376 words.
"I know it does, darling," he whispered, nuzzling into the thick fur of her neck, "but I am here for you. It will all be okay, my love." The dog mutt was certain that everything would be okay as soon as the puppies finally arrived. This would be the hard part, but they would be able to enjoy their children soon. All of the pain and frustration would be worth it in the end. Vigilante only wished that he was able to take away all of her pain, to take it into himself so that he could carry the burden of it. If it were not impossible to do that, then the King would have done it in a heart beat. He hoped that the pain would fade swiftly for her.
He sat by her side as the contractions took over her now, watching her nervously and waiting for any sign that she needed him. This was a process that female wolves and dogs had been doing for all of their time, but it did not stop him from worrying about the worst. She will be fine, he assured himself mentally. He did not want to show her how fearful he was, so his expression remained brave, even if the nerves were visible. Though he had already gone through this process when she had given birth to Kable and Amaranth, it was different now, for these were his puppies, and he loved Ayita with all of his heart, more than he had ever truly imagined was possible.
As the first puppy came into the world, squirming and whining, and Vigilante watched as Ayita's instincts took over and she did what new mothers did. As she settled the pup by her side, the King looked him over with nervous excitement. The coloring of the newborn puppy's fur would likely change a bit, but already Vigilante could see a pattern similar to his father's, and he was surprised to see the german shepherd coloring in one of his children. "He is," he breathed. "We'll name them when they're all here. Does that sound okay?" he asked, jade eyes glancing up hopefully. He was excited to name them, to give them identities in this large and overly demanding world.
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