Endangered

37.) Union

Dorian's POV

As Flora rested, still trying to recover from the horrendous hours of childbirth, I checked on my babies. I was in between going back and forth, not wanting to miss anything from either of the kids.

The babies slept most of the time but this was my chance to be a good father unlike how I was in my dream. I want to be a good father to my children and teach them how to have fun but also protect themselves.

"So do you have any names in mind?" Nancy asked.

"Yeah, I do. Our first born will be Nolan, our second will be Nial, and our daughter will be Lillian."

"Wow. You have this all planned out haven't you?"

"Yeah." I smiled watching my boys in the arms of Anna and Zoe.

"So this dream you had. Did it change the way your viewing things now?"

"It did," I said reflecting how real the whole thing felt. This time things will change for the better.

Later on, when I was rocking my boys in both of my arms, Jenna ran into the room out of breath. "Flora's awake." My eyes widened and my heart quickened at the news.

Jenna helped me put the boys back in their respective cribs then we both ran to the room. Flora was lying on the bed with half-open eyes looking tired, but as soon as Nancy held Lillian in her arms, she lit up with happiness.

Flora didn't have much strength to hold Lillian just yet so she settled for admiring our little angel instead. I went around the other side of the bed sitting down next to Flora. She smiled at me then watched as Nancy handed me the baby.

"I named her Lillian," I said while shifting closer to her so she could get a closer look at our daughter. She reached over and dragged her finger over Lillian's cheeks then softly grazed her full head of hair.

"She's absolutely beautiful." She said softly.

"Yeah, she is."

Flora leaned down and kissed Lillian making her scrunch her little nose up. "Where are the boys?"

"They're in another room. Lillian had an infection so they had to use Wolfsbane to get rid of it so we couldn't keep the children together. Nancy said that the exposure should take only a few more days."

"I want to see them."

"You will, soon." She moved off to the side of the bed trying to stand up but wobbled. Jenna helped her stand while Nancy took Lillian from me.

She held onto my arm while leaning on me as I guided her down the hall the boys' room. She held her stomach since the stitching was still fairly healing and was tended. As soon as we reached the door, I could hear the sound of her heart accelerating. 

I slowly pushed the door back and allowed her to look at the room that was now transformed into a baby's room. I could feel her practically trying to get away from my grasp. She was anxious to meet her babies. 

She limped to the nearest crib seeing Nolan half asleep as he tried to keep his eyes open but eventually close them.

His eyes were grey still and it made me wonder if the color will stay just like mine or be a different color like Flora's.

Flora laid her hand on Nolan's stomach with tears in her eyes. "That's our firstborn, Nolan." She leaned down and kissed his forehead gently. Then she moved to the other crib to see Nial fully awake, as soon as he saw the both of us he started to scrunch his face up to cry.

I quickly picked him up and started rocking him in my arms. Flora was touching his soft hair admiring him. "Can I feed him?"

"You can hardly hold them. I think it'll be better if you regain your strength first before feeding them."

She nodded looking disappointed and tired. She looked exhausted even though she was only standing on her feet for five minutes. Her body had been put through the wringer after giving birth to these babies who were by no means small.

They all had weighed in over seven pounds, Lillian being the smallest but hardest to birth. With Flora still trying to recover, I wasn't worried about the babies. There were pack members who offered to help, of course, Jenna and Kurt wanted to watch their grandbabies despite Kurt being out of the loop in my species particular existence.

These babies were a blessing to the lycan kind and werewolf community. They had all howled in unison the night they were born, waiting for their future leaders. The half-shifters backed off since they were outnumbered but would stay hidden in the shadows, for now.

I made Flora sit down on the rocking chair in the room as I took Nial downstairs to fetch him a bottle. Right away Jenna had one made, trying to get my son out of my grasp so she could feed him herself.

"Go take care of Flora, I got this one. Grandma duties." She smiled then started cooing at Nial as he looked at her as he drank his milk.

I went back up the stairs seeing Flora sleeping peacefully. I checked on Nolan one more time then carried Flora in my arms, taking her back to the room so she can get her rest. 

She was sleeping soundly while Lillian whined from where she was. There was never going to be a dull moment with all the babies in the house, that's for sure. 

I picked her up holding her in my arms that quickly quieted her down. "We need to be quiet so mommy can get her rest." I put my finger on her making her hold onto it. "You're so beautiful."

She kept trying to wriggle free from her swaddle starting to whimper. I freed her from it and tried patting her little-diapered bum but she was still whimpering. Her little cries upset me and worried me at the same time.

"Try using skin-to-skin contact. She's still a newborn and will be bonded to you still if you do. It's actually recommended you do this frequently." I gave Nancy a thankful smile as I gave her Lillian then took off my shirt. 

I then held my little girl back in my arms. She planted her little palms of her hands on my chest starting to calm down slowly, but surely.

When she finally fell asleep I put her back in her crib. She was recovering from the wolfsbane quickly so she didn't need to be in the incubator anymore. Soon she could join her brothers.

When I turned around I saw Flora smiling at me. "You've gone soft." She teased as she yawned.

"When I'm with my family I am."

"Have the guys seen the babies?" She inquired.

"They're still being cautious of any dangers out there, so they take turns patrolling and watching the babies."

There was a knock on the door then Aiden came into the room looking nervous. "Uh, can I talk to you." He asked looking at Flora as he put his hands in front of himself. I stood up thinking he'd want to talk to Flora alone without me present.

"No, you can stay Dorian."

I sat back down resting as I looked over at Lillian sleeping soundly. "I'm glad you're okay. Honestly, that night you gave birth to the triplets was the day I thought I lost you." Flora sat up straighter, sharing him a saddened look. "I know I have to be a good role model to the kids but, people look at me differently."

"Aiden. They may look and judge but your niece and nephews will love you unconditionally. This could be your chance to make things right, at least for them."

I thought it was the right time to pick up Lillian so I did. I walked over to Aiden and handed him her. He was hesitant at first but held her in his arms. He looked up at us then back to the baby. "You think you can watch her while we sleep?"

He nodded without taking his eyes off of Lillian. "Yeah." Aiden genuinely smiled at his niece who was sleeping peacefully and vowed to always protect her and his nephews.