Late wee pups don't get to bark.

Hoping for @Renn, @Ira can reply too obviously! Don't worry, all the babies will get threads with Uncle Silver <3

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Excited to see Vanderfell's newest arrivals again, the druid made his way quietly toward the royal chambers. Held firm between his teeth was a sprig of raspberry - leaves and fruit attached, the last of the season. He'd plucked it with his High Queen in mind, figuring something fresh might be more palatable than those he'd dried and stored for Wintertime.

Dark clouds hung over the druid as he stepped into the large, open cavern that served as Vanderfell's communal area, and veered toward Ira's whelping hollow with his ears pricked and tail low. He listened eagerly for the soft mewling of babes and, on hearing their healthy cries, the tension seeped from his muscles; they would thrive, and he wanted to do his best by them to ensure that they would have the best start.

Quicksilver emitted a low whine for the new mother as he neared, offering his voice as assurance that he was familiar to her and meant no harm. Likely still exhausted from the birthing and with a hormonal shift, the silverwhite didn't wish to overstep any boundary she may set. If the Alphess permitted him access to her cave, he would present his offering - “raspberry, to nourish your milk and help you heal,” - and would attempt to steal a glance at the five tiny bodies nestled to her flank.


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It had been quiet as the day dragged on. Hiero was out tending to other duties and with her denbound he had to fill the work of two. At the very least, things were now a semblance of peaceful with her children birthed. They could be so fussy still, but her personal comfort had improved without the cramping and bloated kicks within her. For now, they suckled and slept only offering a whine or cry if they hungered or felt the need to release their bladder.

The clack of claws on stone would soon echo dully into her chambers, a growl rising in her throat as her tailed swept over her whelps until she heard the low whine of a response. Quicksilver. She mentally sighed in response, the threat she had once issued dying out as she uncovered her children. “Thank you. I'm assuming I eat it?” The berries could be a treat though chewing on leaves always tasted bitter.

His sweeping gaze did not go unnoticed though she did not attempt to stop him. “Come to check on them again?” It had only been a few days since their arrival and though she assumed all was well at birth and issues could potentially show as they developed...such as Hieronymous' condition.

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The sweet boy nestled amongst the rest of his litter mates, unable to differentiate each at this stage, but another body meant warmth and he adjusted himself accordingly to reap the rewards of being sandwiched between a brother or a sister adjacent to mama.

Without being able to hear or see, he could so far only feel the vibrations through his dam when she addressed whomever dared be brave enough to seek an audience with her. His little nose twitched, there was definitely someone new in here, and he stirred, with muffled cries to have his mother comfort him in his hour of uncertainty.

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She accepted his offering with gratitude, and he smiled warmly as she gave voice to it. He felt good to be useful to the High Queen, to have been so trusted by her to enter her whelping chamber so soon after the birth of her newborns. Her appreciation of his skills was a stark contrast to the scorn and mistrust of their guard, Orlaith, who saw fit to question his loyalty to Vanderfell. Quicksilver did not wish to dwell on such grim thoughts, however.

“Yes,” he said of the raspberry, “the sweetness of the berries should mask the leaves' bitter taste -”

He was interrupted by the soft cries of a disturbed babe, and his gaze swept over them once more to identify the child of softer hues. Quicksilver felt the drive to comfort, to reassure, but he remained rooted - that was Mom's job. Ira's whole world would revolve around these cubs for the weeks and months to come, and with them relying on her completely he did not wish to invade her personal space. “I swear they have grown since yesterday,” he observed lightly, white-tipped tail sweeping softly, “they are still nursing well, doing their business regularly?”


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He was quick to confirm her suspicion, she would have to eat both, but as he said the berries should mask the worst of it at least. His steps seemed to be noticed by at least one of her brood as Renn cried out. His troubles would quickly be tended to as the roan queen turned to lick along his head and nape ensuring that she was still here and he was safe. Ira would not look back to her guest as she nosed the rest, quickly checking them over should they have any needs.

“Yes, it seems so.” It would only be a matter of time before they began to grow rapidly. Things in Vanderfell had also been tame, something she hoped would remain true in the coming months while her children learned to walk and fend for themselves. “Rea can be fussy at times. She will eat but may need assistance before she laches.” It had been a mild concern, but given that she still ate it was not the most worrisome trait to have. Picky at best, or so she assumed.

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His incessant mewls slowly faded into muffled ones, until he finally slept. The pleasant love his doting dam gave him, soothed him until the new smell no longer concerned him.

The need to rest and sleep weighted him, and he wriggled around to reach that sweet spot that aided him to fall swiftly asleep and silent again

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feel free to skip from now. potato pup went back to sleep

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Ira shifted to investigate at once, and Quicksilver's pale eyes followed. The way in which she caressed her tiny baby, so frail and so delicate as he mewled fearfully between siblings at her flank, was as though she'd been tending newborns her whole life. He smiled down at the pup who settled beneath his dam's touch.The High Queen seemed to have adapted to first-time motherhood with such ease and it was perhaps one of the most beautiful exchanges between two beings that he'd ever experienced.

His gaze sought his leader's face again, briefly, as she mentioned how one of her little ones did not feed as readily as the others. Rea, she said, and his mind paired the name at once with the girl whose colours best matched Ira's, and he turned his face once more to seek her among the row of down-soft dorsals.

“When she does latch,” he wondered out loud, trying to be professional, but it was definitely weird to discuss his Alphess' nipples with her, “does she remain so? Do you feel she has a full belly by the time she releases?”


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The adoration Quicksilver felt towards her apparent show had gone unnoticed by the queen, her attention far more focused on the balls of life that pressed to her side. As he neared though she felt a tinge of awareness along her nape. Golden eyes snapped to his pale bicolored gaze, though she resisted the possessive urge to hide them from his view along with the growl that threatened to bubble in her throat.

He had only come closer to help, that much she knew, but it would never erase how she felt. Luckily, she was rather certain she won in any situation that pitted the two together and it was for that reason she would allow his advance, but not without a watchful stare. “Not always. Childish greed allows her to fill her belly, but she is stubborn to properly latch even with guidance.”

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Guess I'll just toss Rea in here too, lol

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While one sibling roused, unsettled by another presence in the safety of their whelping chamber, little Rea remained sound asleep. She snored softly until the movement of their mother disturbed her, as rogue whiskers poked at her delicate features while the High Queen reached to reassure.

The blue-furred babe mewled softly, lazily, and simply turned her face away to bury her snout among her sister and another of their brothers. Rea promptly forgot the unpleasant experience that'd lasted barely a second, and was almost immediately swept off to dream of warm milk and kisses once again.


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With his gaze remaining on the cubs, Quicksilver did not notice the High Queen's intense stare. It was appropriate for her to be on edge, naturally, but he failed to consider her thoughts on how she might wish to harm him. Having been present to aid in her whelping and to check over the newborns while their furs were still wet, the druid felt he'd presented himself as "safe" to her, so he simply smiled down with quiet fondness at the patchwork baby who fussed enough to cause concern.

An ear remained perked toward Ira as she answered his question, and the silverwhite compared Rea's size to her surrounding siblings. They all seemed to be roughly the same, he felt, but it was early days yet - the greedier pups would swiftly outgrow her should she not drink her fill.

“She looks good,” he commented, and looked toward the new mother with a softness to her eyes that communicated that he understood her worry, “let's keep an eye on her over the next few days, monitor how often often she nurses. It's easier said than done, but... try not to worry.”


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As expected, the male was ever careful in handling her children. Even now he did not touch as he inspected closer, though seemingly to him all was fine for now. In many ways, it was a relief to hear, but all the while concerning as well. She too could not visibly see a problem, though if there was something more at play they might not know until they could properly communicate with the patchwork girl. Even as Quicksilver looked to her with softness there would be the inevitable pinch of the queen's brows...but she would nod. “I will continue to watch her then.” As for worrying, well, she was a mother after all. Ira would wait for him to distance further before pressing a final kiss to the girl's head, a small nuzzle as she held her close.

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close here?

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