Mama Fox

<Cleodora>

“Never again… I swear, never again.” (Z)

Laying on the bathroom floor, Cleodora supported Zuri as she clung on to her.

Looking the most miserable Cleodora has ever seen.

“…Why me?” (Z)

As Zuri motioned toward the toilet, Cleodora was already there, pulling back stray white strands of hair before they could be caught in the mess. The moment Zuri’s head hovered over the bowl, she lurched forward violently. Heaving and retching until her stomach emptied. When it was finally over, she slumped back into Cleodora’s waiting arms. At which point, she wiped Zuri’s mouth with a gentle, practised hand before ultimately drawing her close. As she stroked Zuri’s hair and blew a cool breeze against her overheated skin, Cleodora looked down. Despite the flushed cheeks and the dark, tired shadows under her eyes, Zuri couldn’t have looked more beautiful. Cleodora felt her heart skip a beat.

An intense guilt assaulted her soon after.

If Zuri were to have heard that, she would no doubt have gotten annoyed.

A quiet descended in the bathroom. Broken occasionally by Zuri’s laboured breaths.

“Y-You…!” (Z)

She called out to Cleodora.

Her voice losing strength with every word uttered.

“This is… your fault!” (Z)

The shout that had devolved into a whisper struck Cleodora.

“…Sorry.” (C)

With what meagre strength she could manage, Zuri pushed off her.

“Leave!” (Z)

At those words, Cleodora backed off, stood up and reached for the door.

But.

Before she could even come remotely close to it, she was called out to loudly.

“W-Wait!?” (Z)

Zuri gazed at Cleodora with trembling eyes.

“W-Where are you going?” (Z)

Her voice was light, devoid of any trace of her previous anger.

‘Oh, no…’

Immediately, Cleodora rushed back down to the floor.

“Ah, w-well. You asked me to—” (C)

“Were you seriously going to leave me…?” (Z)

Upon hearing Zuri’s shaking voice, Cleodora did her best to reassure her.

“N-No, I would never!!” (C)

Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough.

Zuri burst into tears.

‘I’ve failed… again’

Last time, Zuri cried in frustration due to Cleodora not listening. Naively, she took this to mean Zuri wanted her gone. So, following that dumb logic, she tried to listen more directly to Zuri’s commands. The result of which was a greater mess than last time. The tears Zuri shed today were not born from frustration but something much worse. Sadness. An immense sadness born from the belief Cleodora would abandon her in her greatest hour of need. Unable to handle that thought, Cleodora began comforting Zuri. Exchanging kind words and gentle touch… yet, that alone quickly proved it wouldn’t be enough.

Zuri continued to shed tears.

Greater action was required.

Exposing her neck, Cleodora forcefully interrupted the passive flow of mana throughout her body.

Zuri perked up in response, likely sensing the subtle shift in the air.

Without a moment’s hesitation, she staggered onto Cleodora’s lap in a trance-like state.

There, she proceeded to open her mouth wide, expose her fangs… and bite down.

Bite down hard.

Blood poured fresh from Cleodora’s wound as she lowered her neck to ease the strain on Zuri.

With her mana temporarily blocked, the reinforcement it provided disappeared as well.

A few minutes passed like this.

Zuri cuddled in Cleodora’s lap as she bit down over and over again. Blood continued to pour from the agitated wound. Freely travelling down Cleodora’s shoulder while simultaneously staining Zuri’s mouth. Despite it, though, Cleodora didn’t do anything to stop Zuri. Quietly taking the bites while softly patting her back. The pain from the bites hardly registering as the mother of her children pulled in closer.

Eventually, Zuri stilled.

Allowing a short silence to take the room.

“Hehe, that tickles!” (C)

Cleodora couldn’t help but laugh as a small tongue lightly played with the fresh wound.

It tenderly danced in the most pleasing manner.

“…Don’t let me do that, okay?” (Z)

Zuri spoke in a low, undecipherable tone.

“It’s alright! You need to.” (C)

“It’s not alright.” (Z)

Agree to disagree.

After Zuri finished tending to the wound, she properly settled in Cleodora’s lap. Wrapping her tail around Cleodora’s waist like a belt. Neither of them moved following this act. Giving the room to silence, they enjoyed each other’s company; at least, Cleodora enjoyed Zuri’s company. Nothing in the world existed right now but her. And, due to that, Cleodora focused on the only thing that mattered. From Zuri’s steady breath to her gradually reddening face, she focused on it all. Taking the time to enjoy every second of it.

A content sigh escaped Cleodora.

Four months have passed since Nori left. In that time, she could confidently state that she and Zuri had grown closer, much closer. Outside of work, Cleodora spent all the time she had with Zuri. And despite her now being unable to leave the house, it never got boring. If anything, it made them explore more activities to pass the time. Painting paper, sculpting clay, playing homemade instruments – the list of things they did together expanded with each and every passing day. Hand-in-hand, they explored the great unknown. Making a small adventure with their rather local travel.

Life was truly good.

‘Pregnant Kitsune often become rather possessive of things they view as theirs… especially their partners.’ (N)

…Yet, despite that, the words of a certain person rang in mind.

It was no secret Zuri had been behaving oddly. The bite she just administered being a prime example. A mark of claim, Nori had called it. Proof of ownership used to dissuade a partner from leaving. Along with that, there were other examples that existed of odd behaviour. Abrupt mood swings. One moment Zuri is smiling at a joke; the next she is glaring daggers because of it. Intense clinginess. Refusal to use the bathroom alone despite being too embarrassed to undress. Random dislikes. A chair had to be thrown out due to it giving off a weird aura.

All this naturally led Cleodora to wonder, had their relationship really improved, or was that merely a side effect of the pregnancy?

‘No, it has!’

Reassuring herself, Cleodora gave a half smile.

Beyond the activities themselves, the conversations they’ve had were more than enough proof.

Enough so that any odd behaviours could be easily dismissed.

Knock Knock

The front door sounded, breaking the serene atmosphere that had descended.

Zuri winced at the noise, not bothering to hide the displeasure in her voice.

“Who could that be?” (Z)

“It’s the healer.” (C)

Instantly, Zuri frowned.

“…What?” (Z)

“She’d said she’d visit, remember?” (C)

“…Chase her away.” (Z)

Watching Zuri face away, Cleodora began petting her head.

“I can’t do that.” (C)

She tickled her tongue.

“Then make sure she watches that damn mouth of hers.” (Z)

“…I’ll do my best.” (C)

Cleodora wasn’t the biggest fan of the healer, herbalist although she carried her debt.

Yet, even she felt bad at the unnecessary dislike Zuri steadily developed for her.

It wasn’t like the healer had done anything wrong. She merely stated the fact of the matter whenever she visited. A sore subject for Zuri, who appeared almost completely oblivious to the growing changes. Zuri entirely disregarded any talks Cleodora tried to have with her about the subject. Calling Cleodora an ‘overbearing idiot’ who spent time worrying about useless things. Honestly, if it weren't for the healer teasing Zuri about those changes, she might’ve continued as is. Wearing too tight clothes and refusing the breast pads despite starting to lactate.

“My, my. I hope I’m not interrupting the happy couple?” (L)

Freezing in place, Cleodora stared blankly at the healer, Luwn, standing at the bathroom door.

‘Ah?’

She must’ve forgotten to lock the front door after arriving yesterday evening.

Zuri’s tail swiftly unwrapped around Cleodora, then proceeded to flare out and cover them from view.

…This was no doubt going to be a long check-up.

“Tell me, Princess. Has there been a lot of movement as of late?” (L)

“…Why don’t you take a guess, huh?” (Z)

The check-up was going about as well as Cleodora predicated.

Zuri dodged nearly each and every question the healer asked.

“Zuri, please?” (C)

With a sincere plea, Cleodora held Zuri’s gaze. It was the only way to get her to respond in earnest.

As Zuri turned head, she finally answered honestly.

“There’s been a little…. Nothing I couldn’t handle.” (Z)

“A little? Hm?” (L)

The healer titled her head slightly.

Naturally, Cleodora couldn’t help but worry. Despite learning from Nori, she was still quite inexperienced in these matters. If something went wrong… If something went wrong, it would be entirely her fault.

“…Is something wrong?” (C)

“No, no. It’s just like I expected.” (L)

The healer stared down at the drink she’d given Zuri earlier. It had turned a bright pink.

“Expected?” (Z)

At Zuri’s sceptical question, the healer smiled warmly.

“Congratulations, Princess. It appears you are due in about two weeks or less.” (L)