‘Nimueh, you had your pups.’

It was a statement, not any sort of question. Nimueh could not believe that she had not noticed his presence earlier, but she had been too focused upon Murina, Murina’s pups, and her own pups. But now, with the sweet still silence after labor, where both femmes were truly exhausted and only could think about rest, she finally found a little bit of her mind that she could focus upon Lev. He was standing above her, yet not over her, not crowding her. Instinct bit at her insides, told her to chase away this brute for he was a threat to her pups. After all, they were not his, and would not a male kill any that were a threat to the survival of his own pups? But Nimueh ignored her instinct as she so often did, for she knew that he was no danger to her nor the pups. First of all, he had no pups of his own that she knew about at least. And, of course after all, she had just named him her Beta, her second in command. If she had been so easily manipulated into trusting someone who would do her or hers harm, she deserved any punishment that came to her from her own naivety. Only she wasn’t naive nor a fool. And if he had any thoughts of claiming her pack, now would be the time to do it - not that she was ever much of a fighter. But now, in this instant, she was utterly spent, and he would have no difficulty killing her or her heirs. And yet instead he offered them help, offered aid. Nimueh smiled lazily up at him and nodded once, twice, three times, her lids slowly making their way across her pools, but she snapped awake as soon as her snout touched the dusty plateau’s surface.

“Food would be lovely darling. I really want pheasant. Or something else of the sort… Really I would eat just about anything you put in front of me as long as I don’t have to work at it. God I am hungry…”

And indeed she was hungry- all of the space her pups had taken up suddenly made a void, allowing her stomach to expand more than it had in months. She was more rambling now than anything and made very little sense even to herself, and her speech was slurred for once in her life. Usually, she was so punctual and exacting in the way she spoke and acted that this was a very different change for her. But she was a delicate creature, and she had been utterly devastated and destroyed by what she had just gone through. The only reason she was holding it together this well was so that she could still support Murina. She would do anything for her pack mates. The mewling of her pups stimulated her slightly, and she nuzzled against them.

“Really, I was under the impression I could not have pups. After everything that I have… Experienced.” She chuckled and rolled her head to the side. “I figured that if I was capable of pups I would have had them by now. And these… These are miracles, all of them. Hell, it is a miracle I survived their arrival. Oh, but Lev! I am sorry that they are not yours, before you left all those months ago I thought something was leading up to… Something. There is a lot of somethings right now…” She reached out to him, her snout reaching for his own so as to nuzzle against it, her touch gentle yet insistent. And in her delirium, she was mixing lines that she would never mix prior. She never had emotions anymore, at least not the romantic sort. She use lid others for sex because it was something that she loved. And she used her body to get what she wanted - be it ransom, demands, or even just information. But she was softer now, in this moment, more vulnerable than she had been a long time. She did not have the energy for manipulation or for planning or for deviousness. She just wanted to get some rest, to relax, and to have someone to relax against. But her maternal instincts were kicking in, and working through the minimal defenses that she still had up. Her pups needed to be sheltered, as did Murina’s. Although they were within the safety of the confines of the pack, the boundrybwas only a safeguard, it was not solid. There were those who would think nothing of trespassing, who would think nothing of doing reckless, cruel things in order to steal a throne.

“Marina, dear, we must get you and yours to your den. Or, if it would make you more comfortable, we can move you to one closer to mine. I cannot claim that I know anything about actually being a mother, because I have never been one… Until now that is. But I’ve been a midwife many a time, and I have healed ailments of the young, and ailments of the old. Ailments of the mother and the child. So if there’s anything that you need, you must merely let me know. “She looked up at Lev and smiled brazenly at him.

”Help me to my own done, Lev dear? I do believe you know the way.” She stood shakingly to her paws, and immediately leaned into Lev‘s shoulder. She could stand on all of her 4 feet, but she wanted to to ensure her balance before she picked up her pups. Taking a big breath, she steadied herself. Then, she picked up two of her three pups by the scruff, and gestured for Lev to grab the other. As for the dead one? She turned away from it- she had already mourned the loss of a daughter, and there was nothing to do about it now, she could not change anything. And as pragmatic as she was, she knew that dwelling on the death of one of four pups was useless - she needed to spend her energy caring for the three that remained. She turned toward Murina and lifted her brows in a question, her lips curling slightly into a smile despite the fact that they were also wrapped around the scruff of her kin.