OTB members, please feel free to join in! :3 None but Triell should enter the actual den, though!
For the last few weeks, worries had been growing in Nayeli's mind as surely as the pups in her belly. No one had ever gotten around to telling her how to do this, how to be a mother.... The dark lady spent a great deal of her time stalking about the lands of Oak Tree Bend, trying her best to feed her insatiable hunger and calm her thoughts with the usual routine. But as spring grew later and the bright buds on bare branches progressed into lush realms of green, she found herself staying closer and closer to the pack's central den, depending more and more upon the others for sustenance. Part of her still disliked being so reliant on them, especially in the most recent days, but she didn't have much choice. She was getting close to her time.
Even the simplest things had begun to exhaust her, and she felt ready to burst. Despite her worries and trepidations about motherhood, she was anxious for them to come, so that they could grow in the womb of the earth rather than her own - they were getting big. And active. Today, oddly, she had not been hungry, only venturing forth to drink from the stream before returning to the den to laze and pace about. As the sun dropped from its zenith into a warm afternoon, she was certain - today was different, today was the day.
A call rang out for @Triell, an urgent note in the usual smooth alto. Then chills gripped as when the first pain came. Soon enough it came again, and then she did not have to wait long between the waves. Growling in pain, she let instinct take over, swimming form wave to wave toward the distant shore. Her pacing ceased and she lowered herself into the leaves and fur she had used for a more comfortable bedding. If anyone drew near the den now, the snarl of discomfort would grow into one of warning, but beyond that, conscious thoughts left her.
And then, there they were - first one, then two tiny, beautiful coal-colored pups with eyes sealed tightly shut. Her breath caught in her chest as she saw them and she began to lick them clean, nuzzling them toward the warmth and nourishment of her form. All her trepidation left her now, chest swelling as she looked at them in happy disbelief. There they were, healthy and alive, a boy and a girl. The first, a male, wore a tiny, bright star upon his head, a hallmark of his Stormwright blood. The most subtle hints of lighter hues shaded the female's soft form. A long sigh escaped her lips. Finally the exhaustion hit Nayeli, and she curled around them protectively, laying her head down to rest at last.