she had seemed to get moody. Although, it wasn't so bad, he figured, since he had heard some gruesome tales back home. On topic, he had decided that sleeping outside was safer and probably better for his mate. He was rather large, and he hadn't wanted to cramp in on her space, especially with her belly so large--it made him wonder if she were really birthing lion cubs or perhaps elephants.
But, he thought, that was too mean. He shouldn't be commenting on Kit's size, mental or no. So, he had pushed those thoughts from his mind and had fallen asleep rather quickly in the heat of the day.
As his mate emerged from their den, he quietly acknowledged her with a flick of his ear. He remained snoozing for the most part, however. Yet, as he heard groans and whines from her, he immediately woke himself up and rose to his paws.
"Kit..?" he murmured, wondering what was wrong. He thought that perhaps it was just another mood swing. Kit could have easily been annoyed by the glaring sun or perhaps his own laziness. But then he noticed that she looked pained, and thus ran quickly to her side. It was then that he saw the bundle of a newborn squirming slightly on the ground. His eyes widened and he froze.
It was time?!
Gulping, he remained where he was. Or, at least, he did until he heard her tell him to clean the cub up. Coming out of his frozen state, the male snapped at himself mentally and then swiftly moved to do as his mate had asked. "Sure thing, love," he said quickly, feeling she might need the physical reassurance rather than just the assumption that he would do so.
Working quickly, though rather awkwardly, the new father did his best to clean his firstborn up. Removing cub from sac, he then nosed it, coaxing it to breath with his tongue. It responded well, and he smiled. Picking up the cub gently, he moved it out of the way in case there were any others coming. As he did so, he nosed the cub once more, checking its gender.
"Female, my love," he announced, sounding rather proud. A beautiful daugther.
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 10:36 pm
Kit managed a raspy "thank you" before allowing her head to fall back to the ground. She sent a silent thanks to the heavens that he had arrived in time. A girl! She had only a moment to smile before the contractions started again. She growled in pain, her only comforts her mate, her newborn daughter, and the thought of the cubs to come.
This daughter came quicker, not presenting as much of a problem as the purple girl. Also unlike the firstborn, who looked more like her father, this cub had a strong resemblance towards Kit.
"Ash," Kit grunted softly, trying to make her tone as affectionate as possible. She felt guilty about being so moody the past few weeks and, despite the struggles and pains of birth, she didn't want to snap at him.
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 10:44 pm
Ash merely nodded to the thankfulness of his mate. He felt she didn't really need to say anything to him, since it was his job to protect and to care for her and, now, their family. Which was steadily growing bigger as time went by.
As the second cub showed itself, he didn't waste any time in heeding to the female's wishes. He nudged the first daughter gently then left her for a moment to gather her sibling. This one, he noticed, looked a lot like Kit. This brought a smile to his face. The mother was so beautiful, the cubs would be proud to have such a graceful and intelligent lioness as their mother, just as Ash was proud to have her as a mate.
Working quickly again, he cleaned off the second cub and placed it gently beside its sibling. Nudging this one in turn, he announced to his mate:
"Another girl."
Two healthy girls! Would there be more, he wondered.
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 10:56 pm
"Another girl," she said breathlessly, her eyes full of wonder. As another contraction hit, she squeaked, "Give them a lick for me.."
She let out a pained roar. Oh, she loved cubs, but she had no idea birth would be this intense, painful, and long! How many more could there be, anyway? Shutting her eyes, she continued pushing, and her efforts finally paid off with a dark furred daughter.
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 11:02 pm
Ashki purred happily at his mate, wishing that he could have done more to make her comfortable. But he had heard about births in his old pride, and they were never pretty for the mothers. He wondered why childbirth had to be so painful, but he supposed it couldn't be helped. The only thing he could do was continue with the cleaning of each cub.
Nodding towards his mate, he gave each of their current cubs a very gentle and affectionate lick from their mother. Of course, it could not replace a real one from her, but he figured it would do until Kit was free to clean them herself.
As the next one began to arrive, he prepared himself. He felt more confident now, although he was still rather edgy and nervous. Things could go wrong at any time, but he sure wished nothing would.
The next cub having arrive, Ash quickly moved towards his newest offspring and proceeded to clean it off like the rest. Then, as he had done before, he moved the cub over with its siblings. It was there that he checked its gender and got a real good look at her.
"Another girl," he announced, the pride still strong in his voice. Three girls! And this one was mostly black, like his mother, but with accents of white and purple from each of her parents.
Three beautiful girls, all healthy, what would be next?
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 11:11 pm
Another girl! Kit felt no need to say anything, just basking in the moment. The excitement bubbling in her chest took away from some of the pain of birth, and she relaxed as much as she could. Three beautiful girls. Three daughters, a mix of Ash and herself... it was bliss.
But it was fleeting relaxation and she tensed up again, this cub coming quickly. As soon as she slipped out, Kit had the instinctive feeling that the birthing process was over. She tried to pull herself up and succeeded this time, able to clean this cub herself.
The cub was unique in that she had no traces of purple, just black and white. Kit's eyes lit up and she exclaimed to Ash, "She looks like my father!"
...too much like her father, she thought silently, as she noted the cursed mark on the girl's shoulder. But that was okay, she reassured herself. Surely this cub wouldn't come across any misfortune, right? She had a large family to look after her. "Four daughters," she said, smiling at her mate.
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 11:20 pm
Ashki felt it hard to contain his pride. He was so ecstatic about the arrival of the cubs. Finally, they had their own family. They would be the most wonderful family of all, so loving and caring and understanding of one another. He could feel it in his bones.
Watching as the next cub came slipping out, he blinked slightly, noticing also that there was no purple on her. It was reasonable, he supposed. Kit had a dash of purple on her back, and, though he had never met her parents, he figured that the lack of purple came from them. Though, he mused, it could have easily from from his own parents as well. His mother was a more solid black, with dashes of white, he remembered. His father, though.. he couldn't remember. Purple most likely, since Ash himself had so much.
But, there was enough wondering and pondering, for he focused his attention now on his family. And there was no reason to think about his parents anyways, as Kit mentioned that the newest girl looked like her father. That settled it then.
Smiling, he picked up each of the three cubs he had in his keep (individually, of course) and moved them over with their mother and sister. "They are all so beautiful," he whispered, eyeing them proudly and affectionately. He couldn't have asked for a more perfect family.
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 11:29 pm
"Gorgeous," she agreed, unaware of Ash's thoughts of his parents. There was a blissfully content smile on her face and she leaned over to nuzzle her mate. "They're perfect... our little family of four." She looked into his eyes and grinned, correcting herself, "Or rather, of six." After all, she and Ash were the founding members of their family!
Another contraction caught her by surprise and her expression showed it, her eyes wide and mouth slightly open. "Oh!" she yelped, falling back to her side. "Oh, Ash, there's another one!" She couldn't believe that she hadn't sensed that there was another cub inside of her. Silently she hoped that her mother's intuition simply hadn't formed yet.
Thankfully, the cubs - not one, but two - came quickly and easily. First came the black and purple girl, followed by the purple and white boy. Confident (again) that she was finished, she sat up and pulled one of the cubs toward her, rasping her tongue over it as Ash cleaned the other.
Once the girl's coat was clean, Kit squealed with joy. "Look, Ash! She looks just like you!" It was true - aside from minor differences, like the bits of white and the fading paws, the girl was the spitting image of her father.
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 11:43 pm
Ashki purred and settled himself down, creating a protective barrier of lion on the other side of their cubs, Kit forming the other wall. It was just absolutely amazing that he and his mate had created this family. These four cubs had come from them, and they were essentially their parents. It was an amazing concept, one that he found hard to grasp completely. But it made him so ridiculously happy that he didn't care how confusing it was.
Caught by surprise as Kit went into another contraction, he pulled the born cubs slightly away from her, just so they wouldn't get in the way.
As two cubs slipped out, not just one, his eyes widened slightly. Two more! he wondered if they were both girls. Whatever, though, he noticed that they were both relatively purple, with their shades varying slightly. Though they were more different than he had first suspected, since one had black and other little accents of color, whereas another had more white and no black whatsoever.
No matter what they looked like, however, they were his and Kit's children, and they were absolutely perfect.
Cleaning the other cub after Kit had taken one, he then noticed that his was actually a boy. Wondering what gender the cub was that his mate took, he finished cleaning off the boy quickly then raised his gaze at the mother.
"Kit," he whispered, feeling as if talking too loud would disturb the absolutely perfectness of the moment. "We have a son! Is that cub another daughter or yet another son?"
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 11:58 pm
(( *has to flee to bed now* XD;; ))
Suddenly the world, so warm and full before, was empty and wide. Darkness was still there, but it was no longer the comforting darkness of her mother's womb. Now it was cold and barren. No heartbeat thumped softly in her small ears; no blood rushed around her.
It was a cold, scary, and completely unfamiliar world.
With a hint of panic (as much as a cub her age could feel) she mewed. Faintly at first, then more demanding. Save me! Her cries seemed to say, I'm alone like I've never been before!
And then something warm and rough across her body... she took a deeper, fuller breath and her wimpering slowed, then stopped. She nuzzled blindly at her father's paws, her own small claws searching akwardly for purchase on the hard floor.
But as her mother gave birth, she was surrounded again with her siblings. Warmth came again, and a comfort only family could bring. With a contented sigh, the cub curled up with her siblings.
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Posted: Thu Jan 18, 2007 11:58 pm
"A son?" She sounded surprised, almost dazed. Five girls and one son! What were the odds? After the first four girls, she had thought that the entire litter would be female. Still, that was wonderful news! Kit had been hoping for at least one of each.
Lifting her muzzle, she smiled at the father. "This one is a girl.. another one," she said in a similarly soft voice. "Six cubs altogether."
Suddenly she was aware of how very tired she was, and so she nudged the youngest girl to her belly and laid back down, closing her eyes, bathing in the starlight.
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Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2007 12:06 am
Ashki nudged the first-born, whispering little murmurs to her in order to calm her down. His mother had always done that with him when he had been a cub, and so he figured he could try it with his own children. It seemed to work, and so he sighed a sigh of relief. If he couldn't be a father in the beginning, then there was no hope for him later on. It was nice to see that he wasn't a failure.
"Yes, a son," he replied excitedly, licking at the boy's tiny ears. The cub was probably about the size of one of Ash's cubs, and it seemed that his tongue could consume the whole of his son's head. Despite that, however, he was very gentle.
Five females, one male. It was amazing. The number of females was overwhelming, but he loved them with all of his heart. And how could he not? They were simply wonderful, too perfect for words.
"They are beautiful," he breathed, still amazed at how many there were and how wonderful they were. Nudging them to their mother to suckle, he then moved around slightly so that his head could be with his mate's. "You are beautiful," he whispered, licking at her face and ears affectionately. She was the most perfect mate and she was going to be the most perfect mother.
Noticing that she was tired, as she should be, the purple lion nuzzled her gently. "Get some rest, love, I will watch over you and the children."
He would watch them and stare at them all in awe, his pride in them making his heart feel warmer than he had ever thought possible.
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Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2007 12:22 am
Kit smiled, knowing the love that she felt for Ash and their cubs needed no words. Closing her eyes, she drifted into the darkness of sleep.
It was so warm... why was she in this cold place? She squirmed, but as soon as she found her way to her mother's belly, and was surrounded by her siblings, she squeaked contentedly.
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Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2007 2:04 am
The second daughter had slid out easily, and thus the journey from the womb to the outside world had been a fast one. As she slid to the ground, the silver cub spluttered, blood and sac still lining her mouth and face, robbing her suddenly of the ability to breathe.
She squealed, but relaxed as she felt the warmth and strong scent of another being. This one was not her mother, no... but his presence was strangely reassuring, and the cub grew quieter as the male cleaned the blood and sac from her body.
Then, she heard her mother's voice calling for her father's assistance, and the male had left her side. She was clean, at least, but still a little slimy... and attempted to stand up and wobble back over to her mother's side. Of course, being young and frail, she failed, flopping uselessly into the dust, the dirt sticking to her bloodied fur.
Oh, she was weak, and knew nothing of the world.
Where was she? Who was she? And who were these other cubs sliding around next to her?
All she knew was to stay close to these big lions... for now, she was in good paws.
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