EPILOGUE

LUCA

Walking along behind our mates, Anton and I exchanged a look of amusement at the decided waddle the two of them had. Not that we’d ever say anything. We’d learned that during their first pregnancies that sometimes it was best to keep your thoughts to yourself.

“Any idea on what you’re having this time?” I asked Anton curiously.

“Nah, Han likes to be surprised, so she’s not checked. She only looks long enough to make sure the babies are happy.”

“Cass is the same. She doesn’t want to know, although personally I’d really like a little girl.”

“Do you think they’d be easier than the boys?” Anton asks, swiping a tired hand down his face.

We were both exhausted. Between us, we had five boys from our first matings, all of them five years old with Anton and Hannah’s being a few weeks younger than Cass and mine.

And the five of them kept us on our toes. I had a new sympathy for our parents and how they managed to keep us alive. It was touch and go with our bunch if they’d make it to their teens at the rate they were going. Just yesterday, they’d built a hand glider and decided to see if it would fly from the barn roof holding all of them.

Thank fuck, both Cassie and Hannah were trained medics now and could treat most things. I’d been surprised that they hadn’t been hurt worse than a few sprains and a slight concussion.

We watched in amusement as the five of them all changed, scampered off in front of us, tripping each other up as they ran chittering out laughs.

Anton and I snickered. “It’s a good thing they’re so fucking cute,” I muttered tiredly.

Only to be brought out of it by Hannah letting out a warning shout, “Don’t touch that!” No sooner had she shouted than she and Cassie were hurrying towards the boys.

“Ah, fuck,” Anton grumbled as he sped up. We ran past Cassie and Hannah and came to a stop by the boys, who, still in animal form, had quills stuck in their faces.

“Change,” I barked out, knowing we had to get them not to touch their faces so we could remove the quills safely.

“Are they okay?” Cassie asked, panting slightly as she came up behind us.

“They will be,” I sighed as the boys started crying. Picking one of them up, I handed him to Cass and then another to Hannah while Anton and I got the other three.

Later that night, once they were all cleaned up, fed, and in bed, with none seeming the worse for wear.

The four of us stood wilting with exhaustion in their room, looking at five dark, curly-haired heads sleeping peacefully as only well-loved young could.

“Remind me why we’re doing this again,” Cassie asked, leaning heavily against me.

Hannah sighed at her words before answering, “Because they’re so stinking cute when they’re little.”

“Maybe we should ship them off to your dad and Annie,” I say, yawning.

“Only another ten more years and they should start using their brains,” Anton chuckles.

Wistfully, Cassie says, “Hopefully our next bunch won’t be as wild.”

“We can hope,” I agree, “honestly though, I wouldn’t have them any other way. Because they may be little shits but they’re also kind and well-behaved when they need to be. But best of all they love and look out for each other and that’s all we can ask for.”

Taking Cassie by the hand, I pull her out the room, “Come on, baby, let’s have a bath and then bed. I’m sure tomorrow will be another day filled with chaos and mayhem caused by those five.”

Turning to look back, I caught Anton’s eye, and I knew just from the look how much he loved this. It’s what made our animals happy. Family all together under one roof, where we could love and protect them.

“Love you, brother,” I called out.

“Same,” Anton replied.

It had certainly been an interesting few years with lots of changes and matings, some smooth, others not.

Later that night, as the house quietened down and the moon rose, my last coherent thought before I fell asleep was that I hoped our parents could see how happy we were.

THE END