Irina sat inside the grounds of Nightingale, her belly swollen with pups. It had been about a month since Beartooth and she had had their fun, and she was feeling very lethargic today. What did that mean?
Belladonna and Delilah would start their training soon. Delilah's mother Rachel had been busying herself with finding herbs and plants to store someplace safe, and Irina supposed Sloane was keeping watch like he was supposed to. Irina felt the joy of being the queen of a fully functional pack, but she needed more members. Where to find them?
She felt a small push at her stomach. Irina didn't flinch; she could handle pain and besides, the pups had been doing it for a few days now. Although Irina supposed she was due any day now. Maybe even today.
The thought compelled Irina to stand up, and wander toward where she'd last seen Rachel. Maybe the theta would have some advice.
She stood strong in the face of a cold blast of wind. It was rather convenient, as the noise of it and the smells it brought helped Irina tune out a few pulsing pains in her stomach. The queen smelled some squirrel along with a strange plant and some blood-aha. It seemed that she had found Rachel. The scaled theta had a taste for squirrel.
Irina gathered the storm wind around her as she walked, wreathed herself in it. She sent the cold weather away, brewing a storm with some pelting rain over where she knew Delilah and Belladonna to be convening to discuss a plan. Irina smirked-she knew the eight-tailed delta would not be happy. She'd know it was Irina, of course; Irina had announced her power to the pack a few weeks prior. But Irina was planning to send a storm to several spars a month, as it would help her deltas and sigmas hone their skills and build endurance and stamina. That was important.
Rigorous contractions began, and Irina gritted her teeth. She hissed as it slowly began to get worse. She needed to reach Rachel, and fast. The wind-wrapped, swollen alphess followed her nose to a scaly, humming femme using her teeth to pull up a small green plant, roots and all. "Oh hello, alphess," Rachel said politely, turning around. "Do you need something?"
I seem to be going into labor, the queen said with grit teeth.

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Irina stared down at her five children, a wry smile forming on her face. She had Rambaldi, Marigold, and Kára named. She wondered what to name the last boys-Irina thought about Gennady, then Fyodor. But a smile came to her face as she remembered a name she'd quite liked in her old home-Kruam. Irina let her daughter Marigold nestle into her. She slid the last unnamed pup away from a little tunnel in the earth, from a vole or gopher or something. She didn't want her children getting hurt.
Irina let her gaze wander to Rachel, who was sliding blood-soaked leaves away from the family. She looked at a little spike of ice forming by her paw-and gently patted Rambaldi's head to break his concentration. A pup who could control ice already? No good. But then Irina thought of the name Pyro. She loved irony. And what if this pup was a cryokinetic like his father?
Hello, my children-Rambaldi, Marigold, Pyro, Kára, and Kruam, she whispered.