~Almost three years later~
"Malichi! Amber! What have I told you about teasing Zuzu?" I call from my spot in the living room floor, not even having to open my eyes and break my meditation to know my little ones are getting in trouble again, considering my familiar is curling up next to me in an attempt to hide.
"To not mess with him while he's napping..." My sons voice answers, and I open my eyes to see both of my pups in front of me, a guilty look on both their faces. I can't be upset though, they both are too curious for their own good...especially my oldest Malichi. He can't keep his nose out of anything, and where he goes, little Amber follows.
Malichi has inherited the blond and purple hair in the family, for his blond spiky locks are filled with strands of my purple...and his blue eyes have his father's steel undertones. Which is why mom always says he looks like me with Butch's eyes...and I can't argue with that, though I do sense that he'll look more like his daddy when he's older.
Amber however already looks like him, though her dark brown hair has developed reddish orange tips, her eyes are exactly the same color as his...molten steel. She's already started having episodes of accidental magic, which at a year and a half is pretty young...then again I was about that age when mine started, and I've had to make sure that anything she plays with...or that she comes in contact with, is fire proof because of it. I learned that from when my brother Alec was little...goddess knows our carpet had scorch marks.
"Apologize to Zuzu then." I murmur, and they both peek over my knee to see him looking back at them.
"Sorry Zuzu..." They say at the same time, and after a moment he raises his head up to boop both of them on the nose before slithering back to his spot in the sunshine.
"We're sorry mommy..." Malichi mumbles, and I sigh with a smile as I pull the nearly three year old boy into my lap. Which is quite a feat considering how little there is left for him to sit on, my pregnant belly takes up most of the space these days.
"Come here munchkin." I call towards Amber, and she quickly scrambles onto my opposite knee.
"You just have to remember that animals are like humans, they don't like to be bothered when they're sleeping...and some are very grumpy unlike Zuzu. I know neither of you like it when you're woken up from your naps." I explain softly, and they nod.
"Just let him rest, he'll happily play with you when he wants."
"Okay."
"Now, go back to playing. I'll be making you a snack in a little bit."
I chuckle and close my eyes as I hear little feet run off, only to open them again when I feel a little hand tug on my shirt. I'm not surprised to see Malichi looking up at me, he's occasionally been joining me in my mediation sessions...he's much better at keeping still than I expected, though I can't say the same for my wild child of a daughter.
"What is it Mali? You want to sit with me baby?" I ask, and he shakes his head no before placing a hand on my stomach.
"Are they gonna be little brothers or little sisters mommy?" He asks curiously, and I smile.
"There is a good chance they're both sweetheart, we won't know until they are born." I answer, for I'm not just carrying one, or two...but three babies! To say this came as a shock is an understatement, especially considering that both Malichi and Amber were single births. After find out that this will bring our total to five instead of three, I explained very thoroughly to Butch that after this we are always using protection...always. No exceptions. I love my little ones, but I'm not risking getting pregnant with multiples again...five pups is plenty.
He didn't argue with me...whether it had anything to do with me telling him while cooking dinner...holding a very big knife while I was doing so, I can't say for certain.
Mali tilts his head. "I think you'll know really soon." He murmurs, and I'm a little surprised.
"What makes you say that baby?"
"Just a feeling..." He answers, and my curiosity flares. This isn't the first time he's said something vague like this...there have been many times where he's insisted on moving things that he 'saw' falling, or brought his raincoat to family outings that ended up having unexpected rain...Butch has even told me about all the times he's somehow predicted my cravings or nausea spells for this pregnancy, which have been pretty spot on...
To the point where we don't even question when he tells us something, though it's still pretty amazing. It's made me pretty sure he's a Seer...a werewolf gifted with premonition.
"How strong is that feeling?" I ask, and he scrunches his face up the same way Butch says I do when I'm thinking hard.
"Very strong..." He answers as he rests his head on my belly, and I take a deep breath to keep calm. I know with my scheduled c-section a week from today, my doctor has said it's also possible I could go into early labor any day now...but usually Mali predicts things within an hour of them happening...
"Daddy's here." He states without hesitation, and not even two minutes afterwards the back door opens. This kid is good.
"Daddy!" Amber calls excitedly as she runs towards the kitchen, and I smile as I hear her giggling as Butch greets her like he normally does. Malichi then follows her and runs to the kitchen, he too wanting the routine greeting.
"There's my cute little warrior, and my little man!" My mate chuckles, and I smile widely at the sight of him coming into the living room with a pup attached to each leg, both giggling as he lumbers along in what has become known as the 'monster walk'.
"Oh! Babydoll they got me! The little beasts have got me!" He cries out dramatically, all of us laughing at his acting. They both jump off as he starts to dramatically fall to the floor, only to pounce on his chest as he rolls onto his back in front of me.
"I'm down! I'm down! Run for your life babydoll!" He cries, and I shake with laughter as Malichi 'holds him down' while Amber peppers her dad's face with kisses.
"Noooo! Have mercy!" He chuckles, and I burst with giggles. He's like a giant kid...it's adorable.
"That's enough little ones, your father's been defeated." I say between giggles, and they finally let him go. He sighs in fake relief as he turns his head to face me, a dopey grin on his face.
"My hero...you saved me again." He murmurs, and I shake my head at him. Goddess I love this man...
"If you have this much trouble with two, what's going to happen once you have five playing this game?" I question teasingly, and he rolls over to rest his chin on my belly.
"More adorable little ones to be saved from by my gorgeous mate." He purrs, wrapping his arms around me as best as he can as my cheeks turn scarlet. I know he means it, but I don't really feel like I am.
"Why do you keep saying that?" I murmur.
"Because you keep doubting it babydoll."
"Of course I do...I look I swallowed a giant beach ball, and feel like it's been filled with water instead of air." I mutter, my oversized belly has been the cause of my back pain, sleeping troubles, and my sore, swollen feet...which I can't even see anymore.
"That doesn't mean you've stopped being beautiful, your just pregnant too..." He continues as he reaches up to tuck a stray hair behind my ear, the rest of it piled up in a messy bun. "So don't be cutting yourself short doll, you're the prettiest mommy ever...right kiddos?"
Both Mali and Amber join their daddy in front of me, their sweet little faces brightening as they look up at me.
"You're always pretty mommy." They nearly echo, and I can't stop the smile that splits my face.
"Thank you babies, though all of you are very biased."
"Of course I am, but that doesn't make it less true." He stands up and reaches his hands down for me to take, and as I grab them he helps me slowly stand up. "What you need is a warm bubble bath and a foot rub, and then you'll be feeling as pretty as you look." He continues, and I'm so distracted by the alluring offer I almost don't notice the warmth trickling down my sweat pants...but I do, and it makes me immediately freeze.
"Butch, I don't think-"
"No arguments baby, you deserve it." He interrupts, so I try again.
"But-"
"Argue all you want-" He cuts off, and I huff impatiently.
"Butch!" I say louder, and he turns at my frustrated tone.
"My water just broke." I state, and his expression blanks for a full minute before his eyes widen in surprise.
"You serious?"
"Deadly, I wouldn't joke about this." I answer, and he immediately defaults into what I call 'alpha-dad' mode. It's where he goes into default calm and through the routine of getting everything we need together and me to the pack doctor...we established this routine after Malichi was born, when he was more stressed out than I was when I woke up at five a.m. with contractions.
"Alright, Mali, Amber, go get your favorite toys and wait with mommy by the door. I'll call everyone and get your shoes and your bag." He states as everyone moves around me, and I keep calm as I wait...as best as I can.
The triplets have decided to make their grand entrance, and it's going to be a very long show.
Butch
They're perfect...
I stare at my three little newborn pups as they squirm and make soft noises, they're hands grabbing blindly at the air as I watch in absolute wonder.They're so tiny...not much bigger than my hands.
It's been a little over two hours since we came in, and Tempest rests quietly as sleep off her recovery. The c-section, though earlier than originally planned, went off without a hitch...all three newborns healthy and happy. I've happily watched over them as I wait, wanting to let my mate hold them with me.
I still can't resist letting their hands try to wrap around my finger, still amazed at how strong their grip is.
"I always loved that look..."
I turn to see Tempests eyes open, a soft smile on her face as she watches me.
"And what look is that babydoll?" I ask.
"That soft look of complete love and adoration, it's really sweet." She answers, and I walk over to sit next to her on the bed. Cupping one of her cheeks in my palm, I kiss her forehead.
"They're perfect Tempest...two boys, and one girl...you did a wonderful job." I murmur, and she chuckles.
"It was a group effort."
"No, we may have created them together, but you did all the hard work." I murmur, and she giggles.
"I wanna see my hard work then."
Smiling, I stand up and stand in front of our little ones, and after a moment I turn back to her.
"Which one would you like to hold first?" I ask quietly, but before she can answer a sudden cry erupts from one of the bassinets.
"I'll take the fussy one, since they're probably wanting their mama."
Chuckling, I pick him up, ironically being the first of the three to come into the world.
"Here's your mama kiddo." I say as I hand him to her, and she immediately holds him to her chest.
"Shh, it's okay. Mama's got you little man." She coos while gently smoothing his tuft of dirty blonde hair, and within a few minutes he starts settling down as he clutches onto her hospital gown.
"That's my handsome little Oriel..."
"Oriel?" I whisper, and she nods.
"I like the name, it's based off of Oriole, a bird with golden plumage. You like it?"
"I do, I think it suits him." I murmur as I look on, only to jump at the sound of another pup starting to cry.
"Roll them over here baby."
I bring the next fussy one to her side, and she reaches in so he can latch onto her hand, which helps him quiet down. I then go to our quiet little girl, the youngest by a few minutes, still wrapped in her purple blanket as I lift her up in my arms. Her dark hair almost gleams blue in the light, and she looks so cute as she yawns.
"Our boys seem to be quite noisy." Tempest whispers, and I laughed softly.
"They are...hey, why don't we use O for all of their names?" I ask as an idea comes to mind.
"What names did you think of?"
"For the other boy, I thought of Orion...you know, after the constellation?" I answer, and her eyes light up, no doubt recalling our nights of stargazing.
"And the son of Poseidon...it's perfect." She whispers, smiling softly at seeing me hold our daughter.
"And for the girl?"
Looking down at her sweet face, her tiny hand squeezing my finger again...I think of the perfect one.
"Orchid..." I murmur, noticing her smile as I sit back down on the bed.
"I love it...Oriel, Orion, and Orchid..."
We share a quiet moment before there's a knock at the door, and we look up to see a nurse come in.
"Your family wants to visit, is it okay if they come in?" He asks quietly, and we nod.
"It's time everyone meets the newest members of the family."
He swings open the door, and the whole crowd files in, all of them cooing over the babies. Mali and Amber too after they're assisted in joining us on the bed, and Nana wastes no time in holding little Orion.
This right here...is exactly what I always dreamed of..