Page 149 of Blood Fist
“Let your dama sleep,” he whispered to the pup.
The pup must have understood, because there were no more kicks, and Ridan fell back into a deep sleep.
Brune smiled. His path may have been difficult, but it got him here. To this moment. And like every night before, Brune made a silent promise that his pup would never know the hardships he did. The pup would sleep deep with a full belly, every night, knowing their sire and dam would always be watching. They would never have to wonder if they were loved.
As he slowly drifted off, body warm and eyelids heavy, he felt the love for his mate and his pup slowly heal all those wounds he couldn’t see.
Ridan went into labor in the wee hours of the night, during a winter storm. Later, Jonen would say Ridan did it on purpose, relegating his packmate to standing outside the tent in the middle of a deluge, the only light from the periodic flashes of lightning tearing through the sky.
Inside the tent, Ridan leaned against Brune as Sehleh, Iylah, and Corric coaxed him through the toughest battle he’d ever fought. As sweat clung to hisskin, and his face screwed up in agony, his pup came into the world.
With a reed pipe, Iylah sucked fluids from the squalling little thing’s mouth. He took one big breath before his cry ripped through the tent as Sehleh wiped him down with soft cloths.
“Well,” Iylah had said as she handed the wriggling newborn to his parents. “At least we know he has Oldsun blood.”
Ridan held the sticky thing to his chest, looking down at his pup with a mix of awe and terror. Brune leaned over Ridan’s shoulder, eyes brimming with tears as he extended a thick finger to his soft cheeks. Snuffling, the baby blearily opened his eyes.
Without knowing he should, Ridan began purring. He held the pup to his chest, resting him against his skin while he scented him. Recognizing the safety of his dam, the pup settled, relaxing in Ridan’s arms.
Brune joined in the scenting, rubbing his wrist along the pup's back as he kissed Ridan’s head.
Corric watched them with a blank expression. There was joy in his eyes, but behind that a layer of bitterness he wished he could do away with. As Ridan met his eyes, he smiled in understanding. As happy as he was for his packmate, he couldn’t help but think of his empty womb and how it refused to quicken.
“What will you name him?” Sehleh asked softly, her eyes wet with tears and her comforting scent heavy.
“Tarro,” Brune answered, his eyes trained on his pup.
As they looked down at their new son, it felt surreal. Ridan couldn’t help but bite back tears. It was like meeting an old friend, someone he knew so intimately and yet didn’t know at all. All those months inside him,growing and gaining strength, and now he was here. In Ridan’s arms. Living and breathing.
He felt his heart melt until another bout of wrenching pain tore through him. Doubling over into his nest, he cried out. Corric jumped forward, taking Tarro from Ridan’s arms before he dropped him. The pup cried at suddenly being jerked from the warmth of familiar scents.
Brune instinctively held Ridan, nails digging into the skin of his arms as he bore down again.
“Well, well,” Iylah said shrewdly, the only calm person in the tent. “I should have known you would make things difficult.”
Ridan and Brune’s second son came hurtling into the world much the same as their first. As unexpected as he was, he was still a robust and healthy pup with lungs equal to his brother.
“Twin alphas,” Iylah had announced, arms crossed as she looked down at the resting family.
On fresh furs, Ridan held each son to his chest, head lolled back as he slept against his mate. Brune was awake, his eyes bright as he periodically got up to scent the tent and prowl around the perimeter. The only thing keeping his alpha in check was the knowledge that his packmate was outside guarding the entrance.
Corric was silent as Sehleh happily shared memories from Ridan’s puphood and how she was going to have to weave more clothes for the pups.
With Oldsun blood in their veins, Tarro and Aeson were hellions from the start. As all twins were, they were inseparable. When one was hungry, so was the other. They ran their parents ragged.
When it came time to introduce them to the clan, all of the Stone Blade gathered around to meet them. Brune held Aeson while Ridan held Tarro as theymoved among their people. Any birth was celebrated in the clans, but especially twins. They were considered lucky souls who had found their mirror. Twice as strong and destined for greatness.
The other clans journeyed to the Stone Blade to celebrate the twins’ birth and to continue talks for their continuing peace. Ridan would have rather kept his pup’s birth quiet, but Gustall had pointed out that politically, it was important for the clans to know Ridan had heirs on the ground. As much as Ridan loathed it, Gustall was right, and so he tolerated their presence.
Before their meeting, Brune found Ridan staring down at himself as he dressed. It had been several weeks since the birth, and he was feeling more himself, but his body was littered with the evidence of his pregnancy. Stretch marks, dark and plentiful, scattered across his previously taut stomach. Ridan scowled as he poked at them.
Brune wrapped his arms around his mate, nuzzling into his neck. “They’re nothing to be ashamed of,” he told his mate, rumbling deep in his chest. “Like the scars of battle, they’re proof of your victory.”
With his confidence restored, Ridan strode in to meet his fellow chiefs with his chin up and shoulders back, stretch marks on display. He accepted their gifts—fishing hooks from the Steel Jaw, a parcel of gems from the Strong Leg, and fine metal to be fashioned into blades from the Windy Cliff. He told them all that his pups were fortunate to start their lives with such fine gifts.
But really, he knew his pups were fortunate for many reasons. Not the least of which was their sire. Every day Ridan got to watch not just his pups grow, but his mate turn into the alpha, the father, he always knew he could be.
During the dead of summer, when even the nights were sweltering, Ridan tried to inch away from the furnaces that were his family. Aeson was sprawled out, legs across Brune and elbow in Ridan’s ribs while Tarro was face first into his dama’s armpit, little hands hooked into the thin linen shirt Ridan was sleeping in. Sweat prickled at his temples and no matter which way he tossed and turned, either his pup or mate found their way to him, plastering him with their warm bodies.