"They're beautiful, Durga," came Abby Brown's voice through the smartphone as Durga held the device to show two infant Bengal Tiger Animalians laying in a crib that was at the foot of Durga and Shiva's bed.
The cubs gave some soft and questioning cries at the unfamiliar voice, but Durga managed to run one finger down to them and that kept them calm. Inwardly, it made Durga smile, partially in the sense that she also knew that these cubs she would better remember and could keep in contact with as they grew up and ultimately moved on. She and Shiva had long been paired together in the Lyre Zoo before Animalia came about, and it was largely part the standard captive breeding programs that zoos ran to assure that they wouldn't have to take an already endangered animal out of the wild in order to keep the zoo population going. But because the Lyre Zoo didn't need massive numbers of Bengal Tigers for their exhibits, past litters that Shiva had sired in her and she had raised were then sent to other zoos, and particularly smaller zoos, like Lyre's, who didn't have the raw numbers that larger zoos had. The pairing assured that after uplifting, Shiva and Durga took their relationship from just male and female to bond-mates or husband and wife, if one wished to use Human terms. These new cubs represented that happy future that Durga did like and want... though she had one regret.
“Yes… though it means I won’t be able to be in the Year of the Tiger competition,” Durga answered, “this little ones need me and I can’t be in two places at once. I tried to tell Shiva he could still compete and we would cheer him on… but he stepped down too to be there for me and help when and where he can.”
“Still competitive, I see,” Abby said with a chuckle.
“Always will be,” Durga smiled, “and in some ways it’s fun. Let’s me push myself. And made the training and practice before the IAC with you as fun as it was. The intense running and bike training pushed my skills… as tigers can be quick sprinters with better acceleration than a horse… BUT you naturally have a better top speed and can maintain it longer than I could. Thus it let me push the envelope.”
And in many ways that was true. For much of the year, Durga and Shiva worked at the old Lyre Zoo which now functioned as a sort of camp that would provide education and demonstrations on the environments exotic animals lived in, their behaviors, and the threats to them. It was as close to a zoo as Lyre could manage after Animalia was founded, and it worked fairly well for school field trips in the spring and fall and summer activity sessions for youngsters, but Durga enjoyed some sense of competition. Something to push herself against, and it was something that Shiva also shared and it drew her to him after their uplifting.
That in turn had her excited for the Year of the Tiger competition. She and Shiva registered to compete in it before she even knew of her pregnancy. There were some questions about dropping out so as not to strain herself, and the doctors at Horizon Light often warned Durga to not get into anything too strenuous and that then only added to the sense of challenge that Durga was happy to be in. The idea being that she would either give birth early enough that she could still compete or that she would make it through the competition before giving birth, which, even if she didn’t win would be something. But then her cubs arrived too late for her recover and have time to arrange for sitters, particularly with Abby off at college, and too early for her to make it into the competition.
“Well… unless the other Tiger Animalians have cubs,” Abby gave her some consolation, “you and Shiva would then have something they don’t…”
“I don’t think they’d want child rearing to be a competition,” Durga replied, “and Hercules and Megara have cubs… though they’re only half tigers… though…” Durga paused as one of her cubs nuzzled the side of her head against Durga’s finger, “these two are darling. And even without the competition… I’m glad to have had them…”
And from there, Durga began to recount back her cubs’ arrival into the world…
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The Claw Coliseum was often a place where Animalians in Lyre and Animalia often came for exercise and health purposes. Even Humans came to use it, with those that set up the facility for an Animalian's preference for more active lifestyles actually benefitted Humans in Lyre that wanted some place to exercise as well. The coming Year of the Tiger competition for Chinese New Year added a lot more Tiger Animalians to the various workout rooms and facilities and areas, often to either stay in shape or perfect things to be ready for the competition, and Durga was no exception to this. She always enjoyed a challenge, as shown by her competing in events in the first IAC that tigers wouldn't naturally be good in, too much of a test of their endurance. Durga had also preferred the competition to be as fair as possible and the competitors as close as possible.
That had been a big part of why she'd befriended and trained with Abby Brown before the first IAC. To some it would seem odd to have a tiger giving a horse tips on swimming while the horse provided tips on running and endurance, but it was something that made the training and then the event when it came fun. Competition wasn't fun if it was a one-sided affair. Though at present, challenge was more Durga's pregnancy. She hadn't fully planned it, particularly with the Year of the Tiger competition coming up, but Durga accepted it and took it as a new challenge. To show that she was still strong and pregnant was still beautiful if she didn't give birth far enough from the competition and things went fairly well. The biggest trouble through the summer had been a jerk of a Sheep Animalian complaining in the supermarket about something that wasn't controllable, which got that ram a roar which then got him to back off.
Other than that, the biggest challenge was from her doctors, who didn't want her in a position where her womb might be struck if the competition had martial arts matches or straining herself as part of the physical training. Durga insisted there likely wouldn't be actual combat given the fact that some of the other contests that seemed to be part of the competition for females would be hurt by any contest that would require delivering some form of strike. Balancing health and stress simply became another challenge for Durga to overcome, and for the most part things had gone fairly well. Though on the day Durga was intending to more practice her swimming. Normally swimming wasn't a problem for tigers. They were good swimmers and along with jaguars were reasonably at home in water, and even with her generous bosom as an Animalian, Durga had had no trouble. However, her pregnancy was something that was slowing her down a bit in the water.
Thus, wearing a white one-piece swimsuit, Durga made her way into the swimming pool with Shiva following almost dutifully behind her. His black swim trunks let her have a good look at his well-muscled chest and abs, which assured her that Shiva was more than strong enough to be the male winner for the competition. So, in a way, Durga didn't push him to working out, particularly as her swelling womb as something that would slow her down more and more in water. Thus, she wanted practice and make sure she could keep pace when it would come to the swimming side of the competition. At the same time, the water added some comfort at the same time, which she then in turn liked.
"Just remember to be careful," Shiva said to her, "remember what the doctor said..."
"Bah," Durga answered back, cutting him off, "the doctor's never competed in anything in her life. I can do this. We can do this."
"She's concerned for your health," Shiva reminded her, "our cubs will be more important than one competition."
Durga wanted to argue as she waded down the steps into the pool and soon had Shiva come up behind her. His strong arms wrapping around her and then chuffing into her cheek, making her turn her head to chuff back and nuzzle her muzzle to his was enough to provide the assurance that she wouldn't push things beyond what she felt she could do. From there, the two of them began to assume swimming down the length of the pool, doing their best to make sure they didn't do a lot of splashing as they made their strokes. They started at a slow pace and gradually picked up the pace as their muscles stretched out and got used to the exercise and the routine. After a few paces, Durga was moving up to the full speed should manage while feeling the water move against her bathing suit covered womb as she swam forward.
After a few paces at full speed though, Durga began to feel a few twinges in her womb and that soon brought her to a halt at the deep end of the pool. She treaded water for a short while before Shiva recognized something was wrong as he turned from the edge of the pool and came back toward her.
"Durga?" Shiva said as he came toward her, "are you alright?"
"I'm... not... shu... shu... suurrrrrrrRRRRRRRRRRRRUUUUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Durga managed as a contraction hit her.
"The cubs?" Shiva asked her as he moved quickly to wrap his right arm under her left arm and them moving to get his other arm underneath her legs.
"I believe they're..." Durga managed slowly, "on their way."
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"Shiva got me out of the pool and some of the others that were there and heard me roar provided help that ultimately get to the hospital," Durga said to the hone where she could look through the camera that was showing her cubs as they moved in their crib, "where spent about twenty hours in periodic pain and then near constant pain as I gave birth to my daughter Parvati, and my son, Kartikeya."
"I... I don't get it," Abby answered.
"Well... Shiva and I when we were born in the zoos we were in, I can't remember if that was in the Lyre Zoo or somewhere else now," Durga answered, "were named for the deities Shiva, the destroyer, and Durga, the warrior/mother goddess who rode a lion or tiger, depending on the telling, to fight a demon that could turn into a buffalo. I believe our naming was because of the association between tigers and the god and goddess. Well... while neither Shiva nor I are specifically Hindu... we did agree to go on with the naming that had resulted in our naming."
"So, your cubs are also named for deities associated with tigers?" Abby asked over the phone.
"Not necessarily," Durga answered, "Kartikeya according to a book on myths in the library is the Hindu God of War and IS the son of Shiva, though from the book... it would seem that the god's mount is actually a peacock. Parvati is a mother goddess and is the wife of Shiva, or at least the first wife of Shiva. In some ways and stories, the goddess Durga is actually one of the "fiercer" manifestations of her... but I'm not sure if they'd apply as separate individuals or one turns into the other depending on the situation. We simply picked the names from a book on myths and gods/goddesses from India."
"Well... they're still precious," Abby spoke, "and I'm sure they're a bigger prize than anything the Year of the Tiger competition would give."
"That they are," Durga smiled to her phone and to her cubs, "I love them very much."