Kiss of the Moon Ch. 11

Alanna smiled, "Go on we'll be up in ten."

Wolfgang smiled; he appreciated that. He climbed the stairs quickly; Vivian held open the door as the last of the women involved in the birth left Amy in peace. Wolfgang walked in; Vivian gently shut the door behind him. Amy was lying on her side, her eyes were closed as she tried to get as much sleep or rest as possible. Wolfgang put the tray of food down and sat on the bed next to her. He gently stroked her face, moving a few strands of hair that fell over her eyes.

He felt a surge of renewed love for Amy; she had given him such a precious gift. Since she had crashed into his life he couldn't imagine it without her. She was as important to him as his wolf, she was his love, his wife, his mate and mother of his children. He leant down to brush his lips against the corner of her mouth. Amy turned and kissed him; she had felt every emotion from him so strong, she wanted to show him how much she loved him in return. Wolfgang growled gently, he wanted to love her, to show her how happy he was that she had given him children.

He broke the kiss and smiled, "I brought you food, you missed lunch and dinner."

Amy smirked, she knew that wasn't the whole reason he brought her food. Every mate took food to their other after they gave birth, it was an instinct bred into them from the days when they lived in caves and spent most of their time as animals. By supplying their mate with food they ensured their mate's survival and the survival of their offspring.

"And I have a gift for you," he pulled the velvet box out and gave it to Amy. He watched her closely hoping she would like the gift. Amy gave him an inquisitive look as she took the box, she didn't know he was planning a gift for her. She sat up letting the blankets fall. Wolfgang's hand reached out and cupped one of her full breasts and squeezed gently, feeling their heaviness with milk. Amy slapped his hand away and opened the velvet box. Three little hearts rested on blue velvet in the box.

Amy frowned and turned to him, she didn't understand the significance of the gift.

Wolfgang smiled at her puzzlement, some mates gave gifts that had no true meaning, these little hearts had meaning, he had another three already made and engraved with Electra, Alanna and Sage's names but she wouldn't get them until later in the week, when she had settled with the new cubs. "Each time you give birth I will give you a heart, we'll put their names on them and their dates of birth and then they go on your waist-let," Wolfgang explained.

Amy smiled, she grabbed the monkey fist attached to his collar and pulled him down for a kiss. Wolfgang growled and fisted a hand into her hair as he deepened the kiss. His tongue brushed her lips, Amy moaned and opened her mouth. Their tongues duelled in each other's mouths. Alanna, Sage and Electra popped their heads in to congratulate their mother and father on the new additions. They smiled at their parents and their antics, then walked in carrying their own gift for the cubs. Amy broke the kiss and turned to the girls who smiled as they held up the mobile they had made.

Amy's jaw dropped in surprise; the mobile was made of feathers and crystals. The feathers Amy knew were Sage's, the crystals most likely came from the crystal cave hidden in the forest around the manor, the one Alanna had found and the leather work was done by Electra as she loved to work leather. Amy smiled as the girls set it up over the crib the cubs were in. There were three cribs but the cubs started to fuss the moment they realized they were alone in the crib so everyone decided just to leave them together knowing that they would grow out of it.

Amy gestured to the girls; they came forward so she could hug them. Wolfgang smiled and went to his cubs to look at them, letting the girls and Amy hug. He gently stroked the face of one of his daughters; she made a little noise and shifted slightly. He leant in and took a deep breath, new cub smell filled his senses and he smiled. He heard the door close and glanced up to find Alanna, Sage and Electra had left and Amy was eating the food Bastion had made up for her.

Wolfgang went and had a quick shower; it had been a day of many excitements. He dried off and grabbed a pair of boxers. He joined Amy on the bed, he watched her eat almost obsessively. He stole titbits from her plate. Amy smiled as she finished. Wolfgang put the plate on the bedside table; he knew that by morning the tray will have vanished by way of Bastion.

He slid under the blankets with Amy and pulled her close, he wanted to hold her to reassure himself she was safe and well. He had been afraid for Amy, subconsciously he knew she was immune to death and his fear was groundless but he couldn't help himself. He had felt her pain when it was at it's most intense; he had felt her weariness and even her own fear through their bond. He was relieved that Amy and the cubs were fine but he knew he would experience this fear whenever Amy was setting to whelp.

****

Amy jerked awake when a baby's cry tore through the room. Her maternal instincts kicking in, she rubbed her face and got up. Wolfgang tried to pull her back but Amy brushed him aside and went to the crib dressed only in a pair of panties. The two girls were wide-awake and the moment they knew their mother was coming the one who had been crying stopped; the little boy was still asleep blissfully. Wolfgang joined Amy and picked one of the girls up. He held her against his chest and stroked her soft back gently, he didn't think he would ever get over the fact he was holding a little cub that was his.

Bastion smiled as he walked in, he was carrying coffee for them both. Amy smiled as she sat; she positioned the little girl and fed her a nipple. As she started to suckle her hand grabbed her mother's to keep her from pulling the nipple away. Bastion put the coffees down on a bedside table and went to the crib to see the little boy. Bastion glanced to Amy asking permission to pick the boy up. Amy nodded and Bastion gently picked the boy up and cradled him in his arms.

Bastion smiled as the little boy opened his eyes and yawned. Amy burped the little girl in her arms and laid her on the bed. Wolfgang handed Amy the girl he was holding and went to get dressed so he could start dressing the cubs after she fed their son and went to shower and get dressed.

An hour later they were downstairs with everyone for breakfast. Everyone was curious about the new cubs but didn't crowd around them knowing it might set them off. Alanna went to answer the door as the bell had rung and Bastion was busy getting breakfast. She returned several moments later with Bob and Shia in tow. Wolfgang smiled but didn't stand to greet them as he was cradling his son. Shia approached Amy and offered her a gift for the cubs.

"Hello Shia," Amy greeted.

Shia smiled and looked around, "Amy, two girls and a boy. Congratulations," Shia offered Amy the gift. Amy jerked her head pointing to the table where other gifts are. Shia nodded and went to put the gift down.

"So were you right?" Bob asked as he approached.

Amy smiled, "Yes, within twelve hours."

Bob put his gift with the others. He walked up to Alanna who was cradling her sister. Bob gently stroked her face. She made a small whining noise in the back of her throat. Anna leant over to Alanna.

"Give her back to her mother before she starts to scream. Remember they were only born last night, all this attention is too much for them," Anna reminded them. Alanna stood and carried the little girl to Amy as she started to fuss. Amy held out her arm, Alanna transferred the baby to Amy and she instantly stopped fussing and went to sleep. Alanna rolled her eyes as she watched her sister, deeply asleep only moments after being returned to her mother. Amy gave Alanna an apologetic look.

"Don't ma, she'll get used to me. She's just too young at the moment," Alanna stated stopping her mother's apology.

Wolfgang turned to the little boy in his arms.

The little boy was glancing at his father, he yawned and closed his eyes. Wolfgang frowned and clicked his fingers near the boy's ear. His eyes shot open and he whined a note that was almost missed. Wolfgang gently bounced the boy to calm him; he quieted down almost immediately.

"Why did you do that?" Amy asked curious.

"He hasn't made a noise, the girls have made noise but he hasn't so much as whined. I was just making sure he wasn't deaf," Wolfgang replied.

"Nathanael did those tests already he preformed them on all the cubs," Amy told him, "He's just quiet."

Wolfgang nodded. The little boy yawned and closed his eyes. Wolfgang smiled and stroked his son's face. He would never get over the fact that he was holding a child of his blood it made him all giddy. Sage rested her head on his shoulder to watch her brother. Wolfgang turned and kissed her temple.

"Can I hold him?" Sage asked and Wolfgang nodded.

"Take a seat," he told her. Sage sat and held out her arms as Wolfgang transferred him into her arms. Sage smiled at her brother; his eyes had snapped open the moment someone new was holding him. He studied her for a few moments then yawned and closed his eyes to sleep. Sage gently stroked his little feet and played with his little toes. She was amazed at just how tiny her brother was.

Shia sat, "So thought of any names yet?" He grabbed a plate, a piece of toast and put some egg on it.

Amy nodded, she had done nothing but think about names, according to her mother names were important, names helped them tune into their power and their individual destinies. Amy didn't know why she was named Amy; it was simply on her birth certificate. "This little girl," Amy nodded her head to the girl Alanna had been holding, "Is as quiet as her brother there, it's her twin which makes all the noise. I was thinking Serenity," Amy turned to Wolfgang to catch his reaction.

Wolfgang plucked the little girl out of her mother's arms and cradled her in his. She didn't even stir a little she just rubbed her head against her father. Wolfgang smiled pleased that she was already living up to her name.

"Definitely a little Serenity," Wolfgang replied. Nathanael quickly wrote the name on an ankle tag, as she got bigger the tag would be replaced with either an anklet or bracelet with her named engraved on it. They would wear the tags until they turned nineteen. By then they weren't required to wear them as the pack would know them and their personalities, only most did as it had become habit.

Wolfgang clipped the tag on around her ankle. Serenity kicked her foot to test the slight weight on her ankle.

"I was thinking Thais for our son," Amy added.

Mryddin frowned not really pleased with the choice of name for Amy's quiet son, "Thais is a powerful name Amy, why Thais?"

Amy knew the story of the Atlantian name, Rhiannon had told her stories of the quiet shy man when she had told her stories of her adventures. He was the guardian of the living creatures of Atlantis, it was said he could walk up to a shy unicorn who had just foaled and could touch them both without them shying. She didn't know why that name kept jumping out at her it just did. Amy shrugged, "I don't know the name just keeps jumping out at me."

Rhiannon smiled mischievously, "I knew him, he was a great man, great with animals, if the name keeps jumping out then maybe he is coming back or your son will live up to his name."

Sienna frowned as she went over the name in her mind, "Isn't Thais a Centaurian name, it sounds Centaurian?" she asked.

Rhiannon nodded in assent to Sienna's reasoning, "It is, he was raised by Centaurs. No one knows how he came to be abandoned, but a centaur found him, he grew up in the wilds and found he could talk to animals, it was how he became the guardian protector of Atlantis," Rhiannon told them, "I remember spending a hundred years running around the forests with him, I learnt more about animals in that time then every zoologist in the world will learn about one animal in their entire lifetime."

"Thais was good at riddles, I still haven't figured out the last riddle, what still is when it isn't," Taliesin remarked which amused those who had to live with his constant riddles and double meanings. Someone had out riddled the riddle master.

"Water when it turns into Ice," Amy told him in an off hand manner, "it's still water, it's just in a different state."

Taliesin frowned; it couldn't have been that easy, "That can't be the answer, it's too simple."

Amy sighed, "And that is the reason you didn't get it because it was too simple. Here is another for you to ponder then; what eats and grows but doesn't live?" Amy asked him.

Amy turned to Wolfgang to catch his reaction to the name of his son.

"If Thais keeps jumping out then the fates want him to be Thais," Wolfgang replied.

Nathanael wrote the name down and attached it to the boy's ankle. Everyone turned to the little girl in Amy's arms, as if sensing their attention she cried out.

"Temperance," Amy said firmly, she had a feeling this daughter was going to need restraint with her nature.

Vivian raised an eyebrow, "Let's just hope that isn't the same Temperance I once knew in Atlantis."

"Two Atlantian names are you trying to bring about a revival?" Mryddin asked.

"No those are the names that have jumped out at me," Amy complained.

Nathanael smiled as he connected the last tag, "I need Sienna and Anna to sign the witness of birth papers," he told the room and left to make notes on the files he was beginning to write on the children.

Sienna and Anna followed him out to take care of the paper work.

Bastion walked into the room wheeling a portable crib; as the cubs were all asleep, "Will we be going back to the manor early?" Bastion asked.

Wolfgang nodded, he had wanted the cubs born at the manor but obviously the cubs wanted to be born the same day many people died the year before, a sign of new blessings to come.

Gillian sat forward, "Am I to announce their births to the media?"

Wolfgang nodded, "But leave their names out of it, I want them crawling before that information gets to the media and their faces are not to be on anything," he warned Gillian and the room. Everyone nodded; the cub's names were to remain a secret for at least the next four months as were their images.

"I'll call a press conference for an hour from now, I'll give you enough time to get back to the manor by chopper," Gillian replied. He walked out to get the order of birth and the relevant medical information to make people happy.

Susan went to organise the transport, lucky for them the townhouse had enough land around it for a chopper to land. No one had to pack they just had to pile in as the townhouse had it's own staff and enough clothes for them all. Bastion went to grab the baby capsules; they would have to leave soon. Amy left to go to the toilet and Sage ran to get her books.

The others would be going back to the manor in cars but Amy, Wolfgang, the cubs, Sage, Alanna and Bastion would be taking the chopper as it was faster and would prevent anyone getting a photo.

****

Susan found Amy asleep under a tree near the pond with her cubs. She smiled as she watched Thais turn to her, at two months old the cubs were showing all the signs of getting ready to crawl. Susan smiled; a sparrow was perched on his back. Amy's sudden movement startled the little bird away. Amy grabbed Temperance and gently untangled her hair from the little hands; the sharp tug on her hair had woken her. Serenity was sprawled next to her brother deeply asleep. Amy yawned and sat up.

"They almost look ready to start crawling," Susan commented.

Amy snorted, that was the last thing she wanted, they were trouble enough as is, "Not for another two months, they won't start crawling until four months after their births," Amy studied them, "Fates help us when they do."

Susan chuckled, "Bastion has been busily cub proofing the manor since their births," Susan sat.

"How are you feeling?" Amy asked.

Susan shrugged, "Some days I feel something wanting to break out only to have it disappear on me," Susan sighed, "I don't know, I mean… I heal rapidly but after that… I'm normal but I'm not."

Amy sighed in regret, "I'm sorry…"

Susan glared at Amy, "I asked you to do this. I'm happy… but when people ask me what I am I want to say something more than, I'm complicated."

Amy smirked and Susan smiled, Amy was perhaps the only one who could truly understand Susan.

Amy moved Temperance so she was next to her siblings. Amy tapped the area before her. Susan sat before Amy. "Let me into your mind," Amy asked gently.

Susan sighed and closed her eyes. She felt Amy's mind brush hers and let Amy in.

Okay… lets go deep, Amy told her. Amy started to dig deep into Susan's subconscious, if she had a beast in all likely hood it would buried deeply. Amy felt something respond weakly to her call. There you are, Amy said gently. She called harder, drawing the beast further forward. Every time it came to a gateway Amy had to force it open to let the beast through. The gateways were natural barriers humans had developed to evolve above animals, to reason and remember the past to become more, to keep locked up their animal instincts and tendencies. The moment it was past the gateway it would lock behind the beast preventing it from receding back to the darkness it had been born in.

Amy opened her eyes an hour later. Taliesin watched them curious as to what Amy was doing with Susan, Thais was sitting between his legs.

Susan opened her eyes, she didn't feel well; she felt as if she had been dragged through a currycomb. She crawled away not trusting her legs at the moment. Before Amy could warn her Susan's body crunched. Susan cried out in surprise as her body shifted tearing her clothes.

Her body grew longer as bones snapped and reformed. Her hands transformed into paws as her arms and legs shifted. Her blond hair receded and black fur sprouted from her body but with white stripes. A long black tail sprouted from her tailbone the very tip was also white. Susan's face was the last to transform. Her face crunched and formed into a cats face, she opened her mouth as her eye teeth grew. Susan was a sabre, she wasn't as big as Amy but she was slightly larger than a tiger.

Susan collapsed the strain of the forced change making her weak. She panted and quivered as her new world filled her senses.

"So that's what you were helping her with," Taliesin surmised.

Amy nodded, "The beast was there but it was deep, too deep for Susan to draw out on her own. She could feel it but couldn't grab hold of it," Amy replied.

"Perhaps if you had bitten her again like I suggested Susan's change would not have taken so long," Taliesin said gently, Amy and he had a huge fight about this. Amy had bitten her in human form, and it was only after that they realised that Amy's bite was far more effective when it came to turning someone when she herself was in a shifted form, in human form Amy would have to bite someone more then three times to make them change within a month.

"Okay… you were right, but I couldn't just bite her again. I shouldn't have bitten her in the first place," Amy told him.

Taliesin nodded.

"Will she be able to maintain this?" Taliesin asked.

Amy shrugged, "If not I'll turn and bite her good, she's come too far to just let her be anything else."

Taliesin smiled and turned to Thais, "See I told you your mother was silly."

"Do not listen to him, I'm your mother I can make your life hell," Amy threatened.

Taliesin chuckled, "Best to listen to her," Taliesin handed him back to Amy, "I actually came here to tell you I figured out your riddle."