Lilly: Well, here it is, everyone! The chapter everybody's been waiting so long for, and so have we!
Cody: Probably one of our best chapters ever, personally! It was so enjoyable putting it together and we made it longer than normal! We hope you all enjoy it as much as we did creating it!
Lilly: And we need to give a shout out to "BoltandMaybelle4ever" and say thanks! He'll know why...Enjoy the chapter everyone, and remember, leave a review to let us know how much you liked it!
It was early the next morning, before the sun was coming up in fact, when Lilly started to stir awake, yawning as she stretched out a little. As soon as she did, she felt what seemed like a kick in her large tummy, making her smile a little. She slowly opened her eyes to immediately see Cody still asleep, his arms around her still. She lifted her head and looked at the alarm clock, seeing it was right about 6AM. "Only a half hour…." She thought to herself, gently cuddling against him and his arms tightened around her a little. She let out a soft purr and lightly licked his cheek before laying her head back down at his neck.
Over the course of the next twenty minutes or so, she kept feeling kicks the entire time, making her smile and giggle a little as she rubbed her stomach. "I know, I know, we're hungry….Or are you all trying to tell me you're nearly ready?" She quietly giggled to herself, feeling another small kick, and then they stopped. She quietly giggled again and closed her eyes, letting out a happy sigh and feeling like she was going to fall asleep again when Cody's alarm started going off.
Her eyes opened again and he was awake now too, rolling over and turning it off before yawning. She inched away a little and turned onto her stomach, stretching a little as she did. He looked over to see she was awake and smiled, sleepily saying "Morning, beautiful…." She smiled too and they kissed as she said "Morning, babe…." He stretched out with a groan and another yawn, causing her to giggle a little as he did. "Sleep good?" He asked, holding his arms out to her. She got up and gently laid back down on his chest, being careful of her stomach as she said "I slept really good! Did you?" He chuckled and nodded, kissing her nose as he said "I slept great! Are you hungry this morning?"
"A little, but not too bad. The pups were making it clear they were, though…." She giggled, her tail wagging behind her. "Well, I guess I'd be a bad Dad if I didn't feed them, huh?" He asked, making her giggle more. They kicked a couple more times right about then, getting both their attention. "I thought you all settled down in there?" She said, looking back at the side of her wide stomach. "Hey, love? Did you notice it seemed to be the same exact spot those times?" Cody asked, a wondering look on his face. She nodded and said "That was right about where they were kicking earlier. I thought it was a bit odd, but I'm not gonna worry about it." He nodded and kissed her nose again, making her purr a little before she laid her head down on his shoulder.
They laid there for a few minutes longer, neither of them wanting to get up, but they soon heard one of the other bedroom doors open followed by a light knock on theirs a few moments later. "Mom, Dad, are you awake?" They heard Dakota quietly ask. Lilly lifted her head and said "We're awake, come on in, honey." The door handle swung down as it opened and Dakota nudged it open a little, looking in to see how Lilly was laying. "Oh, sorry to interrupt here….Didn't know." He said, turning his head.
"No, it's okay, son. We're not doing anything. You can come in." Cody said, chuckling a bit. Dakota turned his head back and smiled a little, nodding as he walked in. "So, something on your mind, honey?" Lilly asked, smiling at him. He shrugged and said "Not really, I guess. Just wondering how you were feeling today." Lilly smiled more and giggled a bit, saying "I'm feeling perfectly fine, don't worry. How's Crystal feeling?"
"She's still asleep, so I don't know. She seemed to be okay last night when we went to bed." He said, his tail swishing around a little. They both nodded and Cody said "You might wanna wake her up soon and see if she's hungry, okay? Same with Alexis and Chase." Dakota nodded and said "Okay, Dad. I take it you guys'll be leaving soon?" Lilly nodded and said "In about an hour or so. You guys wanna come or stay here?"
"Well, I personally wanna stay here today. You know, check the area out a little…." Dakota said, smiling a little. "That's okay, just remember to be careful, though. Still don't know who or what might be up here." Lilly said, smiling at him. Cody nodded in agreement and Dakota said "I know, Mom, don't worry. I'm just gonna look around for a little bit." She nodded again and then Dakota said "I'm gonna go back to our room and see if she's still asleep."
We went out and down to their bedroom, pulling the door mostly closed as he left. Lilly laid her head down on Cody's chest and let out a happy sigh, saying "You know, we should feel really lucky to have such an amazing family…." Cody chuckled and kissed her forehead, causing her to let out a soft purr and he said "I already do…." She smiled a little and closed her eyes, feeling a few more small kicks from the pups as she began to slowly doze off. Before she could fall asleep though, they got up and started getting ready to go. Cody made them all some breakfast, even though nobody was really TOO hungry.
A While Later Afternoon – Around 3PM
It was a normal day at the vet so far; Not insanely busy, but still quite a few people throughout the day came through. It was mainly just routine checkups and shots, but there were a few sick animals, too. Lilly was always out in the waiting room with the families, most of which they knew quite well by now. She was always there having fun talking with them all, or playing a little with their kids if they were there, too. They'd start to get a little too excited and rough, but their parents would calm them down and tell them to be careful with her since she was pregnant. A few people asked to feel her belly, which she happily allowed, considering how nice the attention was.
Around 3PM or so, she laid down in her bed saying she wasn't feeling too good, probably from eating too much during lunch. Cody was a bit worried, but she told him she was fine and just needed a little rest since she was a little tired, too. She fell asleep not too long after and then he had to go help Donna with something in the back of the building. He'd been helping her re-arrange some of the storage building out back to fit some new stuff in and they finished not to long later, only about a half hour.
After closing the storage building, he went back inside and immediately knew something wasn't right. He could hear a whimpering sound that he knew was Lilly and quickly went up to the desk to see her laying on her side now and seemingly in pain. "Lilly!? What's wrong?" He asked, kneeling down to her. She looked up at him with tears in her eyes, nearly screaming "Where were you!? I think it's time!" Donna came rushing out since she heard her and said "Are you sure?" Lilly nodded and pointed down at her rear, a big spot of blood right next to her womanhood. "Yep, it's time! Cody, take her to the room we did the ultrasounds in. I'll be there in a minute." Donna said, quickly going to her office.
Cody carefully picked her up and carried down to the room, going on and laying her on the bed that was in there. She was still whining in pain and holding her stomach, saying "It hurts a lot more than last time….Tell me it'll be okay!?" He nodded and kissed her cheek, saying "Everything is going to go just fine, I promise! I'll be right here with you…." She nodded too and laid her head down, whining and groaning in pain until Donna finally came out of her office after getting off the phone. She came over to them and said "Lilly, we're going to a fast ultrasound, but first, I need to feel your stomach a little. Does it hurt to touch it?"
She nodded and said "A little in the right spots…." Donna weakly smiled and said "Okay, I'll try and be careful. Tell me if I touch somewhere that really hurts." Lilly nodded again and Donna began feeling her stomach, very gently pushing on it in a few spots around her sides and middle. It wasn't until she moved down a little to just a few inches above her womanhood that made her nearly scream in pain. Donna immediately stopped and said "Sorry about that….Lilly, I know it'll scare you when I say this, but….You need a C-Section." Lilly eyes went wide and she nearly yelled "Wh-What!? Why!?"
"The ultrasound will tell us for sure, but it feels like the pups are turned sideways. I think most of the pain you're feeling is your cervix trying to stretch too much since they might be sideways. I can't fix it without surgery…." Donna said, lovingly stroking Lilly's head. She looked up at Cody and he smiled a little, saying "You'll be perfectly okay, I promise…." She couldn't help but smile a little and nodded, saying "Alright, if it's the only way….What'll happen to me while you're doing it, Donna?"
"Well, I won't be doing it actually, another doctor will at the nearby animal hospital. We don't have what we'd need to do it here. You'll be asleep, so you won't feel a thing. You will have a bit of a scar on your tummy, though….Right about here…." Donna said, putting her finger near the middle of Lilly's stomach. She nodded and right then, a wave of pain hit her, making her loudly whine in pain. "Okay, let's get that ultrasound done, then!" Donna said, quickly pulling the machine over to the side of the bed. She turned it on and got the tube of gel, putting a little on Lilly's stomach and spreading it around.
She put the sensor in the middle and started slowly moving it around, all of them seeing large shifts in the light and dark areas that Donna said was most likely her contractions and the pups moving around a little. When she got to the side, they saw what appeared on the screen to be a little leg and foot. "Oh, right there! I think I was right….Looked like a paw to me, but it should be down toward the bottom of your stomach." Donna said, moving the sensor around more. "So, that means at least one is turned sideways?" Cody asked, rubbing Lilly's head a little as she lightly whined and panted. Donna nodded and said "Seems so. I already called ahead and let them know you were on your way, so get her over there as quick as you can. They're prepping a room as we speak."
Cody nodded and after Donna wiped the gel off Lilly's stomach, he carefully picked her up and carried her out to the car, gently laying her in the passenger seat before running to the other side and getting in. He started it and they quickly drove off to Evergreen Animal Hospital, up and off the highway a little ways. It took about fifteen minutes to get there and they soon pulled into the parking lot, immediately met by someone with a rolling bed. He came over to the car with it as Cody got out, asking "Are you the ones that Donna called about? Lilly?" He nodded and said "Yeah, that's us. She's having bad pains already and Donna said she'll need a C-Section."
"Okay, the room is ready. Let's get her inside." He said as Cody carefully lifted and set her on the bed, causing her to whine again. He stroked her head a little and kissed her cheek, saying "You'll be okay, don't worry…." She whined a little bit again and said "It hurts so bad…." That got the guy's attention and he looked back at her, almost saying something, but simply shrugged it off. They went inside and down a long hallway to a set of double doors, pushing them open and going through. Just as they got to another room with a smaller door marked "Operating", the guy turned to Cody and said "Sorry, you can't come in here. Only her."
"No, he needs to come! He cannot stay out here!" Lilly nearly screamed, but the guy simple shook his head, saying "I'm sorry, he can't." Cody leaned over and deeply kissed her, saying "It'll be okay, I promise. You go in there and have those pups….I love you!" She started to cry a little, but nodded, kissing him back and saying "I love you, too! I'm scared…." He smiled a little and nodded, saying "I am, too, believe me." She couldn't help but giggle a little and they quickly kissed again before the guy wheeled her into the room, a doctor and nurse waiting inside.
The door closed and Cody pulled his phone out, quickly dialing his Mom's cell phone. It rang a couple times before she answered it, saying "Hey, Cody! What's up?" He took a nervous breath and said "Lilly's gone into labor, but she needs a C-Section." His Mom gasped and said "Oh my god, when did she!? Where are you!?" He smiled a bit and said "Just a little bit ago and I'm at the Evergreen right now. First floor, left down the hallway and through the double doors. Do me a favor and get the kids, okay? They need to be here as well."
He heard her tell his Dad what was going on and to get his keys before saying "We'll be there soon, okay? Just remember to keep calm." He nodded and said "I will, but I'm pretty worried….See you guys soon." They hung up and he sat down in one of the chairs, anxiety and worry all through his body. He could hear the beeping of machines in the operating room, slowly getting to a steady rate. "She must be asleep now…." He thought to himself.
½ Hour Later
Cody was up and pacing around the room, hearing talking inside the other room now, but couldn't understand what was being said. He hasn't even heard the slightest whimper or anything that would say everything's going okay, which put him into a slight panic. He couldn't look in since there was no window and could only wait for anything to happen. While he was pacing around, the double doors suddenly swung open, getting his attention. He turned around to see not only his parents and everyone from home coming in, but also Lupa, Shadow, Eve, Kevin, Naomi and Todd!
"Hey! When did you all come?" He asked, bending down and immediately getting hugged by Lupa and Eve. "We got into town a couple hours ago. We knew you were at work, so we went to your parents house. Good thing too, since they said you guys moved…." Eve said, smiling a little. He nodded and said "Yeah, we did, but that's not important right now." Lupa quickly nodded and said "No shit! How's Mom doing!?"
"She's in there right now. They're doing a C-Section….It seems at least one of the pups got turned sideways and she couldn't deliver them like that." Cody said, sitting back down in one of the chairs with his parents. His Mom started rubbing his back as she said "It's a pretty safe procedure, she'll be alright. Have you heard anything yet?" He shook his head and said "Can't hear anything through that door, other than the heart monitor beeping. She's been in there for about a half hour now." She nodded and said "It can take up to an hour, so don't get panicky…."
About ten minutes later while they were still talking, they heard a faint whimper, getting all their attention. "Wait, what was that!?" Eve said, her ears perked up high. Right then, they heard another and then everyone in there clapping, making Cody smile. "I heard whimpers….They're born…." He said, tears in his eyes. Everyone else smiled too and Lupa came over, hopping up and putting her head against his chest. He put his arms around her and they all stared at the door, waiting for it to open.
It wasn't for fifteen to twenty minutes later that it finally did, one of the nurses coming out carrying a towel and had a big smile on her face. "Well, congratulations, Cody! It's a girl…." She said, coming over to him. He had a confused look on his face and said "It? You mean….one?" She smiled more and handed him the bundle, saying "Take a look…." He held his arms out and carefully took it, pulling the towel back a little and gasped.
Instead of a little pup, there was something much more different….A quite large pup with human like features! Pure, snow white fur all over, the face and head of a wolf, but body similar to a human's. Even the paws were different; Shaped similar to a wolf's, but also a human hand with the thumbs. He could only sit there in shock as he stared at her, an overwhelming feeling washed over him. Everyone else was staring intently at him, waiting for him to say or do something. He finally looked up at them all a little, saying "I….I don't believe this…." He slowly moved and sat down on the floor, pulling the towel back more so they could all see as well.
Everyone gasped and Eve said "Oh my god….Cody, she's….beautiful!" He smiled and nodded, saying "She is….She looks just like her mother….Just different…." Lupa giggled a bit and licked her baby sister's cheek, causing her to whimper a little and Lupa said "And who doesn't love different!? She's the most amazing thing I've ever seen…." Cody kissed her cheek and said "She really is…." He looked up at the nurse still standing there smiling and asked "How's Lilly doing, is she okay?"
"She's doing great. Doctor Brown just finished her stitches and she'll be ready to go home in a few minutes. She'll be asleep a while longer, a few hours probably. She did really good the entire time." The nurse said, watching the kids all checking out their newest family member. Cody smiled and nodded, saying "Thank you, all of you! You don't know how happy I am right now…." She giggled a little and said "I can imagine. All of you take care and congratulations again!" They all nodded and Cody sat back down in the chair, still in a state of awe over his daughter. "Any ideas in mind for her name?" His Dad asked, putting his arm around his shoulders.
"Not yet, I'm gonna wait until Lilly's awake until we decide on that. She's gonna need a bit of time to really believe this, though…." Cody chuckled, bringing her up and kissing her forehead. She whimpered a little again and squirmed around, making them all smile and laugh a little. "I can't wait to see who's eyes she has." His Mom said, wiping a couple tears off her cheeks. He nodded in agreement and then Eve said "Cody, could I….look at her?" He smiled at her and said "Of course, Eve…."
He carefully unwrapped the towel to reveal the rest of her body, built more toward a human all the way down to her feet, which were more paw shaped. Her tail was already rather long, almost half her total length. "Aww….She's so beautiful…." Eve said as she came over, admiring her new granddaughter. She lightly licked her cheek, causing her to whimper yet again and Cody chuckled, saying "She must not really like that yet…."
A few minutes passed and soon enough, one of the other nurses came carrying Lilly out, who was sound asleep still. They all looked up to see the nurse coming out with her and Cody asked "Mom, would you mind holding her so I can take Lilly?" His Mom smiled and nodded, saying "I'd love to…." Cody smiled too and handed her to her before getting up and carefully taking Lilly in his arms. As soon as he did, she let out a purr and laid her head against his chest, making him chuckle a little. "She'll be out for a couple hours longer, but she'll be perfectly fine. She might have some stomach pains for a little while, but make sure she eats. Not too much, though." The nurse said, smiling at him. He nodded and said "Thank you so much!"
"No need to thank me. It was our genuine pleasure!" She said, giggling a bit. She went back into the other room and Cody turned around, saying "How about we head home now?" Everyone nodded, so they headed out to the car; His Mom carrying he and Lilly's new daughter while he carried Lilly. His Dad opened the passenger door on Cody's car and he gently laid Lilly down in the seat while his Mom sat in the back with Dakota and Crystal. "We'll follow you up in the truck." His Dad said, going over to the truck with everyone else and they all piled in, Kevin, Todd and Chase sitting in the bed. Cody started the car and they drove off back home, the entire drive virtually silent aside from the occasional whimper that made them all laugh a little.
They pulled up in front of their new home almost an hour later and Cody shut the car off as his Dad pulled up beside him. He got out and went over to the other side to get Lilly while everyone else got out of the truck and car, Eve saying "This is you guys' new home!? This is amazing!" Dakota chuckled and said "It really is! So much nicer than the apartment….What's even better is the sunrise….Comes up right over the lake." They all went inside after Cody got Lilly out of the car, laying her back down on the couch before sitting beside her. As soon as he did, her head moved up onto his leg, making him smile a little.
"Here, take your little girl now…." His Mom said, handing her to him. He gladly took her back, saying "Thanks, Mom….Lilly's in for a big surprise when she wakes up!" They all nodded and Kevin said "Sure isn't your average, ordinary pup….I think you two got one heck of a blessing and gift!" Cody nodded and said "I believe so, too! No other way to describe it than the word "miracle"…." They all settled down into the living room, aside from Alexis and Chase showing Aatu and Fable around the house. Cody turned the TV on so they could all relax, especially him since his nerves were still pretty frayed from the anxiety.
2 ½ Hours Later
It was nearly 6PM now and almost everyone was asleep, other than Cody, Eve and Crystal. His Mom had made a quick run into town to the store and got a bottle, filling it when she came back with milk so the little girl could have some and boy, was she hungry! It only took a couple minutes until it was empty and she gladly had more! About halfway through the second one was when she finally stopped, going to sleep after a few more minutes.
His Dad was holding her now since Cody was starting to doze off when they all suddenly heard Lilly groan, looking at her to see she was finally starting to wake up. She stretched a little, but groaned in pain a little and put her paw to her stomach when her eyes shot open. She lifted her head and looked down at herself, seeing her stomach was WAY smaller than before she went to sleep. "Cody!?" She called out in a panic, not knowing he was right next to her. He leaned down and kissed her cheek, surprising her as he said "I'm right here, love….We're back home now." She looked up at him and he could clearly see she was still groggy as she asked "What happened to me!? Why am I not pregnant anymore!?"
He chuckled a bit and ran his hand down her stomach, stopping next to the stiches and saying "Because you're not….You gave birth, technically." Her eyes shot wide open again and she looked back up at him, saying "When!? All I remember is being at the vet, you driving us somewhere and then….now." He nodded and said "They had to make you go to sleep. You gave birth through surgery, that's what the stitches are. Everything went perfect, don't worry. You did really well!"
She smiled a little and looked back down at her stomach, realizing there were no pups there and she frantically looked around, asking "Where are they!? Shouldn't they be here?" He chuckled again and his Dad came over, handing him the now blanket wrapped bundle. "Right here….Gonna warn you, you're gonna be shocked…." He said and she nodded before he unwrapped her a little, causing Lilly to gasp. "That's….our….p-pup!?" He nodded and she just stared with wide eyes, worrying him a little.
"Are you okay, babe?" He asked, hoping she wasn't having issues believing it. She shook her head and said "I just can't believe this….I know Donna said it could've been just one, but….I didn't believe her! You're not trying to trick me and I'm not dreaming, right?" He chuckled more and said "No, I'm not and you're not dreaming. This is our daughter…." Lilly slowly smiled and nudged the blanket off more, studying her a little before saying "She's beautiful….But, she's not a pup, though….She's mostly human."
"Partly. She still has plenty of wolf traits." Cody said, kissing Lilly's cheek. She nodded and started sniffing her daughter a little, taking in her natural scent before saying "I just can't believe this….I'm so happy right now!" They all laughed a little and Cody said "How do you think I feel? I knew we believed I got you pregnant, but….wow!" Lilly giggled a little and then Cody asked "Want me to lay her down with you?" Lilly quickly nodded, so Cody laid her down at Lilly's chest and she immediately cuddled against her mother with a little whimper. Lilly laid her head down and gently nuzzled her, a soft purr escaping her as she did.
"I love her, Cody….and I love you!" She said, starting to cry a little. Cody smiled and leaned down, kissing her cheek and making her purr more as he said "I love you too, Lilly….So much…." A couple happy tears ran down her cheeks and then she asked "Did you name her?" He shook his head and said "I wanted us to do it together. Do you have anything in mind?" She shook her head and said "Not really. How about you?" He smiled and said "I've got one….Serenity…." Lilly slowly smiled and lifted her head, looking up at Cody and said "That….sounds absolutely perfect! I love it!"
Well, whaddya know...Their pup's finally been born, even if it was through surgery. Lilly was definitely shocked at first, but soon fell in love with their new daughter, Serenity. We know you've all been waiting a LONG time for this and we were SO happy to be able to finally deliver! We really hope you all enjoyed it and again, PLEASE let us know if you did or not! Until next time, everyone!