Sonic's Alpha Chapter 26

"Silver, I'm going to do an ultrasound so you can see your baby…" Dr. Autumns addressed the silver male. A month had passed and both Sonic and Silver were scheduled for an appointment, and of course, the proud papas tagged along as well. Sonic and Shadow were in one room while the Beta couple was in another.

"Really?" He asked overly excited, laughing with joy. All Mephiles could do was smile.

"Of course," she smiled. "The ultrasound will let us see the development of the child. But to obtain a clear image you need to have your bladder full. So you must drink all that water." She said pointing at a huge jar, placed on a tray, containing at least two litters of liquid. Silver gulped, he wasn't even thirsty, but he obeyed, and started to drink from the glass he was grabbing, after sitting down on an examination table settled in the center of the room. Mephiles remained in silence, looking attentively and seriously at him, ignoring anything and anyone else.

"Now, to the ultrasound. The machine is in another room, I'll give you two a few minutes while I prep the machine," the skunk said while walking out of the room.

Before following after the doctor, Mephiles silently closed the door and with a serious expression on his face slid his hand over Silver's cheek in a tender caress. Then placing the hand on the back of his neck, pulled his wife to him and captured his lips in a tender kiss, pleasantly surprising the younger male, who wrapping his arms around Meph's waist, returned the kiss enthusiastically. After some moments of tongue wrestling, Mephiles broke apart to flicker his moist appendage over Silver's neck in a wet caress. Pressing his lips against a sensitive spot below his uke's ear he started to suck, eliciting a moan of pure bliss from his lover. The moan deepened and grew in intensity, turning into a yelp, as Meph's fangs gently nipped the delicate skin as his lips suctioned more and more frantically.

"Shh, the guys are in the other room," he shushed him covering Silver's mouth with one hand while smirking in amuse. The younger hedgehog, blushing, giggled when the male removed his hand.

"You shouldn't be so scared, Mephy, I know everything is going to be alright," Silver murmured quietly, soothingly, locking eyes with the Beta. Though Mephiles' tender gesture had been caused by the relief he felt knowing that there wasn't going to be any complication or risk, Silver had felt fear and preoccupation flowing from his mate in waves, so powerful and strong that it almost physically punched him. It was heartbreaking seeing his husband in such a state; he liked the strong and confident Mephiles, not this desperate and anguished shadow that had taken the place of his mighty seme.

"Silver, I would love to be as optimistic as you are, but life has taught me to expect always the worst. It's true, I'm scared. I'm scared to be happy for always it's the same. Every time I've had the rare chance to savor the sweet taste of happiness, the universe conspires against me to steal what I held dear, leaving me miserable, only counting on my pride and wrath to recompose the shattered pieces. Shadow admitted to me the other day that he felt the same way regarding Sonic. We're at war, my love. Neither of us would want to lose the one thing that truly matters to us in this immortal life—our mates. I nearly lost Bunnie to those military bastards. And this time I have so much to lose Silver, I... I…" he struggled to let out words that he had wanted to say to his younger companion for quite a long time, but something in the back of his mind tugged at him and made him hesitate. It's been centuries since they married, but he still hadn't managed those three simple words. He still wasn't ready.

Mephiles knew he had to remain strong for his uke, but he dreaded to see Silver disappear before his eyes, vanishing like morning mist as a cold laughter coming from the very core of hell mocked him, if he dare to say those words out loud. He sighed with profound sadness, loathing himself for being such a coward and, sinking his head in Silver's chest fur, he lovingly traced with the palm of his hand the curve of his wife's swollen belly, hoping that his mate would understand. That he would feel all those unspoken emotions the gentle uke had awakened in his cold, dark soul.

Some instants passed as both men remained clinging onto one another, concentrated on the scent and warmth of the other, to conjure all their fears away; when an insistent knock on the door sent them back into reality.

"Is everything alright?" the doctor asked from outside the room.

"Just a minute" Silver replied as he quickly pulled his mate into a passionate kiss.

"I love you, too."

Mephiles gasped in shock. 'Wait…how did he- -'

Silver smirked and whispered in his twitching ear saying, "I'm still connected to you through our bond, remember? I've heard it all and you don't have to say the words, Mephy, it doesn't matter. I already know what you feel for me and the feeling is mutual."

His beautiful uke gave him a quick peck on the cheek and opened the door, giving his seme a sexy wink as he exited.

All the Beta could do was laugh and shake his head. How on Earth could he have forgotten? He sighed; he was being a pathetic idiot. For crying out loud, he was going to see his child for the first time. It was a time for rejoicing, not for grief and mourning. He held tightly his mate's hand with valor and determination, a sweet smile gracing his lips, making Silver squeak in joy at this comforting attitude of his prince.

Silver was finally ready for the ultrasound, not after a little commotion: When Dr. Autumns finished explaining the procedure, the younger male, suddenly going pale and hyperventilating, had retreated to shelter behind Mephiles and, wrapping his arms around his mate tightly, had refused categorically to let her go near his belly. So the doctor, unfazed by the uke's reaction, but not wanting to intensify Silver's distress, allowed his husband to assist her during the process. She wasn't the least bit offended; it was a natural maternal instinct kicking in to protect his pup, even if there wasn't any danger around. It happened with every uke she's ever treated.

Silver remained stuck to Mephiles for a longer while, until the pale blue male, practically immobilized and suffocated by his clinging mate, had whispered gentle words of affection managing to calm down the younger hedgehog, who losing his grasp on the other, went to lie down on the exploration table. And he made sure to apologize to the OBGYN for his behavior. All she did was smile.

The pregnant male breathed deeply and then tilted his head to look at the elder vampire; Mephiles was pouring a little amount of gel on his hands carefully and Silver could not help but smile lovingly at the concentrated expression on his husband's face.

Silver hissed, all his gloomy thoughts interrupted, and a slight chill ran through his body at the sensation of something cold and sticky all over his abdomen. But Mephiles was so delicately and amorously spreading the jelly, with a sweet smile adorning his royal features, that same smile reserved only for his mate, making Silver feel so warm inside that all discomfort and anxiety were forgotten in a blink of an eye.

Then, Meph, following Dr. Autumn's instructions grabbed the transducer and placed it on Silver's belly, sweeping it back and forth...

"You are very lucky, the clinic has bought a new 3D Scanner. With this equipment you will see a very realistic image of your baby, not like those blurred ones of the old equipment," she commented, as the first images began to appear. She turned the console to the right so the impatient and expectant parents could see the screen.

"And this is your child, a beautiful baby girl." Her words were barely audible as Silver's tail started to tap on the table as wildly as his heart in his chest. He wanted to cry and jump as a feeling of overwhelming happiness flooded throughout him in massive waves, but the only thing he could do was to clutch tightly Mephy's hand.

The Beta had been rendered speechless, too. He watched the image with veneration while his mind was trying to process the deep and true significance of it all: His baby girl, another full-blooded vampire royal, daughter of two greats. So real; that face, the tiny body, her little chest moving up and down; she was alive, and was his and Silver's…Mephiles was brought out of his dazed daydream by his mate's laughter.

"She's sucking her thumb! And look at her tiny little tail, and… she's so perfect, don't you think so?" Silver's words emerged hastily through his lips, in his excitement. And his uncontrolled tail seemed to have a life of its own, making all kind of impossible movements and pirouettes. Soon, soft purrs filled the room as Mephiles, smiling, lowered his head to kiss chastely his mate's forehead.

"Of course she's perfect, silly… she's yours." The younger male looked at him mystified at the intention in his husband's statement. Those simple but sincere words entailed more than a mere compliment to his mate: admiration, pride and, what Silver perceived as adoration. All those sentiments flowed from locked eyes, as they silently held each other gaze for seconds that seemed to last an eternity. But they immediately turned to look at the screen again, unable to keep their eyes apart from that little piece of life blooming within its mother.

"Look, she's yawning." Silver stared in awe, with the same innocent and genuine fascination of a child unwrapping Christmas presents. Meanwhile, Mephiles was paying equal attention to both, his daughter, and Silver's beaming face, feeling more and more light-headed by the moment, as if intoxicated by an exotic liquor. Wanting to retain that image forever.

An amusing idea crossed Mephiles' mind and he smirked mischievously. He placed the palm of his hand on his mate's belly and let his energy flow slowly. On the screen, a faint glow appeared surrounding the child for a second. Suddenly, the baby curved her lips in what it looked like a smile and started to wag her tail back and forth, to the parents' delight and to Dr. Autumn's stupefaction.

"It tickles" Silver's jovial laugh rang out as his husband moved his hand over his mate's belly, sending little amounts of chaos energy at random directions, feeding his child with his energy, making his daughter shift more and more agitatedly. The baby stretched and shook her arms, opening and closing her hands, and started kicking with her legs, making Silver wince slightly. Upon seeing his mate's discomfort, Mephiles cut the game and petted affectionately Silver's head quills. The baby gradually stopped her movements, and after yawning, she started to suck her tiny thumb again, finally calmed.

The doctor had remained immobile, like a statue, unable to react; her eyes bulging out and her mouth frozen open, so wide and for so long that her jaw had become almost permanently disjointed. But finally, she snapped out of her shock, and, after blinking several times, she watched the screen again. Once she finished her study, she looked smiling at the enthralled parents. Okay, she'd seen fathers react to their children in strange ways before, but this was both shocking and somewhat comical.

"Now get ready to hear how mortal life sounds; this is your baby's heartbeat." She announced while pressing a button, and immediately a loud and rhythmic bang started to resound, leaving the couple absolutely breathless. For a long while, both vampires remained mesmerized; their hands intertwined; loud, happy purrs erupting from their chests and their faces transfigured, beaming with pure joy. It cost an epic effort to persuade them to allow the machine to be switch off; they stopped growling only after the doctor gave them a disk where all of the session had been recorded.

"Now let's go back to my office, I still have to give you your next appointment and the Alpha couple to see." Both males obeyed, following her without a protest.

"Do you think you'll get an ultrasound today?"

"Yeah." Sonic closed the magazine he was looking at and put it back on the shelf. "I think so."

Shadow smiled and leaned back in his chair. "I hope you do."

"You seem excited."

"I am," he said cheerfully, grinning at his uke. "I want to see it."

"Maybe we'll get to."

"Maybe."

Sonic's blood-work had come in mostly normal for the stage he was at. His hormones were stable and his white blood cell count was good, given his immune system's history. Everything was going smoothly. They were back to see Dr. Autumns for a second appointment to make sure everything was as it should be.

When she entered their room, Shadow was delighted to see that she was wheeling an ultrasound machine in with her.

"This is the new 3D model," she said. "The quality is much better than the previous ones. I thought you would like to try it out for me."

Shadow nodded and his smile grew wider. "We'd like that."

"Wonderful." She dimmed the light and pulled a stool up to the machine's screen. "My queen, I'm going to need you to lie on your back and remain perfectly still for me, alright?"

Sonic did everything she told him, resting his hands over his chest. She squirted a clear, blue gel on his belly from a plastic bottle. It was surprisingly warm. After the machine was completely turned on, she took a small wand and used it to smooth the gel over his abdomen. On the screen, his organs flashed by as she searched for his makeshift uterus.

"Ah," she said, pressing a few buttons on the machine's keyboard. "There it is." A few more buttons were pressed and the picture zoomed in on something small and pink nestled safely inside of Sonic.

"Oh," she suddenly said, blinking with shock. "Well, this is a surprise."

"What? What is it?" Shadow asked with a slight hint of worry.

"Is something wrong with the baby?" Sonic was scared to ask.

"No, not at all," she chuckled before adding, "They all seem to be doing just fine."
Both males blinked. "They?"

"Take a look for yourself," she smiled, turning the screen around to the expecting parents.

Their eyes widened at the image.

Shadow leaned in to get a closer look at the screen. "Is that…?"

"Yes, my lords." Dr. Autumns smiled at them. "Those are your babies."

There were four pink infants, no bigger than his fist, surrounded by a cushion of red tissue. You just could make out their distinctions such as limbs and tails and their teeny tiny ears and closed eyes, but the sight of the tiny embryos sent Sonic's heart fluttering like a hummingbird's wings. A rush of emotions swept through his system, reminding him that there was not one little life inside of him, but four, and that he was staring at them through a television screen. His eyes began to well up with tears.

"They're very small, and they are starting only to show their features, but those are definitely your babies. Everything seems to be normal in all of them, as well."

"Can you tell their gender?" Shadow asked.

"Well," Dr. Autumns said, adjusting her glasses to take a closer look, "It's hard to say at the moment, but I'm able to see that the majority of them are male. There may be a girl, but we'll be for sure within another month or so. Congratulations, you're the proud parents of a quad."

Sonic barely heard her. He could register her voice, and feel Shadow's hand enveloping his, but the little pups on the screen were the world he was in at that moment. Those were his babies, their babies. They was perfect in every single way and nothing anybody said could change that to him. He felt that he would go to any lengths to protect them and keep them safe. The sudden surge of love for the tiny creatures left him weak and speechless.

He remembered telling Shadow to make sure they got pictures to take with them and to show Mephiles and Silver, and of course the rest of their friends. That moment was one he would cherish for the rest of eternity.

Sonic was glad that he'd made the right decision.