379 Another Branch

I shot up out of bed as I heard Camara's shout, the three children getting up alongside me as they looked this way and that, surprise and fear dancing in their young eyes as they looked towards me for guidance and assurance.

Scooping them up, I held them close to my bosom and made my way out of the room, saying "It's alright... it would seem that your sister Camara is beginning to give birth."

They looked at me in confusion, the shouts of Camara still ringing through the halls as my daughter got everyone's attention, mild panic in her voice as she was beginning to go into labor.

Along the way, I ran into Sari and Rhefia stumbling out of our room, both of them wearing their clothes loosely - clearly having been quite intimate just a few moments before, if the stench of sex wafting off of them was anything to go by - yet ready to go and see what was wrong with Camara.

Seeing them, I said "Sari, take the children and comfort them; it would seem Camara's child desires its freedom now..."

She gave me a wry smile at the poor attempt of a joke, taking the three children and walking behind Rhefia and I as we rushed towards Camara's room, where we found the others crowding around the door.

As soon as we appeared, everyone gave way and allowed Rhefia and I through, where we found our eldest daughter laying on her bed with a pale complexion, sweat dripping down her nude body as she panted for breath, her muddy crimson eyes filled with anxiety.

Nodding to my wife, I made my way to sit beside our daughter, taking her hand and smiling at her, while Aethisia sat on the other side, staring at her sister and mate with worry as she took her other hand.

Rhefia took her place 'beneath' Camara, staring up at her face and smiling gently as she said "It'll be alright, Camara. You'll be fine... Just push."

Getting a strap of leather out of my inventory, I gave Camara a gentle smile as well as I said "Bite on this; it's going to hurt, it's going to be painful, but you can persevere Camara. I know you can. Match your pushes to the pushes of your child, and welcome them into the world."

She nodded, her features strained as she accepted the leather strip and bit onto it not even a moment later, groaning with pain as she stared at the ceiling blankly.

Having done this before multiple times now, I understood just how scary and how painful this was, so I took a deep breath and remained calm beside her as I looked down towards her stomach, where the child she had created with Aethisia resided.

Rhefia was staring intently at Camara's vagina, her hands waiting for the child to exit, while she did her best to remain calm as well; I could tell that - just like with me - Rhefia was feeling extremely nervous, and she might have been feeling even more nervous now with Camara than with me.

After all, I was a 'Goddess' to her, and she wasn't sure that extended to our daughters either; would Camara be able to push through this as easily as I did?

Of course, we all knew the answer wasn't exactly yes, but it was close enough; women had been giving birth for millennia without issue, and Camara had the help of the skills I had given her.

Holding her hand between mine, I squeezed it back whenever her entire body clenched, her muscles rippling as she strained to push out this baby into the world, all while she screamed into the leather strap.

Aethisia mirrored me, her crimson eyes and usually neutral expression just as strained as Camara's as she watched her sister closely, trying her hardest to keep her eyes on her mate and watch on as she went through this arduous, painful process.

Camara's entire body was clammy, covered in a thin sheen of sweat that glimmered in the candlelight, and I felt my heartbeat continue to quicken as I sat beside her, leaving my trust in Rhefia to safely deliver the child like she had for me.

Each scream into the leather felt like a dagger to the heart for me, and I wondered just how effective the [Pain Blockers] skill was compared to other medicines as I listened to them.

Of course, the skill certainly did help, and I was sure that the only reason both Camara and I screamed so much during them was because our tolerance to that much pain just wasn't that developed; Camara especially.

I was doing whatever I could to distract my mind, thinking of my skills and of the past as I stroked Camara's hand lovingly, time passing by in a dull blur that left my head numb, but eventually the pants and shouts from my eldest daughter began to quiet down, and I focused back up and looked at her, worried that something might have happened.

Her pulse was normal, and her breathing was shallow, but everything about her seemed fine, so I instead looked down towards Rhefia and saw the Deerkin bundling a few blankets around a baby, the bucket and water that someone had brought in being used to clean off the baby before she was brought up towards Camara's chest, our eldest smiling tiredly as she accepted the swaddle of blankets and brought the child to her chest.

Crying loudly, the little Deerkin straining its eyelids and eventually opening them to reveal a soft amber that was similar to Rhefia's, while its pale brown skin and tuft of brown hair was a perfect mix of its parents.

Aethisia took a few deep breaths as she leaned against Camara's shoulder, their heads resting together as they stared down at their daughter, who had stopped crying after it's nose twitched cutely, the baby Deerkin sniffing Camara's chest before latching onto her breast, beginning to suckle.

The room went from noisy to quiet in mere moments, and we all let out a sigh as we stared at the three Deerkin lovingly, standing up to give them some time to themselves and time to rest; it was still the middle of the night, after all, and we were all tired.

Especially Camara, so I gave my eldest a kiss and left her with her daughter, knowing that in the morning, all of our curiosities would be settled.