Chameleon means "earth lion" in Greek

Mother

Requested by Amazingmagicgames12

Back in the earlier ages,  chameleon parents had no maternal behavior whatsoever as the mother would not care for their babies.

When the female is ready to lay her egg, she finds a soft spot in the soil close to a tree and begins digging a short tunnel into the soil. The tunnel is usually 6-12 inches deep and about 5 inches wide. After the hole is dug, she begins to lay the eggs in a stacked format. Once all the eggs are laid, she covers them with soils and walks away from them forever

but the world of Mobius had changed that slightly

The world had developed, evolved and such were now seen as cruel and unnecessary

within rainbow valley, a village where chameleons were less distant and came together as a community

and in the ancient Nijo-Jinya

the Bride of Constant Vigil

and soon to be mother

awaited for her baby to hatch

Unlike other chameleons, Jackson's chameleons such as herself do not lay eggs but are viviparous (give birth to live young) after a 6-9 month gestation! Since they do not lay eggs a laying bin does not need to be provided. They can however drop "slugs", which are the membranes and yolk around an egg that was never fertilized.

luckily the egg was fertilized and had a living baby ready to be born

no one knew of the babies father

it was tradition for the clan's leader, female and male alike

the clan needed an heir and that was that

however, there was only one to be produced

it was unusual for a chameleon mother to have only one. The number of eggs a chameleon lays will vary based on the species and the size of the animal. Smaller species of chameleons will lay between two and four eggs at one time, while larger ones such as herself can lay between 80 up to 200 eggs at once.

It wasn't as expected to have children in the 100s anymore due to evolution but more so around 3-10

So this the bride of constant vigil deeply

But regardless she simply waited for her child to break from the yolk

although times changed and more attached to their young, chameleon mothers weren't as attached as other animals just yet, they would provide them with care and such but the watching of birth was still less witnessed by the parents

not that anyone was to know however as their leader had locked herself in her chambers until the event took place, only then would she reveal her heir to the rest of the clan

but as time continued there was noise of her child breaking free

slowly but small cracks and breakthroughs continued to take place

she saw a tiny set of zygodactyl (feet)

then tiny hands

soon the top of their casque

and eventually the full head of her child

The bride simply watched in awe as such a little thing broke through and into the world

her child's skin was pitch black which most chameleon children were as they hatched

as they adjusted to the light around them, only then would they finally get their signature colour

the bride smiled as she slowly and gently went to pick up her child

her baby had broken out enough that it wasn't dangerous to move them with force, their tiny tail getting a little caught in the sac so she carefully worked to free them and soon placing them gently in her arms

looking lovingly at her newly born

Her son

Her precious little son

his tail curled around his mother's arm as he made sense of what was happening

he was a quiet little thing as he tossed and turned, very squirmy it seemed too

his skin slowly turning to a dark purple as she noticed a shape on his chest

a heart

"to store the love of the world" she sighed happily as she held her baby close, placing a kiss on his empty forehead

she worried that due to his unexpected start that he may not grow horns like the rest of her kind, but her true worries lay with the rest of society, how they would view him if he did not, she would love him for all time and nothing would ever change that, but the world was not as kind

But she would ensure he was trained to battle any of this hate that came his way, she would protect him of course, but she would ensure that would only need to be a last resort

a little whine came from her arms

her son's eyes were finally opening

revealing dazzling golden orbs of wonder and innocence

He was her world now

She wasn't one to show emotion but at this moment she couldn't help but cry tears of joy

She stroked the side of his cheek and she was delighted as he turned to hold her hand, his mouth opening slightly, seemed that he thought her finger was food, causing her to laugh slightly

Before the great evolution chameleon babies were extremely independent, yes her son was developing fast but he still needed time

His hand held her finger with a soft grip, but for a baby, it was quite strong

He was going to be a strong ninja and one day a strong leader

Holding her little hand she tried to decide on a name

But when she saw those beautiful eyes one kept popping into her mind that just had a perfect ring to it

Espio

Short for espionage

And meaning to undercover secrets

She was a woman of facts and wasn't one to predict unless there were clear certainty's

But by looking at the wonder in her arms

She couldn't help but feel so sure of her sons potential, regardless of just being born

Getting up and wiping the remains of her son's yolky egg of his now vibrant magenta scales she readied to show him off to the rest of the village

"Come now little one, let me introduce you to the world" she whispered lovingly as she walked out of her room, Espio simply clinging to her mother as he took everything in around himself with a tired smile