ThunderClan Nursery

[BEAR.]

Wolfhive flicked his ear and glanced around the den. It was considerably cleaner than he expected. "Making sure Vinekit 'n Beetlepaw are behaving. I told them both to clean out the nursery but they were supposed to having Risingstorm with them 'n decided to go off without him." This still irritated Wolfhive, how hard was it to listen? He supposed he shouldn't be surprised since they couldn't even play nice during a Clan meeting.

[BEAR.]

Briarberry's muzzle pressed into a frown. "Oh, I didn't know Risingstorm was supposed to be with them... but! He didn't need to be, they both behaved very well and worked together nicely. They're sweet cats, dear."

[BEAR.]

Hmm... Wolfhive was a bit skeptical given what he'd seen before their nursery antics. But he had no reason to not believe Briar//berry, she always seemed trustworthy and old man Spiderthroat liked her enough to be her mate. "Noted." He didn't have much more to say on the matter, still irked with their disobedience but at least they were getting along. The whole point of them working together in the nursery was to try to encourage teamwork; Risingstorm was just supposed to make sure nothing happened and the job was done. The job seemed done here. "How're you 'n the kids? You need anything?"

[BEAR.]

"Oh, no, we're all good." Briarberry offered him a warm smile. "Vinekit and Beetlepaw got me everything I could ever want for now."

[BEAR.]

Wolfhive nodded briefly and turned to leave the den. "Just let us know if you need anything. Aren't you due any day?"

[BEAR.]

Briarberry shifted in her nest to stretch a little, a tuft of fur poking up from the movement. She quickly smoothed it down with a lick. "Yes.. any day, and I can't wait!"

[BEAR.]

"The Clan can't either. Not everyday our dear deputy has kids." Spiderthroat just didn't seem like the type to Wolfhive. In fact, he wasn't sure who'd want kids with that old crow.. apparently Briar//berry. It was bizarre to him but what did he know? "I should get goin' but take it easy, now." And then he headed out, leaving her alone.

[BEAR.]

the following post will contain details of labor going wrong and death. most of it is under a spoiler as a result.
[ If you've been mentioned and aren't a kit, it means you're a queen on the allegiances! Wolfhive needs at least 1 - 2 queens to take in 13 newborns, as their mother just died. ]

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Throughout the day, Briarberry had dealt with some strange sensations in her stomach but nothing quite like this. As dusk began to fall, so did her tolerance - the mild discomfort was growing progressively worse, escalating to the point where she began to writhe. "Ow!" What was going on?? Did one of the kittens mega-kick her? Another flare of pain, this time worse than the last. She nearly crumpled into herself. "Dung, what.."

Her pregnancy had always been hard, had always left her sore and uncomfortable but not... this. Her body convulsed and she groaned, rolling onto her side as a way to try to alleviate the pain.. to no avail. "I think.." another gasp, her body folding in another convulsion. "the kits are coming...!"

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Wolfhive had been passing by the den when Briarberry's cries caught his attention. In most cases, labor was quick and needed little help - but something felt.. different. He could smell blood, metallic and almost overwhelmingly strong. Something was wrong.

His memory immediately went back to Tawnykit, whom had been struck by a snake some moons ago and died in this very den. Instinctively he followed the scent, hackles raised in preparation to strike.

Thankfully, there were no snakes.

 

Unfortunately, there was Briarberry... convulsing in pain, a pool of blood forming beneath her. "Um..." Yeah, he wasn't an expert, but wasn't that quite a bit of blood?

"Quit standing there and help!" Briarberry screeched, spurring Wolfhive out of being frozen. Unlike battle wounds, he was completely unequipped in matters of labor, especially ones that seemed to be going wrong! "Drizzlecloud! Spiderthroat!" Wolfhive howled as he found a nearby stick - well, to be more exact he plucked one from the wall to give to Briarberry. She clamped down on it so hard he thought she'd snap it in two.

 

He didn't have time to find them, no one would - because in the span of the next few moments Briarberry would begin to push, push, push! Wolfhive's first instinct was to focus on helping her to the best of his ability, utilizing the fresh moss around the den to soak up much of the blood.

When all was said and done, thirteen kittens were nestled beside Briarberry and she was exhausted against her nest. She'd lost... too much blood. A kitten had gotten stuck. Wolfhive managed to get it free but.. in doing so, he unleashed a wave of blood. More than he'd ever seen. And he had killed people!

It was actually quite nauseating.

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Briarberry felt so weak, but as she gazed at her kittens all she felt was overwhelming warmth. "Perfect..." she murmured. "just... perfect..."

"Briarberry..."

They both knew.

"I.. want to name them."

"You don't want Spiderthroat to help?"

 

Wolfhive hadn't missed the new father's absence, but had been so focused in trying to stop the bleeding-- he still was, soaked moss discarded in piles beside him as he stole more from nearby nests.

"No," a weak chuckle. "He.. hasn't.. been around. No, I want to name them." Gently, she would nose the kits in question as she dubbed them. "Spiderlingkit.. a clone of her father." Coincidentally, as only she knew the truth. "Beetle..kit, Cricketkit, Hornetkit.. Waspkit, Butterflykit, Mantiskit..." she had to close her eyes. Stars knew how hard this was, to find the last of her strength to name her babies. HER babies, whom had gotten this far.. she never thought she'd have so many with Chief Chonk, but she was glad ThunderClan would have so many more future warriors.

".. F--Fleakit, Dragonflykit... Fireflykit... Flykit... C..Cicadakit.. and.." her youngest, her tiniest. A little "Mitekit.. oh, my little.. precious bugs.." Briarberry sank back, spent. She felt all fuzzy and tired. "... make sure.. theyre looked.. after.." and then she was gone.

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Wolfhive was left alone with a small army of children and he had no idea on what to do. Well, okay, they needed milk... he needed to find them a surrogate, he guessed? Or was it a foster? Hell if he knew. This was way above his paygrade.

Step one, find a queen. With Briarberry already gone, Wolfhive had to decide to leave her there-- just a smidge-- because her fading warmth was better for the kiddos than nothing. He exited the den to sought out a queen, paws coated in dark blood. "I need a queen!! Briarberry's.. she's dead, her kits need milk!"

Saying that felt like a finality, a confession of failure.

 

They hadn't.. had time to find someone who might save her.. there was so much blood, nothing stopped it.

He was struggling to keep his nausea under control, unaware of how much he was shaking.

-------

 

[ @DdeongJoongie_Tanghulu
@Hollyheart of thunder
@Neptune.
@rubberRatroom
@PINTO BEAN
@Snowfur_06
@Evenilolia
@babysith ]

[ Kit Roleplayers: submit to the allegiances if you haven't yet! You do not need to respond to this post ; we can do a little time jump to when they're a bit older so they can be roleplayed easier. In this roleplay, Wolf will be harassing the current queens til someone caves and agrees to look after the mini army. ]

 

[ Beetlekit [ @phantom ]
Cricketkit [ @Bean ]
Hornetkit [ @sleepyyjax ]
Waspkit [ @ChaosBringer.]
Butterflykit [ @Idiotic.Bean101 ]
Mantiskit [ @Blossom Cry ]
Spiderlingkit [ @Estelle ]
Fleakit [ @Fish ]
Dragonflykit [ @HerbalTea ]
Flykit [ @rubberRatroom ]
Fireflykit [ @Rowan ]
Cicadakit [ @Zero ]
Mitekit [ @flowsie ] ]

[Highsnow of Matterhorn]

《 Chasmkit 》
67/10
she/her | Thunderclan kit | 1 & ½ moons

Chasmkit heard some unpleasant noises from Briarberry who was nearby.

 

She gazed at the queen and saw pools of blood. There was a strong metallic scent.

It was nighttime and her pupils widened at the sight of the dying queen. She squealed quite loudly and panicked for a few minutes. Oh dear, whatever could she do?

Wolfhive appeared and he helped Briarberry. Chasmkit walked to near them, a few feet away. She looked at them while she named all thirteen kits.

 

A few piles of moss were soaked with blood surrounding the two.

Chasmkit felt strange. It was a miracle that all thirteen kits were healthy.

She started whimpering once she realized that the queen had passed away. Her whimpering grew louder as the strange feeling grew. Chasmkit sat there, staring at the late queen and her kits.


@BEAR.

[Angelia]

Originally Posted by BEAR.

Briarberry twisted slightly to lap at the side of her stomach, smoothing some unkempt fur. "I never imagined having my own either, but.. things happen. You don't need to have your own to raise some, though." As for names.. "I think.. I have a theme in mind, but no specific names yet. Their father is Spiderthroat you know, so I was thinking of bug names like that." A little hum of thought. Anything to solidify their place. [ @Alderheart2763 ]

"Oh, hello Whitepaw! I'd be happy to take that, thank you." It being headless was odd.. but Briarberry didn't really care, her stomach was writhing in a way that made her assume she was hungry. [ @Kaida ]

She smiled when Vinepaw.. Vinekit? Oh, Briarberry didn't know. Demotions could be complicated! reappeared. "Hi sweetie, let's see..." Some of the bedding was in disrepair - surely not her fault !! and the den.. "Why don't you grab some extra moss? I could use some fresh bedding and it doesn't hurt to have some lying around as a spare."

[ @Bluest+r~ ]

Whitepaw beamed, and set it dowen in front of her. "Ehnjohy!" Whitepaw then left.