Page 32 of Omega Haunting

“Hey! Did you ever decide what we’re calling our pup?” I asked.

“Raylin because it sounds more like your name than Ether does,” Astral sniffled again.

“I like it,” I said and kissed his forehead before adding, “I like Ether too, though.” Yeah, I wasn’t about to make him think I didn’t like the other name that would grace the birth certificate of one of our other future children. I wasn’t poking that rabid dotter tonight.

***

Come morning, I woke up wrapped around a very pregnant and a very furry wolf. I couldn’t resist nuzzling into his soft grey fur. I ran my hand over his belly. His flesh jerked and he yawned. Somewhere inside of him our pup was waking up. I imagined a grey wolf pup laying next to him. A tiny miniature of my mate. Maybe with a few scales on his paws or ears. He’d have a star-shaped scale on his chest too. Perhaps it would even be furry like his carrier’s.

When Astral didn’t shift back into human form for breakfast, I didn’t worry much. Sometimes dragon shifters did that too. The dragon would take over and you had to let them get on with it before they’d relinquish control and allow their human side to come back out. When he refused to shift back for lunch, worry nagged at the back of my mind.

“Don’t make a big deal about it,”my dragon warned inside my thoughts.“Maybe it’s something wolves do to have their babies. Maybe this is natural, and we don’t know about it yet. They all forget to tell us so much because it’s stuff they already know.”

I brought our plates to the bedroom and ate in the bed with my mate. Furry or not, he was my Astral and I wasn’t leaving him alone. He lay on his side, panting and slowly wagging his tail.

“Are you close?”I asked when dinner time rolled around and he still hadn’t shifted back.

“If I crawl under the bed, will you freak out?”he shot another question back at me.

“Not if you tell me. I mean, you can even explain it after you’re under the bed. If you want to be there, I’ll carry you under there myself. You’ve been so quiet today. I need you to tell me what to do for you because I’m starting to freak out a little. I almost went to get your Moms earlier.”

“Don’t do that yet!”he panted over our mating link.

“Isn’t it too early for the baby?”

“It is but it’s not too early to den down. It’s sort of like nesting. I’m too fat to hunt. I don’t need you to do anything special. You’re doing everything already. You’re hunting and staying with me and not letting everyone else annoy me.”

“That’s what I do anyway,”I chuckled.

“I know. I’m lucky to have you. I’m lucky to have an alpha who cares so much. Not everyone gets someone like that. Not everyone gets to meet their true-mate. I think I want to go for a walk before we go under the bed.”

We walked around the neighborhood, drawing a few concerned looks from the neighbors and pack members but no one said anything. Though, if they were anything like the dragons back home, they knew not to poke pregnant carriers so close to their due dates.

Astral padded along, stopping to sniff things here and there. He chowed down on a few apples at Morgi’s orchard. Then he lounged in the shade of an apple tree. I stretched out next to him, running a hand over his big pregnant belly. He was a beautiful, soft to the touch, wolf. Earlier, he talked about how lucky he was, but I was the lucky one. Merely laying by his side in the shade made me the happiest dragon in town.

We dozed on and off hiding out from the afternoon sun under the tree. As the earth swallowed the heat-giving star, I carried Astral home. He didn’t even have to ask. This time I didn’t tuck him into bed. Instead, I tucked him in under the bed with all the pillows and blankets. Then, somehow against the odds, managed to wedge myself under there with him. We watched cat videos on my phone until we both dozed back off.

That was our life for the next two weeks until our baby was born. Doctor Leem, Teddy, and Astral’s immediate family came and went. Bringing us snacks and ensuring we didn’t need anything else. We came out a few times, when the coast was clear, and showered. I took my time washing Astral’s thick fur and using his favorite fur-friendly conditioners. I massaged his big, pregnant belly and his back. I even massaged his feet and between his toes before blow-drying him on the lowest setting and brushing him out.

“I could get used to this,”he said over our mating link as I brushed down his side.

“I hope you do. If we’re going to have a big family, you have a lot of this in your future. Next time, I might be doing it with one hand holding a pup.”

“I can’t wait to see you holding our pup,”Astral yawned.

Chapter Seventeen

Astral

All our time spent stuck wedged together under the bed gave us plenty of time to discuss my birth plan. Unless there was a medical emergency, I was giving birth right where we were. I made Marsin take out the good pillows and bedding and come back with some older ones from the linen closet as soon as we began discussing the birth of Baby Raylin. Those had no sentimental value attached to them and could be replaced easily when we burnt them later.

As soon as my water broke, we’d call my parents. They would not come into our room unless I asked but instead would strengthen the wards and guard us. I wasn’t sure who my instincts thought would eat our pup but any intruder was more likely to be eaten up by Marsin than to actually reach our pup. That factoid gave me more comfort than even my new favorite wraparound body pillow that Teddy brought over.

We would inform Doctor Leem that I had gone into labor so that he’d be on call in case something went wrong but he also wasn’t allowed into the bedroom until I said so. My wolf daydreamed about eating anyone who crossed the threshold of the bedroom and had the audacity not to be Marsin. He was the only person who we could truly trust with our baby. He was the only one who could love Baby Raylin as much as I did. He was the only other person who would do anything to protect our pup.

Sometimes I pretended to be asleep so that Marsin could text the doctor when he thought I wasn’t paying attention. It wasn’t hard to know who he was texting by the scent he gave off. He was always slightly annoyed when he chatted with Doctor Leem but he did want to know everything the doctor was willingto tell him about wolf birthing. I knew all the most important parts. I’d attended more than a few births in my life. Once the pup was out, you needed to ensure the poor baby was breathing and moving. You needed to wash him up and make sure no gunk was in his mouth or nose. Then you cuddled the hell out of him while he suckled. That was how you took care of a baby post birth. Then, of course, you did need a doctor, for the vaccinations but at least for a little while he’d carry the immunity he gained from my own vaccinations while he grew inside my womb.

As soon as my water broke all those plans went straight out of my head and I was never so grateful for anything as I was that I made my wishes and needs explicitly clear to Marsin in the week leading up to the big day. He locked the door and opened the window just long enough to stick his head out and howl to signal my parents what was what. His howl wasn’t too wolfy, but it was passable and if anyone made fun of him for it, I’d fucking eat their faces off as soon as I finished giving birth to the watermelon trying to claw his way out of me. That’s what I should’ve named him. Baby Watermelon Raylin.

---