Falco
The pain radiating along the bottom of my belly and at the base of my spine was unlike anything I had ever felt before.
My heart raced and the sound pounded in my ears.
I didn’t know if I wanted to vomit or cry, but my body failed to stop torturing me enough to do either one.
If not for Walter and Rauh holding me, I would have been crumpled in a ball on the ground.
While the idea of being pregnant and having kids of my own seemed like a wonderful idea when I first arrived in this world, I feared I’d made a grave mistake, one that would be the end of me.
My labor had come on quickly. I’d arrived at Walter’s place and sat with him and Rauh to review all the healer had learned about how beavers gave birth.
Some of the information wasn’t relevant since I didn’t live in a den and I couldn’t reach down to lick myself.
But Rauh believed my delivery would happen quickly as it did with Lonnie whose mate was a squirrel shifter, since both squirrels and beavers are rodents.
Just as the healer shared that piece of information, I felt the first twinge.
I didn’t believe it to be much different than one of them kicking.
Not until the next one came only moments later with a little more force.
They kept happening. Each one more distressing than the previous.
Though it wasn’t until the fifth contraction that I groaned, causing Rauh to stop talking.
“Is it time?” he asked, setting down the book from the outer-world. “Are you in labor?”
“Maybe.” I winced and wrapped my arms around my belly. “Something is definitely going on down there.”
Walter walked outside to where the kids were playing while Rauh stood in front of me. “How long have you been experiencing pain down there?”
“Not long.” I braced as my insides tightened again. “But they keep getting worse with each one, and there’s not much time in between.” I thought that was important information based on the shows I’d seen from the outer-world that involved laboring women. “And I’m starting to feel it in my back.”
He moved to my side and placed an arm around me. “We need to get you to the village. To the birthing center. Otherwise, you’ll be giving birth right here.”
I didn’t want that. I wanted Vern to be with me, needed him by my side to get through the ordeal. He was my reason for all of this.
Without the help of Walter and Rauh, I wouldn’t have made it to the village. My legs gave out multiple times, and I needed to stop each time a contraction beat my body from the inside. They picked me back up after each one and carried me as far as they could get before the next one hit.
Seeing Vern’s face inside the birthing center was a temporary reprieve. I wanted to kiss him until the next bout of agony rocketed up my spine and I remembered he was the reason I experienced the pain in the first place.
“Let’s get you in the tub.” My mate took Walter’s place beside me and helped Rauh lift me to stand in the tub.
Walter closed the door to the center and Rauh collected what he needed for my delivery while Vern helped me to remove my clothing and get comfortable in the tub.
The buoyancy of the water proved some relief from the constant torture, but it seemed my body was doing everything it could to expel my babies.
Another contraction hit, and I grabbed Vern’s arm, clinging to him as the pain ricocheted around my lower torso.
“It’s too much.” I gasped, barely able to breathe as the torment held on. “I don’t know if I’ll survive this.”
“Chew on this.” Rauh held a bunch of leaves in front of my face.
I gladly accepted whatever it was, hoping it would somehow help. It had a familiar flavor, but I couldn’t focus enough to place it.
“And, Vern,” the healer ordered. “Get into the tub and rub this on Falco’s lower back and up his spine. It will help with the pain.”
My mate quickly removed his tool belt and hat to do as Rauh ordered.
With shaky hands, he rubbed the magical lotion into the skin across my hip bones and along my spine.
It seemed to numb those parts so the next contraction only felt like a twinge back there compared to the previous ones, focusing its efforts more on my lower belly and groin.
With the slight ease to my misery, I caught my breath and looked up at Rauh. “How much longer? If I’m suffering this much, what are our babies experiencing inside me?”
“They’re being pushed out.” Rauh stepped into the tub with us. “If you’ll let me, I’ll check to see how far along you are to know if you can push yet.”
I nodded. “Please.”
The healer reached between my legs and pressed against my opening, the skin there feeling as if it were on fire.
“You’ve dilated enough. On the next contraction, go ahead and push.
It may take a few contractions to get them all out, but we’ll see how it goes.
Vern, if you want to keep massaging his back, I will catch the babies as they come out. ”
I felt my mate hesitate. Was he torn between helping me and being the first one to greet our babies? I would be in his position, but instead, I got to experience all the pain of the process.
The next contraction hit with a new force.
Vern’s touch did nothing to alleviate the stress on my body.
But I managed to push. Felt like I had to.
I pushed with all the effort I could. I didn’t know if it was enough, but I felt a new sensation between my legs.
Something was there. Something was coming out.
The contraction eased, but I didn’t stop pushing.
I wanted to see my babies. I needed to know all of this was worth it.
Unfortunately, it took one more contraction to push my first baby out. And three more to deliver the second into the waiting hands of Vern.
Two babies. That’s what I had. Two little beavers that would one day be able to absorb the magic of this world and shift into a human form to look like me.
They were both adorable and fuzzy like a stuffed animal.
But they were born with sharp teeth, so nursing them was out of the question.
Instead, once Rauh helped get me cleaned up and I changed into dry clothes, Vern and I fed our babies a soupy mixture made from water, tree bark, and pond vegetation.
Not something I would personally consume, but it was what they needed to start their life until they could eat the bark and vegetation on their own in a few weeks.
Holding one of my babies in my arms made me realize what I went through was worth it to bring both of them into the world.
In fact, I started to forget the pain, instead focusing on how precious my mate looked with our other child in his arms. I really did get lucky in running into him on the day I arrived in the Enchanted Forest. I couldn’t imagine experiencing my first days here or raising our kids with anyone else.
And I remained thankful to Ahmed for giving me that card in the first place.