The Pink Robinkin slept throughout the night and didn't awaken until the morning, her body requiring such deep rest to recuperate all the energy she expended the day before.
When she did awaken, Suu instinctively hugged the two eggs to her chest, nuzzling into them before shifting the pinker one over towards Rhefia, who was staring at her gently.
Taking a deep breath, Suu smiled as she sat up, hugging the remaining egg close as she blinked the sleep from her eyes.
Rhefia and I sat up beside her, stretching ourselves out before embracing the Pink Robinkin.
"We... are leaving today, Suu. Heading off to Birchan to reunite with Sari and maybe settle down for a few weeks or months. I have children of my own I need to birth soon, so..."
I kissed the smaller woman's cheek before getting up, lifting the egg from Rhefia's arms as I said "If there is anything you want to say or do, now's the time... we won't be seeing one another for months to come at least..."
She nodded, her eyes lingering on the egg in my arms before she looked towards Rhefia, who had a mixed smile on her face.
"Would you prefer some space, or..?"
Suu glanced at me before nodding, her cheeks slightly red as she turned back towards Rhefia, saying "I... would like some privacy, if you don't mind..?"
Rhefia nodded at me as well, and I just smiled before retrieving my veil and leaving the two alone, understanding that they wanted to have one last intimate moment together before we left.
With Rhefia's daughter - in egg form - nestled in my arms, I made my way down towards the clubs stages and sat with the other girls, showing them the egg before beginning to make small talk with everyone.
Though, I did make sure to ask a few of the girls to take a quick trip to a food stall and bring back something nourishing to eat, handing them some coins to cover the costs.
Cherri left with them, making sure to get the best deal she could for the money I gave them; though, I could see the girls pooling some more coin together as they left, likely wanting to make sure their Matron had what she needed for the coming days, since she wouldn't be entirely herself.
Ithi remained behind and took over for Suu, giving the girls some orders to make sure the club was ready to open tonight.
The Elf sat beside me and smiled, stroking the shell of the pink egg as she said "I really didn't think I'd see Suu ever give birth. Always so focused on her club and profits... It'll be curious to see how she changes, now that she'll have a daughter to raise. I imagine the little chick will be just as hungry for coin as her mother!"
We shared a chuckle at her joke, and I asked "Ithi, do you know anything about Birdkin children? What we should be looking for and what we need to do to raise her well?"
She smirked as she leaned back against the stage, her eyes roaming over the various Birdkin women working in the club as she replied "Not much, hence why our resident Birdkin are constantly in and out of the club due to pregnancies. Once the egg hatches, the Birdkin will reach adolescence in a day or two, before eventually reaching full maturity in around six months, sometimes a year depending on the type of Birdkin. There is little 'mothering' that needs to be done, since they learn to rely on themselves after the first few days. Though, that doesn't mean you can neglect them!"
I chuckled as I shook my head, saying "I wouldn't. No, I was just curious on whether they needed milk or not... and how long it'll take for them to mature. Seems rather quick, doesn't it?"
Ithi nodded, a wry smile on her face as she said "They're blessed in that regard, but it comes at a cost. Birdkin are among the shorter lived races, hence why they mature quickly. 40 to 50 years is what I've seen. Comparatively, I was an adolescent for nearly 25 years, and a child for 15. It's just... the difference between races."
My eyes wandered over her for a few moments before I looked down towards the egg, my thoughts drifting towards the question of lifespan as I wondered how long we all had left...
Before shaking my head and tossing the thought from my mind; I'd find a way to make us all live for as long as we possibly could, and considering just how potent the system seems, well...
The girls eventually returned with large bags laden with food of all kinds, and they began to set it all out on the tables and bar, seemingly having bought an entire carts worth of food for everyone.
Suu and Rhefia came down minutes later, the scent of fatty meats and braised vegetables filling the club - the Pink Robinkin was still holding her egg close, but her satisfied smile told me that her and Rhefia had enjoyed their time together.
Giving the woman a deep kiss, Rhefia made her way back to me and looked at her egg, softly stroking it as she sat beside me.
We ate with the girls before saying our goodbyes, Ithi and Cherri giving me deep kisses as well as we embraced, while Rhefia once more kissed Suu as well as her other egg, saying goodbye to them both - for now.
Making our way home, we joined the others around the cart as I began to modify the existing one to have a spot for eggs - something I foresaw a larger need for in the future - and began to construct the parts for another, more reinforced cart, one that would be capable of transporting heavier loads.
The others all gathered around the egg and Rhefia, staring at it in wonder as they tried to figure out how a child would pop out of it, though Prixisia gave us some insights on how she and other Lamia were born, talking about how it wasn't as different as we were thinking.
We all listened to her as I worked on getting the second cart ready to go, which would be deployed outside the city walls so that I could save myself the hassle of explaining where it came from and paying for it if need be...
Though, of course, Heila and Prixisia would be confused, but I'd explain it to them as best I could so that they understood just how special this family was.
Either way, we departed from Tusk around noon, setting off towards Birchan in the north, where we would begin another chapter of our life.
One that... would be rather eventful in multiple ways.