137. Dimitri

CHAPTER 137

Dimitri

Swiftly, I catch up with Aurora and gently place my hand at her lower back, offering comfort. She slows her furious steps, and her shoulder's sag. "I don't understand, D." She sobs softly. "Life is so precious." She stresses the importance of life itself with that statement.

She turns to me, and her eyes are churning liquid mercury. The black dragon slits are barely visible with the amount of turmoil that I see within her gaze. Approaching slowly, I gently cup her cheek and thumb away the tears that have broken free from her eyes. She is my greatest treasure and my most precious gift. Never in all my years did I think I would ever be blessed with someone to love. Little did I know that I would get to witness her birth, raise her, believing that my only duty is to protect her. And as she grew, watch her become the strong independent woman that she is. I would love to believe that the values that Andre and I instilled with her made her the woman she is today.

On the flip side, genetics has a lot to do with the woman that she is. She is a direct descendant of one of the strongest dragoness's in history. Her father is one of the strongest kings in history. Her mother was the strongest and most respected Lycan ruler in the history of the Marelup throne. She was born for greatness. Originally, all I thought I was was a witness to it. Here I am standing with this little powerhouse in my hands.

Looking deeply now into her pale-grey eyes and I see my forever. My heart beats a little stronger, and I will live a little longer because of her and her love for me. I have been blessed multiple times over by this precious gift before me. My greatest gift to date, yet to be born. My future heir is growing in her womb. I cannot wait to see the babies that she will give us.

Softly, I kiss Aurora's full lips and elicit a slow growl from her. Her beast is happy with the affection that I'm showing her. We move and sit on a bench nearby, looking out over the gardens that Klaus and his grandmother had planted. Several of Aurora's favorite flowers that I had brought the seeds of now grow here where they do not belong. Aurora giggles slightly, seeing this now invasive species growing in a country they should not be in. "You guys would literally move heaven and Earth just to see me smile," she says softly as she leans against me.

"That is true. If we could, we would reign hellfire and brimstone upon the world to destroy whatever makes you cry." I kiss her cheek and hug her tightly to me. Out of the corner of my eye, I see a midwife approaching.

"Your Highness, the pup you were waiting for has been born." The midwife holds a little bundle up and out towards Aurora as she curtsies and lowers her head in submission. Aurora looks up to me and then over to the bundle, and she sits up slowly. Hesitantly, she reaches out and takes the bundle from the midwife. Carefully, she pulls the little bundle close to her chest and holds it tightly, looking down at it. The baby slowly cracks its eyes open and looks up at Aurora. Its eyes are sky blue, the same color as what was Sebastian's. Blue is a very unique color amongst the Lycan packs. It was highly uncommon, and only two bloodlines held it. Vladimirs and one other that Aurora did not tell me its name.

Aurora stares down at the baby and then sniffs its crown. Her beast rumbles very softly, and the baby responds almost immediately. I watch Aurora tilt her head several times, staring at the child. Carefully, she unwraps the blankets and inspects the child's gender. It's a little girl, yet another uncommon feat for the Lycans. Female births are so rare that they are revered amongst the pack. Kaden should be quite proud of his mate for bearing a female.

Hopefully, her next pup will be female so that Kaden will have a daughter of his own. It's kind of funny that most species strive to have males to pass on the family name. Amongst us, the shifters, since female births are rare, they are valued above all others. You would almost say that a female is a God compared to the rest of us. To be honest, males are a dime a dozen. With there being only one female born to every fifteen males, if not more, it makes it very difficult to find a mate.

I watch Aurora rock and hold the baby after she bundles her back up. It's funny to see this very lethal female go from being a phenom on the battlefield to this gentle creature before me. I guess it only makes sense with her dual nature to be dual in this as well. I kiss her cheek lightly and look down at the little one. "So what do you wish to name her?" I ask her gently.

Her eyes dart over the baby's face several times, and then she looks up to me. "She is of Vladimir's line. I do not believe that blood is a huge influence on someone. I believe that it's mostly how someone is raised that determines how they turn out," she says passionately as she nuzzles the baby's cheek ever so gently.

"She will know love, and she will learn to respect others. She will learn that life is precious and not to be taken lightly." Aurora kisses the baby's forehead and then passes her back to the midwife.

"Please make sure that she's fed and held until she sleeps. Assign a nurse to her to remain at her side throughout the night." Aurora smiles as she looks at me and then looks back at the baby again.

"We shall call her Victoria, her name derived from the victory that released our enslaved people." The midwife receives the baby back and holds her tightly to her chest. "My Queen, what family name shall we give her?"

Aurora then looks at me then back to the midwife. "That will be determined. For now, just call her by her first name. I do not wish to assume that my mate will want her to have his last name." Aurora stands and gently kisses the baby's forehead one more time. "She cannot and will not receive my last name, for she is not a candidate for the throne."

The midwife nods gently and then hustles off with the baby back inside the infirmary. There's much to be done tonight, births that are happening. The party still wages on, and there's fun yet to be had.

I stand and offer Aurora my hand and escort her back inside. I give Jayce a nod of my head, and he puts on a nice slow waltz for Aurora and me to dance to. Gracefully, we slide and twirl around the dance floor. A smile never leaves her face as we move gracefully in time with each other. Halfway through the song, Dominik comes over and switches out with me mid-twirl. I watch them dance around the floor. It's a work of art.

She's giggling and smiling, and that's all that I could ask for. The next waltz comes on, and Arnulf takes her from Dominik, and the dance continues. Halfway through each song, a different mate switches out with the prior. Six songs in total are played before she ends up back in my arms again. Most of the dignitaries are starting to leave or head to the rooms that we are supplying for them. It has been a glorious day on many fronts. We have forged many new alliances and made great headway with doing exchange programs for the Lycans. Klaus is the most pleased that his people and others of his species will have the chance to meet and find love.

Aurora yawns softly and lays her head against my chest. Her body is slowly becoming heavy as she leans on me. It's been a very long day, and it must have been very tiring for her. According to Elsa's last reading, the babies can arrive within the next two to three weeks, putting her total time just shy of four months. Multiple births tend to shorten the gestation period. We invested in some of the high-tech ultrasound equipment to double check the babies' growth. I didn't tell Aurora yet, but she's carrying three babies this time. I'm curious to see how many are Bears and how many are Wolves.

The night comes to an end. Alaric and I slowly escort Aurora down to our bedroom. He takes her into the shower and helps her wash off while I prepare the room for bed. Our other four mates make their way down, bringing snacks and assorted drinks for us. Because knowing our mate before bed, she will get hungry, and we won't be ready. Klaus and Jayce fill the mini-fridge with juices and ginger water for Aurora. Dominik and Arnulf set up the snacks on the table near the bed. I'm in charge of turning down the sheets and fluffing the pillows, making sure the bed is ready for her. Klaus was absolutely brilliant when he bought the double king-sized bed for us. When we place Aurora in the middle, there is plenty of room for everybody to sleep on the bed simultaneously. Nobody has to be left out or shoved into a different room unless they want to be there.

We made provisions for Tiamat and Ladon to stay upstairs with their grandmother. Austin and Gisella, along with Draven, decided to spend the night. Draven is having a sleepover with Ladon tonight, and the poor nursemaids will be going out of their minds with two rambunctious boys.

Alaric walks out of the bathroom with our precious cargo in his arms, wrapped in her towels. He comes to stand before me, gently placing Aurora on her feet. Together we towel dry her body and her hair. Jayce comes over with a pair of her favorite boy shorts and a tank top just to try to keep her comfortable. Klaus comes forward with her cocoa butter and gently massages it over her stomach. If we listen carefully, we can hear him speaking to the babies in her belly. I don't know who's more excited about their birth, myself or Klaus. To be perfectly honest, I believe it's a tie.

Arnulf offers Aurora a snack and then sits next to her when she sits down and he feeds her. We sit back and watch them because their bond is still the newest. I've spoken with him at great length, and he is in no rush to father children yet. He feels the rest of us that have waited the longest deserve the chance to have ours first.

I love this man to death, his heart is huge, and he always thinks of everybody else first. We decided amongst ourselves that the twins will go next, and then Arnulf will have his time with Aurora alone. Alaric will have Dante fly them back to Arnulf's people so that they can spend a holiday there during her next heat.

For now, we make sure that she's pampered and fed, and it takes two of us to place her in the center of the large mattress. She wiggles for several minutes till she finds a spot that she's most comfortable in. We rock paper scissors to figure out who is sleeping where for the night. Arnulf laughs as he watches us try to figure out positioning. Aurora just shakes her head, watching us because this happens every single night.

"Okay, guys, let's just do this the easy way," she says, exasperated. "Dimitri, you and Klaus, since it's your babies that are making me uncomfortable, snuggle the closest." She tilts her head looking at us. "The rest of you just figure it out. I'm tired and uncomfortable; the babies are dancing all over the place." She throws her hands up several times during the explanation.

"I just want to sleep. Please let me sleep." Tears are threatening to roll down her cheeks, and we quickly scoot ourselves into position to not add to her stress. Aurora rolls close and puts her head on my chest, and Klaus scoots up behind her. In a matter of moments, she's out cold, snoring peacefully in my ear. At least one of us will have a solid night's sleep tonight.