I'm on time! For once I'm on time! That's so cool! It's Saturday and here's the chapter I promised! Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 11; Tori's Start.A Mother's End

I was dreaming. I knew that and I let it happen. I was sitting in a clearing in a forest. I felt at peace and happy. So peaceful. I turned my eyes to look at the wolves doing various things. Some were rough housing and mock fighting with their endearing growls and yips. Some were cleaning the blood from our recent hunt off each other. And some were just layingaround watching like I was.

There were six male wolves and two females, three if you counted myself. The blond female wolf was roughhousing with an identical blond wolf, who didn't seem interested in playing, but let the she-wolf have her fun on him. The other female blackwolf was laying with two other mellow male wolves as they took turns cleaning each other of blood. The males, a small black one and a large almost red wolf, lay on either side of the female, protecting her. Even though the males tried to clean the female first, she wasn't having any of it and snapped at them when they tried to still her. When they backed off she went about cleaning one of the males while the other helped her.

The remaining three were mock fighting. The largest of the trio, a dark brown, was keeping the two smaller wolves, a lighter brown one, and a dirty blond wolf, busy with his "ferocious" attacks that they dodged and countered with the energy of cubs despite the fact they were full grown.

I sighed happily at the sight of my Pack safe and carefree, feeling fulfilled that my job as an Alpha was being done well. Though my happiness grew when a very large blond wolf silently padded up to where I sat alone. I closed my eyes and felt my heart nearly explode in happiness as my mate buried his nose in my scruff. He gently licked my muzzle to remove it of blood since it hadn't been done yet. I took a deep breath through my nose and breathed in my mates comforting musky, heated, forest scent. I shuddered my eyes in pleasure as my mate pampered me with such love and care, and when he finished I turned to do the same to him. After we were both clean, my mate nudged my front legs with his muzzle, telling me to lie down. I did so, wary of how I laid on my bulging stomach. I had to roll on to my side because my stomach was so large, but I was fine with that as long as my stomach wasn't disturbed.

It had been depressing when I hadn't been able to participate in the hunt tonight. My stomach wouldn't allow me to move faster than an easy trot and so the large dark brown wolf had had to sit out as well to guard his Aloha while the others brought back the food. But it wasn't depressing now. Our pack was full and happy and that was what mattered.

I lifted my head briefly when my mate came around and gently nosed my stomach, softly inhaling and exhaling, as if he could scent our cubs inside me. Our cubs. My heart nearly exploded again.

My mate touched his muzzle to mine, telling me he was proud of me, before I turned my head at the sound of a yip. The young black female trotted over to me where I lay and nuzzled her Alpha. I licked her muzzle and swatted my paw at her in play. She immediately bounced backwards to avoid the gentle hit before pouncing forward and swatting my jaw in response. I mock growled as my mate took up his post behind me, watching for any danger to his pregnant mate.

Soon the others drifted over to us and greeted us with so much love that it made my heart ache. They all began to lay around me, with the strongest and biggest of our pack on the very outside, so they could protect the vulnerable younger wolves and their near defenseless Alpha should they be attacked while they slept.

My mate touched muzzles with me one last time beforelaying down against my back. I rested my muzzle on the side of the black females side and closed my eyes, falling asleep to the scent of my mate and the cub that wasn't my own, but the one I'd raised as my own.

I slowly opened my eyes to darkness and unconsciously moved my hand to rest on my flat, muscled stomach. I wasn't sure whether to be disappointed or relived that that had only been a dream. I blinked blearily, sensing no danger so no need to be alert at the moment. I looked down at the sleeping faces of Tori and Reece before looking out through the bars in thought.

Such a strange dream, I thought absently before laying my head back down on Reece's arm. I ran it over in my head and committed it to memory so I wouldn't forget it. What I remembered the most was the feeling of being pregnant. It was strange that it was so vivid given how I'd never been pregnant before, but Victoria's mother had often talked to me deep into the night with her soft beautiful voice about everything she was feeling. The dream was slightly different from her description.

Victoria's mother had said that she was happy and afraid that she was going to have a baby. She was happy that she would have someone that was irrevocably hers, an adorable baby boy or girl who would always look at her with love. But she was also afraid, because she knew that Randall would snatch up her baby and train it to be his. If it was a boy, he would be brutally trained into the perfect soldier. If it was a girl… the thought of the horrors the little girl would face from a young age made me shudder.

But most nights, when Tori's mother wasn't worrying about her baby's future, she was telling me about every single thing she was feeling. Most teenagers would brush it off as annoying having to hear every single detail of pregnancy, but I had been morbidly curious. I had luckily avoided getting pregnant in the first months of my stay with the family. I'd taken to many beating to be able to hold a child inside me and after that I was able to fend for myself. And when I had been assigned to watch over Tori's mother when Randall got her pregnant, I'd been curious to the point of exploding. And Tori's mother satisfied my curiosity.

She told me that it was such an odd feeling at first to feel something inside you, but it became a source of happiness for her. She said that she would look down at her growing stomach and just feel happiness bloom inside of her. She looked down and saw that she was holding something incredibly precious inside of her. She told me about knowing that she was vulnerable, but being okay with it because she knew that I would protect her if anyone tried to hurt her. She told me it was strange at first: that you could almost feel your stomach getting bigger. She told me about how wonderful she thought it would be when her baby was born and she would be able to breast feed him and hold him close. She told me about her cravings and I did my best to help her get what she wanted.

And then one night Tori's mother fell ill. She could hardly move at all. She was so pale and weak that it scared me for the first time in years. Her stomach was so big by that point, about the size a woman would be when she was at 9 months instead of 4 months. I tired m best to make her better by making her eat and drink and give her antibiotics and vitamins, but nothing helped. And she got weaker.

Randall found out.

Randall didn't care about Tori's mother. He only cared about the pure blood werewolf that she carried. He ordered a C-Section.

I nearly killed him. I fought harder than I ever had before and nearly succeeded in tearing out the bastard's throat. I would've if Bud hadn't shown up and held me long enough for Randall to get his revenge.

So I had fought against Bud as he held me as they cut into Tori's mother. Her screams still ring in my ears. Her sobs and pleas to stop, to stop cutting her open, to stop hurting her baby still haunted me late at night. Sometimes I swear that she would be right behind me, holding her very pregnant belly, for her voice was so clear to me. And I had stood there and done nothing. I had only watched as a trained bastard of Randall's took a kitchen cutting knife and sliced carelessly into the woman. I screamed and ranted and cursed as loud as I could at everyone in the room in every single language I knew despite the blows I got to shut me up. I had been in an absolute blind rage.

It had frozen only for a few minutes, when Tori had been pulled from her womb quiet. I finally fought my way out of Bud's grip, breaking his knee in the process, and took the silent baby out of the careless bastard's arms with my lightning speed. The room had been silent as I leaned down to whisper to the baby, patting her back gently to encourage breathing. I had spoken without thought of everyone else in the room. "Take a breath, Bambina," I'd whispered. "You have to take a breath. You need to fight. Take your breath. Take your breath for the mother who has waited so long for you. Fight for her as she fought for you." With one last firm pat the tiny fragile baby in my arms hiccupped and began coughing and crying.

I scooped out the mucus in her throat and mouth as gently as I could and scooped up a towel to wrap her in as I walked over to where Tori's mother was watching me with dull eyes. I got down on one knee and let the weak dying woman see her baby. "It's a girl," I had gently murmured as the baby slowly began to quiet.

Tori's mother hiccupped a small breath and smiled as tears pooled in her eyes. She reached a shaking hand out and gently caressed her baby's rosy cheek. The baby quieted completely at the touch, as if knowing it was her mother's loving touch. "Oh, my child," she had cooed. "It's so good to finally see your face. I've waited a long time to meet you. Sadly, this is the only time I'll be able to talk to you." Her tears had spilled over then and ran down the side of her face, her beautiful smile disappearing to be replaced with a face that was trying hard not to break down. "So, listen close. You are so very special and I love you with all my heart. I never once have or will hate you. You are more special than you will ever realize and you'll have a hard road in front of you. And I'm so sorry I won't be able to help you down that road." Tori's mother had lost her battle and openly sobbedwith her chin quivering as she continued to stroke her child's face. "I will always be with you, watching you grow up into a beautiful strong young woman. Never forget that. I love you, my little victory. My Victoria." She had sobbed again and her desperate green eyes darted to mine.

"Artemis," she had called weakly. I leaned down closely so I could catch her words. They were so faint that I barely even heard them with my advanced werewolf hearing. "Please don't let my baby go through what you and I did. Protect her. Get her away from here and raise her in safety. Help her. Love her. Love her and be her mother where I couldn't."

Tears had begun to silently stream down my face as I looked at her and said, "With my life. My life and happiness before Victoria's. Always."

Tori's mother's sobs stopped at my words and she breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you," she had whispered. "For everything."

I nodded and couldn't stop a single quiet sob from escaping me and shakily brushed a sweaty strand away from her forehead with a bloody hand. "Shh… It's okay. You can rest easy. You're going to wake up soon and you'll have Victoria in your arms. You'll both be safe and happy. Nothing will hurt you two ever. I'll protect you two like I've always done." I smiled through my tears as I lied through my teeth to the dying woman.

Tori's mother had smiled back and her eyes began to slide closed. "That sounds good," she murmured in agreement, but her tears never stopped.

I rested a trembling hand on her cheek and leaned in close one last time. "Good bye, Sister-Wolf." I watched as Tori's mother's eyes flashed gold for a moment before they closed. She released her last breath. Her heart beat its last beat. Her lips smiled its last smile and told its last kind word.

Tori's mother had died due to blood loss, but she brought her precious baby into the world before passing. She entrusted that baby into my care before she died.

She died without a name.

The baby, Victoria, had begun to wail, somehow knowing that her mother, the person who had whispered to her in the womb and told her how much she loved her every single night without fail, had just died. I bowed my head and let my tears fall as I held the baby close to my chest. My tears had fallen on Victoria's tears streaked red face, and we mourned the passing of a kind person that we would never forget.

And then they bastard's tried to take Victoria.

It had started with a rough hard hand on my shoulder. But before that hand could do anything more, I snapped. My wolf, who was blind with grief at losing a fellow she-wolf, harmonized with me for the first time, and we went on a rampage. Not ten minutes after she was born, Victoria had been in the presence of six deaths, two mortally woundedwerewolves, two cowards, and a murderess.

I had vowed after I escaped that night that the sweet innocent baby would never be close to killing if she couldn't help it.

I jolted back to reality as I felt a rough thumb caress my cheek. I jumped a little and looked blindly at Reece's face a mere six inches from my own. "What's wrong?" he asked in a quiet sleep-rough voice, and I realized I was crying.

I closed my eyes and whispered, "Nothing. Nothing, but the past."

My tears stopped flowing for the moment and I looked at Reece to see him critically evaluating me, debating whether to push the topic. He eventually decided not to and pulled me a bit closer so his hand could rest on my back and rub soothing circles into my muscles. I looked down at the 9 month old baby when she stirred at the slight movement and thought with sorrow. It had only been 9 months since Tori's mother had died. Only 9 months. Then why did it feel like yesterday?

Tears began to escape my eyes again and Reece scooted closer until our foreheads were touching. I shuddered out a breath that sounded a bit like a sob as I allowed myself to be held. I gently ran a hand over Tori's small back and my tears came harder until I was regularly sobbing as quietly as I could. It was so unfair, what had happened to Tori and her mother. Unfair beyond believing, and I seemed to be the only person who realized it.

Reece began to make soothing sounds in an effort to get me to calm down and continued to rub my back. Time passed and slowly my sobs turned into hiccups and sniffles as my eyes began to slide close due to emotional exhaustion. It was only when Reece whispered, "Go to sleep. I'm here. Nothing is going to happen. I'll protect you two" that I let one last tear go at the memory his words jogged and began to drift off to sleep.

As my mind turned hazy, it turned back to my dream. On how pleased and happy I'd felt to feel my little cubs kick and squirm inside of me. On how satisfying it felt to have my stomach feel weighed down and heavy. On how safe I felt with my mate and pack caring and protecting me.

I wondered hazily if that's how Tori's mother felt before she got ill even if I had been only one wolf protecting her.

I hoped she did feel that way.

Oh god. *Blinks eyes and wipes away tears*. God, I don't know if im being over emotional, but I almost started crying as I wrote about Tori's Mother's death. I barely held back, and only because I'm at the library with plenty of people who would look at me funny if I broke down crying. I never really expected to write about Tori's birth and her mother's death like this. I originally thought that Tori's mother would give birth naturally and just die. Kaput. Good bye. But that's not what the story wanted. It pulled this horrible death and birth out of me and there was nothing I could have done to stop it. And I don't think I'll change . I hope you found this as moving as I did( or I'm being an overemotional woman) and I hope you enjoyed it.

REVIEWS!

p.s. I'm kinda working on a third story as well as the two I have currently published. It's a transformers fanfic so if you like transformers and my writing, keep on the only prewriting right now, with only two chapters done and I'm just seeing where this story is going to go. I'll probably publish it in a week or two when I have 5-10 chapters completed and edited.