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Balam Shichiro is having one hell of a brooding cycle.
Granted, almost every cycle felt like that at the beginning at least. It could get even worse than his wicked phase. Hell, maybe even Kalego’s wicked phase.
Or maybe not. Kalego could get very aggressive in that state. And Balam did not get that aggressive unless triggered by the overall emotion driving his cycle.
Protectiveness. Or, more specifically, possessiveness
There were several times that he accidentally picks up a baby animal or a stuffed animal and guards it with his life no matter where the object of his instincts came from. When he left the cycle, he had to track down the animal or kid he stole from.
Right now, he has nothing to hoard close to him except a decorated pot he stole from Kalego’s house years ago.
He is fighting against his instincts. Groaning the growing urge to sweep something up in his arms to coddle and protect. He can’t steal another baby hell squirrel again. He has to focus on just relaxing and letting it pass so he can get back to his students.
Students...!
‘No! No. I can’t steal away any of his students from their parents. They all have loving homes to care for them. They will all be alright. Calm down, calm down.’ Balam thought to himself, hugging his arms tight against his torso as his wings wrapped around his body.
Ah, his wings felt terrible. Balam winced, he surveyed the frizzled feathers that looked and felt out of place from the others. He needed to groom them today before he rolled around in his nest again.
Suddenly, a glowing blue light appeared around him in a ring in the inner circle of his nest. He growled at the sudden light source interrupting the perfect shadowy nest he had built. No one was supposed to be able to find it in this cave! That was the entire point in hiding it away from obvious sight. Now he was more visible to predators and—!
Balam fell straight through the summoning circle onto a hard floor instead of the soft safety of his nest. His wings unwrapped from around him in a sharp movement but they were stopped from reaching their full length due to the summoning circle limit.
He hissed, slotted eyes focusing on two figures in front of him that were obviously hiding something behind them. Were they threats? What did they want from him? And how easily will they fall by his claws when he decided to slice through their skin?
Balam could barely focus on what the two strange figures were saying. They did not smell like demon or animals. They have no trace of fur, stripes, claws, horns, tails or wings.
Something in his mind started to pick around in his brain to remind him of what they were, but his primary instincts did not let him focus on that for too long.
Especially when his eyes caught onto a welcome sight hiding behind the legs of the figures outside the circle.
It looked like a shoddy cradle. And inside was just a tiny little thing. It must be their offspring unless they had kidnapped someone else’s. Balam let out a coo at the child who looked up at him with the biggest baby eyes that were just full of blue like the grasses outside his cave. Actually it was even brighter blue than that familiar grass.
Balam could barely focus on the words the figures were saying until they stopped talking to look at him in confusion. He stared back at them, growling low in his throat which made both of them panic and bat at each other’s arms.
Then they were suddenly pushing the baby in his arms. Were they just giving them to him? He cooked softly at the little bundle in his arms as the tiny offspring reached up to him with soft sounds spilling from their lips.
Aw, they were giving him a gift. His own little baby.
Well that was nice of them.
Or maybe they were just trying to escape a long, painful death by his hands.
Either way, he got a baby out of it.
Balam clutched the cradled young to his chest and wrapped one of his feathery wings around the bundle to keep him warm. Then he narrowed his eyes at the figures.
He couldn’t hear what they were saying, but they looked awfully weird with how their bodies were shifting. They were shuffling their feet with beedy, greedy eyes penetrating through his haze. Were they attempting to make a contract?
...
Ah, he can do that later. The most important thing to do first is to make sure his new baby is warm and cuddled up in his nest.
With that, Balam forced himself out of the summoning circle while carrying the young child close to his chest. Ignoring any confused choked noises and cries from the portal as it closed quickly after him.
Balam looked down at his baby who had started to whimper at all of his movement. The giddy feeling was spreading down all the way to his clawed feet that were practically skipping on the stone floor of his cavern. The coos and grumbles from his chest kept his baby’s attention and made the whimpers gradually fade into soft breaths.
Needs to make sure it is all warm and keeps him out of sight to make sure he is safe from any predators that might sneak in. Then Balam would kill them before they even attempted to step closer to his nest.
He placed his baby in the center of the blankets, cloths, stray feathers and brushed his wrists and face against their skin. His baby gurgled with laughter as Balam shifted their positions. He was not satisfied until his child was cuddled against his chest with his feathery wings huddled around both of them.
Balam chirped for his little one whose blue eyes lit up at the sound, snuggling his face into his chest. His baby.
‘My baby, my baby boy’ Balam cooed to himself, losing himself in the protective urges and overwhelming sense of love overcoming him. The sound of their laughter was a soothing song to him as Balam shifted to hide the child even further from sight to keep them protected.
No one would hurt his baby on his watch.