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03-09-2016, 12:20 AM
What she remembers most about that day is that it was cold. It was a deep, bone-chilling, aching kind of cold, the kind that you can't get rid of once it sets in. She remembers that it had gotten under her skin, that cold, driving her to pace alongside the frozen river that she had made her temporary abode. She remembers that she was shivering, shaking violently, her teeth chattering. She remembers that she thought about finding Kaj, or anyone, if it meant that she could stave off the freezing air. But she didn't. She simply paced, back and forth, over and over, working herself up into a cold sweat that only made it worse. She could not get warm. The cold was so deep that it had made her numb. When the first contraction hit, she barely noticed - perhaps the baby was kicking, or turning over, as they were wont to do this late in a pregnancy. She thought nothing of it -- but there it was again. She remembers frowning, craning her neck to peer at her belly, wondering if the frigid air was bothering the foal, too. Perhaps she wasn't keeping the child warm enough, perhaps it, like her, sought movement as a method of warming -- Oh. The thought - or maybe she spoke it - was distant, full of disbelief. The third contraction had stabbed, leaving a lingering ache. But no... no, the baby couldn't come now. It was too cold; it was too -- "No," she grunted firmly, stomping a hoof into the snow as the fourth contraction subsided. "Not today. No." As though she could deny her youngest daughter a dramatic entrance to the world. She continued to pace. She started to pray. And the contractions began to roll in, more quickly as time passed, and stronger, and soon the mare was panting with exertion, falling to her knees with pain. It was different than any of her other births. It's just cold, she told herself, knowing that it was a lie. Before long, it was all she could do to keep from screaming with each contraction. The pain ripped through her as it never had before, leaving her groaning in the snow as each wave abated, only to return with more force. "No, no, no, no, no," she whimpered, tears streaming down her face to freeze before they ever fell. She had never been alone before - someone had always been around for comfort, or for assistance, if she had ever needed it. Now that she wanted that companionship, that help, she didn't even know where to look for it. "Help," she whispered, more to herself than anyone, but Astraeus (from his concerned perch overhead) immediately took flight, hoping to find anyone within range that he could lead back to his bonded. He would be too late, in all likelihood; the foal was coming, and she would not be content to wait. It was excruciating, these final moments of labor. It pulled the energy that remained in the mare so completely that she was left, gasping for air, unable to move. She listened, for a moment, pushing herself and failing to sit up, to at least roll over so that she could see her daughter, but no attempt was great enough to move her body into submission. She craned her head, unable to see past her hindquarters, crying now not out of pain, but out of fear. She couldn't warm the child -- if she couldn't warm the foal, then the foal would die -- she needed to move, now. "Talk talk talk." |
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@Kaj, then Aleta, then open! Healers especially welcome! <3
